Overnight Cinnamon Roll Waffles

Growing up in my family, Christmas morning breakfast was always a big deal. Why? Because it was basically the only morning of the year my mom made a big homemade breakfast. It was one of my favorite parts of Christmas. We would usually always have pancakes, eggs, hash browns, bacon and freshly squeezed orange juice, although I'm pretty sure my mom went with a pancake mix. I don't think she loves cooking the way I do =). Because of this tradition Christmas breakfast is still important to me, it's such a highlight of Christmas. That's why I've tried to post a few breakfast recipe options you could prepare for your holiday breakfast. 

This time around I wanted to create a breakfast entree that could be prepared the night before and then cooked the next morning, because I know it's not likely you want to wake up and spend the morning in the kitchen. You can prepare the waffle batter as well as the cream cheese glaze the night before. 

If you wanted even more indulgence you could also drizzle them with a brown sugar glaze (made with brown sugar, melted butter and some cinnamon - then I'd reduce the amount of cinnamon in the waffle batter) or you could mix about 1 tsp of molasses into the batter to give them a light brown sugar flavor like a cinnamon roll (I just didn't think of it until after I'd prepared them =), but they were amazing the way they were). Also, just wanted to mention the Cream Cheese Glaze is meant to be runny, like a glaze or similar to a syrup. It's not as thick as frosting. If you want it thick just use less milk. Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

Overnight Cinnamon Waffles with Cream Cheese Glaze {AKA Cinnamon Roll Waffles}
Yield will vary depending on waffle iron size* 

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup milk, heated to 110 degrees 
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 recipe Cream Cheese Glaze, recipe follows

Directions:
In a mixing bowl (or the glass liquid measuring cup used to measure and warm milk in microwave) whisk together warm milk, yeast and 1/2 tsp of the sugar. Let mixture rest for 5 minutes. 
In a large mixing bowl combine remaining sugar, vegetable oil, melted butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, eggs and vanilla and whisk mixture together until well combine. Add rested yeast mixture to butter and oil mixture and mix until well combine. Whisk in 1 cup flour and mix until well blended, then add remaining 1 cup flour and mix until well blended. Scrape down the sides of bowl and cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and allow mixture to rest in refrigerator 12 hours or up to 24 hours (make sure you use a big mixing bowl so it doesn't overflow into your fridge as the batter rises).
After batter has rested, preheat oven to 180 degrees and set a wire cooling rack over a rimmed cookie sheet in center of oven. Preheat an electric waffle iron. Remove batter from refrigerator and whisk well, then prepare waffles according waffle iron manufacturer directions. Transfer cooked waffles to oven to bake about 10 minutes for a crispier exterior and to keep warm while preparing remaining waffles, or enjoy warm right out of waffle iron. Serve waffles drizzled with Cream Cheese Glaze (or butter and maple syrup if you prefer).

*I got 14 4 1/2 by 4-inch waffles. You can use a Belgian waffle iron you just won't get as many.

Cream Cheese Glaze

Ingredients:
6 oz cream cheese, softened
6 Tbsp butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup milk, plus more if desired (for a thicker consistency use only 1/4 cup)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer set on medium speed, blend together cream cheese and butter until well combine and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in remaining ingredients and mix about 1 minute until well combine, adding up to 2 Tbsp additional milk to thin if desired. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator (this can also be made the night before and stored in the refrigerator, just stir before serving).

Recipe Source: Cooking Classy