I did it! I have figured out the art of making bread, rolls, and especially cinnamon rolls in the Sun Oven! You see it started a few years ago when my brother and sister-in-law were telling me how they made cinnamon rolls in their Sun Oven (yeah, we pretty much all have one…it’s awesome!). I’ve pretty much spent the last 5 years perfecting the art of cinnamon rolls, so since I found the BEST cinnamon rolls recipe, I knew I had to try it in the Sun Oven. It makes super delicious baked goods (like banana bread, zucchini bread, brownie cupcakes, etc.) because it allows them to cook slower at a lower temperature. However, up until this point my yeast bread production in the Sun Oven has been a little lack luster.
I had been rising the bread and then baking like you would in a regular oven but it was over-rising and then falling. Then it dawned on me…what if I put the bread, cinnamon rolls, YEAST BREAD in the Sun Oven (NOT pre-heated) right after shaping instead of letting it rise first. That way it can rise in the oven (since it is at a lower temperature) and then slowly bake. Let me tell you it worked GREAT! The rolls even got brown! In fact, I could have taken them out sooner but we had some friends stop by and I couldn’t get out there right away.
The other trick I learned was to put the 9 rolls in 2 large muffin tins overlapping so the tins will fit in the oven (see picture below). That was my husband’s brilliant mind to figure out how to make the 2 tins fit in the oven. Notice how nicely they are rising and baking in the Sun Oven.
I was even able to “sun boil” some eggs underneath the tins and rack. An entire breakfast (or we had them as breakfast for dinner) baked right in the Sun Oven. Now if you’ve never tried a sun boiled egg, you’re missing out! They are PERFECT! Now green around the yolk, no rubbery white. They are tender and moist and I will never boil another egg in water again.
As you can tell, the rolls were cooked perfectly. No doughy centers, the bread part was thick and perfectly soft and chewy, the cinnamon sugar gooey and they looked perfect! I’m telling you in all of my years trying to perfect the art of cinnamon roll making, I think I’ve found the secret ingredient and it’s the SUN!
