Cinnamon Purses with Cream Cheese Frosting

These spicy little rolls were consumed by the daring souls who made it into work on a day blown into disorganization by the previous night's snowstorm. Treats have been showing up on Fridays with increasing regularity (to many hurrahs), and this week I made the call to provide some myself, particularly as the forecast promised (and delivered) a headache-inducing commute for most in the office. What better, I reckoned, to warm up the workday than with a pan of pastries, homemade and dolloped with cream cheese frosting.

A sweet yeast bread provides the base of these purses, which means you'll need to plan the recipe into your day. It's not an on-a-whim recipe. But these pastries are simpler than your average roll and slice cinnamon buns. Instead of flouring out a work surface and attempting to flatten the dough into a passably rectangular shape, you take hunks of dough straight from the bowl and shape any-size patties with your hands. Pour a little cinnamon sugar into the middle, pinch the corners together, and you have a bite that is delightful to look at and delightful to eat. It's a sweet, spicy treat, finished with a crown of silky frosting—in appearance, not unlike the snow everyone is tromping through.

Adapted from The Fresh Loaf's Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Purses with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients for dough:

1 ¼ cups evaporated milk

2 tsp. yeast

2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

¼ cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. salt

2 TBSP butter, melted

Ingredients for filling:

¼ cup brown sugar

1 TBSP ground cinnamon

Ingredients for frosting:

2 oz. cream cheese

4 TBSP unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

--Make dough. Heat milk in a medium saucepan until warm, but not scalding. Pour over yeast and let sit until yeast has proofed, about 10 minutes. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar and salt.

--Add proofed yeast and butter to flour mixture and stir until a cohesive mass begins to form. Knead until dough is pliable and smooth, 10 to 15 minutes. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, or about 1 hour. Stir together filling ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup.

-- Shape purses. Take a golf ball-sized piece of dough and stretch into a flat, roughly rectangular shape about ¼ inch thick. Holding the piece in one cupped hand, sprinkle ½ TBSP cinnamon-sugar filling onto the pastry. Pinch four sides of the dough into the middle, creating a four-cornered, purse-like shape. Set onto an unlined 8x8-inch square pan. Repeat with remaining dough; you'll end up with 12-14 purses.

--Let rest 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until tops are lightly browned.

--While purses are baking, prepare frosting. Stir together butter and cream cheese. Sift powdered sugar into the bowl and mix until completely incorporated. Spoon frosting onto the warm pastries. Best served warm, but the purses will keep overnight in an airtight container.