Mom's White Rolls (w/ Cinnamon and Orange options)

Ingredients:
7 cups hot water (as hot as it comes from the tap)
Enough instant milk flakes or granules to equal 3 cups milk
(if I don't have instant milk flakes I instead use 3 cups of milk warmed up and 4 cups hot water instead of the 7 c. hot water and milk flakes)
1 ½ cup sugar
2 ½ tablespoons salt
1 ½ cup shortening
4 tablespoons instant SAF yeast (if use regular yeast, use 6 tablespoons and use as directed)
18 cups flour (maximum--I usually use at most 17cups flour—it depends on the weather!)

Put hot water in mixer. Add sugar, shortening, salt, powdered instant milk flakes (if using non-instant granules, put three cups flour and ¾ cup granules in a separate bowl and mix together well before adding to the remaining flour) and half the flour. Mix. Add yeast. Mix. Add remaining flour until dough pulls away from bowl sides and is still sticky but does not cling to fingers. Mix for 10 minutes. Spray large bowl with Pam. Place dough in bowl and cover with sprayed plastic wrap. Let sit in warm place and raise until double in bulk—approximately 45 mins. Then punch down and take out a handful of dough and roll in out into an approximately “dinner plate” size circle on a Pam sprayed countertop. Take a pizza cuter and cut dough into pie shaped pieces. Roll rolls up starting at the fat end. Stick them on a Pam sprayed pan not touching so that they can raise. Cover with Pam sprayed plastic wrap Raise until double in bulk again—about 30-45 mins. Put in oven at 375 for 17-22 mins. Until browned. When take out, place on rack to cool so that the bottoms do not get soggy!!
Also, if you like a shiny look, rub butter over the tops when you first take them out of the oven.

Optional: Sometimes I melt butter and spread melted butter over the circle piece of dough before I cut it into pie shaped pieces to roll up…not necessary, but does make the rolls richer…


To make cinnamon rolls:

Cinnamon/Sugar mixture: 4 cups brown sugar, 8 tsp. Cinnamon
Frosting: Mix powdered sugar with evaporated milk until consistency you like…

Divide the dough into three portions. One portion at a time, roll into a rectangle. Spread melted butter over the rectangle. Spread cinnamon and sugar mixture over the butter. Roll the dough into a “snake,” rolling from the long side in. Take a length of thread or dental floss slide the thread under the roll, bringing the thread around the roll and slicing through the dough. Place the “rolls” in a 9 x 13 pan or jelly roll pan. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap sprayed with Pam. Let rise until double in bulk (depends on the temperature of your area, but usually this takes about 1/3 hr.). Take the plastic wrap off the rolls and place in preheated 350 oven. Bake for 17-22 mins. (depends on the accuracy of your oven) until golden brown on top. Take out of pan and cool on racks so that the bottoms are not “soggy.” When cooled, frost. Makes approximately four 9 x 13 pans or three jelly roll pans worth of rolls.


To make ORANGE ROLLS:

Follow the directions above, but instead of the cinnamon mixture, use:
3 cups sugar, 6 Tablespoons orange juice, 6 tsp. Orange rind
Frosting: 4/1/2 cups powdered sugar, 9 Tablespoons orange juice, 1 ½ teaspoons grated orange rind