Heart Shaped Cinnamon Rolls (Round Duex)

Happy February!  Usually January flies by for me but this year it went super slow.  I was ready to get to some heart-themed things for Valentine's Day...and now I can finally get to it!  

We'll start out by bringing back these delicious handmade cinnamon rolls inspired by a recipe featured {here} that are perfect to share with those you love.

Adorable, huh?  Here's how to make them.

Ingredients:

For the dough...
3/4 cup part skim ricotta cheese
1/3 cup low fat buttermilk
1/4 cup sugar
2 oz salted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
9 oz flour (approx 2 heaping cups)
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda

For the filling...
1 oz salted butter, melted
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

For the frosting...
2 oz mascarpone cheese, at room temp
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
(be flexible with these ingredients to make it a nice frosting/glaze-like consistency)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease a 8-9" square baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Combine ricotta cheese, buttermilk, sugar, melted butter, and vanilla in a mixer or food processor and mix until smooth - approx 10 seconds.  Add flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda and mix in short bursts just until dough clumps together (don't over mix it).  The dough should be soft and moist, but still appear to be rather clumpy.

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3. Dump dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it with floured hands until smooth (about a minute).  With floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 12"x15" rectangle.  Doesn't have to be exact ;o)

4. Now for the filling, brush the dough with melted butter (leave a 1/2" border of the dough unbuttered).  In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.  Sprinkle this mixture all over the buttered surface of the dough, then gently pat down so it adheres to the dough.

5. To created the heart shape, carefully roll both long sides toward the middle until they meet.  After the dough is rolled, use a sharp knife to cut equal slices, approx 1" thick.  (I got 9 rolls out of my dough)

6. Gently pinch the bottom (flat side) of each roll until it resembles a heart.

7. Place rolls in greased baking dish.  They will be touching, but that's good!

8. Place in preheated oven and bake for about 30 min, or until golden brown and firm to the touch.

(They don't look so cute now...but they will soon!)

9. Time for frosting!  In a small bowl, mix room-temp mascarpone cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk until smooth.  Add small amounts of milk or powdered sugar as needed to achieve desired consistency.  Spread over slightly warm rolls and let stand for a few minutes before devouring!

These are the perfect treat for teachers, neighbors and friends, or your family for Valentine's Day morning or any day this month!  If you give them a whirl, do let me know what you think of them.