Sweet Excess: Glazed Cinnamon Rolls Stuffed With Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Just in case you'd ever wondered: as it turns out, stuffing cinnamon rolls with chocolate chip cookie dough really does make them more delicious.

I know this because yesterday, finding myself with a free coupon for some Pillsbury Sweet Rolls, I went to the store and picked up a pack of Orange Cinnamon Rolls with which I set to experimenting. Now, I'm not adverse to enjoying these sweeties in their natural state, but while preparing some cookie dough for my annual Memorial Day Cookie Cake Pie, it occurred to me that stuffing them with cookie dough might just make them even better.

And you know what? They were amazing: gooey, high-fat, high-carb heaven. But don't worry if you're counting calories: I'm pretty sure that the orange glaze made them healthier.

Here's how you do it at home.

Glazed Cinnamon Rolls Stuffed with Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Ingredients

• 1 package Pillsbury cinnamon rolls with glaze (I used orange sweet rolls)
• 1 teaspoon chocolate chip cookie dough per cinnamon roll (if uneasy about if it will cook thoroughly, use an egg-free version)

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Unwrap the roll of cinnamon rolls until you get that jarring "pop" that means the feast has been unleashed.
3. Separate the rolls, and unroll each one gently.
4. Roll each teaspoon of cookie dough into a thin log (use floured hands), slightly thinner than the thickness of the unrolled cinnamon roll.
5. Place the log of dough on top of the unrolled cinnamon roll, and gently re-roll. Repeat with the rest of the rolls.
6. Place the rolls in a lightly greased pie plate (it keeps it all contained) and bake according to the package directions, 15 minutes or so.
7. Once the rolls are out of the oven, gently heat the glaze in the microwave for about 10 seconds, or until pourable. Liberally glaze your cinnamon rolls with it.
8. Enjoy.

Put the Lime in the Coconut: Cupcake Royale Debuts Toasted Coconut Lime Cupcakes for June!

Goodbye forever, May 2010! Hello June, and hello to Cupcake Royale's new flavor of the month: Toasted Coconut Lime. As they put it:

Yeah, we did it. We put the lime in the coconut and baked it all up. Moist coconut cake gets a tart and tangy swirl of real lime buttercream. We finish it off with toasted coconut for a truly tasty tropical treat!

And knowing that June is a big month for dads and grads, they kindly offer some life-lesson cupcake tips for grads:

1.  If you are giving a speech at your graduation, hide a cupcake under someone's chair. At some point, that person will find the cupcake and begin cheering wildly. Hopefully this happens either during or immediately after your speech.

2. If you are still a little miffed about a certain bad grade, give that instructor a cupcake...better yet, a 2-pack! They won't change your grade, but at least they'll know that deep down, you're really a swell kid after all.

3. If your parents are still speaking to you after all the senseless things you've done and all their money you've spent over the past four years, give them cupcakes. This one really goes without saying, whether you are graduating from college or kindergarten.

4. If you are throwing a graduation party, going to a graduation party, or just like graduation parties, order tons of cupcakes from Cupcake Royale. Literally, TONS.

5. Finally, you're graduating! Give yourself a cupcake already, and congratulations from Cupcake Royale! We believe the children are our future, and we believe those children should eat cupcakes.

The Toasted Coconut Lime cupcake will be available for the entire month of June at all four locations; for more information, visit cupcakeroyale.com.

Batter Chatter: Interview with Kimm Moore, Pastry Chef at Spitfire Grill, Seattle

When I attended CupcakeCamp Seattle a couple of months ago, I encountered a sweet surprise: several creative cupcake entries from an unexpected source: Kimm Moore, the pastry chef at Spitfire Grill. Why such a surprise? Well, for one thing, I didn't even know that they had a pastry chef--after all, it's a sports bar! Not exactly a place that you'd expect delicious pastries. But these were very tasty cakes, friends. I simply had to learn more--here's a sweet interview with Kimm!

CakeSpy: Tell me how you got involved in the pastry arts.

Kimm Moore: I have been cooking and baking professionally for about 5 years now. Growing up, I knew I wanted to career that is active, creative, fun, precise, and help people look at food differently. I love the pastry arts because it lets me be creative with food/desserts.

CS: How did you become the pastry chef at the Spitfire Grill, which identifies as "a gathering space for sports"?

KM: I have been working, at Spitfire - Microsoft main campus location, for almost one year. Yes, we do identify ourselves as a "casual sports bar" but we do much more. We hold private parties, banquets for morale events, inside and outside catering events, and dessert banquets. I am the pastry chef, but also a line cook. I started as a line cook, then showed my bosses all the pastry work in my past. I wanted to help Spitfire grow, pastry-wise.

CS: What kind of desserts can be found on your menu?

KM: From a basic brownie sundae to my homemade pound cake bread pudding. I also do banquet dessert items, which can include mini cupcakes, lemon tarts, caramel tarts, and chocolate rum mousse cups. We do receive orders for special items, which I am happy to make.

CS: Do you have a lot of creative license in the kitchen, to design new desserts?

KM: To an extent. There are "set" items on the menu, which regular people like to see, but I love to get creative with banquet dessert items.

CS: At CupcakeCamp Seattle, you brought an amazingly creative roster of cupcakes to the event. Any chance we could get any of those at your work?

KM: Yes! I love making and creating new cupcakes also. If someone wants a special request cupcake, I am sure to do it!

CS: What is your favorite dessert to make?

KM: As simple as it sounds, I love to make cookies. They are a sweet item everyone loves and has favorite. You can get very creative and artistic with cookies...or just make a simple batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies. Also, there is some "science" to different mixing methods, for cookies, which I love.

CS: What is your favorite dessert to eat?

KM: There is something child-like about eating a good quality ice-cream, or gelato, in a waffle cone. Frozen desserts are in a world of their own, and I tend to favor those. I have a weakness for semi-freddos.

CS: Pie and cake are alone in a dark alley with switchblades. Who's going to come out the victor in this battle?

KM: Pie and cake are similar to cupcakes, because all have a "home-like" appeal to the masses. I believe pie will come out as a winner. Pie tends to be "lighter" versus cake. I like what High 5 Pie is doing around Seattle, bring more people aware of "good" pie. I love baking pie, too. I went to a National Pie Baking Contest, in Kissimee, Florida, and has a blast meeting with fellow pie bakers from across the country.

CS: If I were to ask something obnoxious like "do you see any emerging trends in the world of pastry?" what would you have to say?

KM: Honestly I see: beer in desserts, small bite banquet desserts, and healthy, especially gluten-free and vegan, desserts/baked goods.

CS: What is one of your proudest baking moments?

KM: When I was a bread baker, for COBS BREAD, our bakery's Country Grain bread placed 1st in a bread baking contest in Canada. I felt like waking up at 2 am everyday, for work, FINALLY paid off! I also, felt very proud at Cupcake Camp and meeting fellow cupcake bakers and lovers. I always feel happy and confident when someone says they love my work! What are some of your ultimate goals as a baker? As a baker, I want to change how people look at pastry items and how good ingredients equals a better product. You do not need to buy prepackaged cookies or take 'n' bake cookie dough, you can make your own cookies with good ingredients. Some people tend to "skimp" on baking ingredients which makes a less quality product. I also want people to eat better, healthier baked goods. I love baking healthy, gluten-free, and vegan items. I give them to people to taste, and they say "Wow! Can't even taste a difference!"

You can taste Kimm's desserts at The Spitfire Grill!

Biscuit Time: Easy Biscuits with Chocolate Gravy

Ever since I heard that it was one of Dolly Parton's favorite things to eat, I've been obsessed with the very idea of biscuits and chocolate gravy. So when I recently made Biscuits with Sugar Butter from the new Rosanna Bowles Cookbook , I took advantage of the moment and saved a few biscuits so that I could try this sweet dish for myself.

Although there are plenty of recipes out there for chocolate gravy (isn't life wonderful?), I decided to go the easy route and used the bittersweet chocolate topping from Sassy Sauces. When lightly heated and generously poured on top of the biscuits in a viscous, chocolatey mess, it might not have made for a beautiful dish to serve, but it sure was delicious. I'm sure that the hot fudge sauce of your choosing would work beautifully as well, if you're not inclined to make the gravy yourself.

For the Paula Deen version of this dish, you can find a recipe here; for my version, combine the biscuit recipe from this posting with a big ol' jar of warm bittersweet chocolate sauce by Sassy Sauces (it's tasty), or a generous heaping of your favorite (preferably very thick) hot fudge sauce. Top with some shredded coconut or sprinkles if you're feeling festive.