Nicki's Cinnamon Buns from Heaven

Hello, 2011! Hello, B.A. Gourmaniacs! We've made it through an entire year together and I, for one, am looking forward to a delicious new year.

Just before returning to my family home for the holidays, a grad school friend of mine (not Nicki, lest you be misled by this post's title) entrusted me with her coveted cinnamon bun recipe. Over the course of the fall semester, rumors of these pastries had taken on legendary proportions. I had the opportunity to test this bad boy out this week and, let me tell you, these cinnamon buns are nothing short of a breakfast miracle. The recipe takes a little time from start to finish, but the investment in time pays dividends in a gooey, flaky, delightful currency.

"Nicki's Cinnamon Buns from Heaven" was originally published in The Oregonian, out of Portland several years ago--my friend's copy of the newspaper showed definite signs of love around the edges--and has garnered some acclaim and notoriety in the meantime. You can find a fairly faithful reprint of the recipe here: http://blog.tracyporter.com/eating-gathering/cinnamon-buns-from-heaven

Since I received this recipe second-hand (or would this be third- or fourth-hand at this point?) I wouldn't feel right representing it here as my own. I will, however, show off some pictures I took during the baking process.

Ready? Enjoy, but try not to drool on your keyboard too much!

Here we have two pans of rolled, filled, and proofed cinnamon buns. Don't you want to take a big ol' bite out of them already?

After a brief stint in the oven. Whoa baby! That's a lot of puffy, yeasty, sugary, kitchen-air-infusing goodness.

I'm pretty proud of myself for waiting to administer the glaze before tearing into these like a monkey on a Christmas ham. That self-restraint wouldn't last much longer.

Plated up and ready for my stomach!