I remember standing next to my mother as she drew cinnamon rolls out of the oven. Having not seen her make them, I was enthralled. Had the amazing design just happened, or was my mother a culinary genius?  How did she make the perfect spirals, achieve that crumby golden center where most of the cinnamon and sugar was hiding, soft and crunchy at the same time?

Years later, when Mom taught me the recipe, I was shocked at how easy the process was. It was the fast company-will-be-here-any-minute type of recipe that made the house smell like a bakery—but my mom still had some tricks up her sleeve. Whether that special little way to punch the dough down or use thread to separate it into rolls—there’s next-level-wisdom that a good baker passes on to the next generation.

She also taught me to love cinnamon. The kind we used growing up was cassia cinnamon, which has a way of warming you in winter and cooling you in summer. And perhaps that’s why cinnamon rolls have never really been locked into a single season. Whether a blustery winter afternoon with a cup of hot cider or a summer brunch with iced tea, they just work.

This recipe uses a biscuit mix, which makes it a good simple recipe for your young bakers in the family. Nothing says “home sweet home” like freshly baked cinnamon rolls.