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Dallas family turns grandmother's cinnamon roll recipe into delicious business
Dallas culturemap ^ | Carolyn Overbeck

Posted on 08/17/2014 12:51:20 PM PDT by nickcarraway

Amy Collins knew a good thing when she tasted one. Her grandmother, Rochelle — known as “RoRo” to the grandkids — baked dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls in her Garland kitchen, which she sold at church and school fundraisers. The cinnamon rolls had also become a Christmastime tradition in their family.

“I wanted to find a way to always have her cinnamon rolls around for Christmas for my kids and my grandkids,” says Collins, 29, who lives in East Dallas. To do that, she enlisted her husband, Lauren, to help her start a business using her grandmother’s recipes — which they naturally called RoRo’s Baking Company.

Collins, a former nurse at Baylor, says “they dove right in,” learning everything they could about food production. They worked on a business plan for six months and started selling their rolls in April 2011 at Celebration Market and other local farmers markets. By August of that year, they were in Central Market.

There are three year-round products: crescent-shaped Dinn-A-Rolls, Cinn-A-Rolls, and pigs in a blanket. They also make two seasonal items: Hatch chile cheese rolls, available for the Hatch Chile Festival coming up at Central Market, and a cranberry and walnut cinnamon roll for the holidays.

Central Market carries the whole assortment; Whole Foods carries the Dinn-A-Rolls and Cinn-A-Rolls. You can also buy through Artizone and on RoRo’s website. The rolls come nine to pan; the Cinn-A-Rolls sell for about $10, and the Dinn-A-Rolls about $7. The pigs in a blanket are sold on Artizone for $8.95.

Everything is made by hand in small batches, in a commercial kitchen in Lakewood. RoRo still helps, but the baking is done primarily by a team of five, who churn out the rolls fully baked, then frozen, so all that customers have to do is heat.

“It’s a super labor-intensive product,” Collins says. “We make a yeast-based dough, and it has to rise two times in the process. It is a full seven- to eight-hour day to make the batches.”

Her favorite is the incomparable Cinn-A-Roll, which has a special glaze finish instead of a customary thick icing. It is glazed immediately after baking so the glaze sinks right down into the roll, making it super light and fluffy.

“They are soft, gooey and melt in your mouth — the flavor is just really delicious in combination with the glaze we put on them,” Collins says. “They aren’t huge; you can have one or two. But I think our recipe is really unique, and a lot of people tell us it doesn’t really taste like other cinnamon rolls.”

Collins admits that starting the business from scratch with little experience was not easy. But having a product people loved made the process easier. “It tastes delicious, and it’s not a hard sell,” she says. “It really helps to have a product that connects to people.”

RoRo’s more than doubled sales last year, and Collins expects to do the same this year. “Every year we are seeing more and more growth,” she says.

As for the current gluten-free craze, Collins says they don’t make a GF product because the rolls are “a treat.”

“I’m not promoting it to be something you eat every day of the week, but there are things that people want to eat on special days to celebrate. Like a holiday — you can treat yourself on those days.”

The holidays are “insane,” she says, and every year they get better at handling the demand. People snatch up the dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls for big gatherings during Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas — probably to create their own family traditions.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Food; Local News
KEYWORDS: texas
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She didn't build that.

1 posted on 08/17/2014 12:51:20 PM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

Al Gore helped by inventing the internet


2 posted on 08/17/2014 12:58:05 PM PDT by WhyisaTexasgirlinPA (Turmoil in the Middle East? Quick Obama, show them your Peace Prize!)
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To: nickcarraway

My prediction? They’ll be shutting Granny & Co. down in 3...2...1... ;)


3 posted on 08/17/2014 12:59:08 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set...)
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To: nickcarraway

I wonder how they compare to Cinnabon’s rolls?
http://www.cinnabon.com/


4 posted on 08/17/2014 12:59:17 PM PDT by Jack Hydrazine (Pubbies = national collectivists; Dems = international collectivists; We need a second party!)
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To: nickcarraway

Maltby Café in Woodinville has the best and biggest cinnamon gut bombs anywhere.


5 posted on 08/17/2014 12:59:45 PM PDT by RitchieAprile
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6 posted on 08/17/2014 1:02:41 PM PDT by DJ MacWoW (The Fed Gov is not one ring to rule them all)
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To: Jack Hydrazine

Cinnabons are DEEEEEEEE-LIIIIIIIII-SHUSSSSSSS!!!!! Haven’t had one in ages though. The Cinnabon treats at Taco Bell aren’t bad, but that doesn’t count. :(


7 posted on 08/17/2014 1:03:12 PM PDT by Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America
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To: nickcarraway

They’ll be left alone soon as they remember to tithe to the lord obama.


8 posted on 08/17/2014 1:03:47 PM PDT by lowbridge
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To: nickcarraway

Dinn-A-Rolls, Cinn-A-Rolls and Pig-A-Rolls

Sounds like a good meal


9 posted on 08/17/2014 1:05:08 PM PDT by GeronL (Vote for Conservatives not for Republicans)
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To: nickcarraway

Didja see the prices when ordering from the internet? $45 for 2 pans. OW! I’m sure they’re excellent but baking isn’t that difficult. Once I do, though, I’d probably weigh 300#, har! I do love such goodies...


10 posted on 08/17/2014 1:08:07 PM PDT by W. (LBJ, edited: 'I'll have 'em riotin', lootin' and votin' dem0crat for the next 100 years!--Sarc?)
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To: nickcarraway
Mmmmm....cinnamon rolls.....


11 posted on 08/17/2014 1:11:33 PM PDT by Veggie Todd (The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. TJ)
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To: Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America; Jack Hydrazine

IKEA’s not bad either!!!


12 posted on 08/17/2014 1:16:20 PM PDT by danamco (-)
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To: RitchieAprile

We have three bakeries within 20 miles of our home that bake the best kolaches, cinnamon rolls and other goodies!!....LaGrange & Ellinger, Texas....Weikel’s, Lucas Bakery and Hruska’s Bakery!!!


13 posted on 08/17/2014 1:17:50 PM PDT by YouGoTexasGirl
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To: YouGoTexasGirl

We always stop by “The Czech Stop” in West, when we return to DFW.


14 posted on 08/17/2014 1:18:41 PM PDT by dfwgator
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To: nickcarraway

I guess they do custom cakes too, since their FB feed is full of pictures of those.


15 posted on 08/17/2014 1:25:58 PM PDT by GeronL (Vote for Conservatives not for Republicans)
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To: W.

“I do love such goodies”

Me too!!! I’m sorry I read about this.


16 posted on 08/17/2014 1:26:53 PM PDT by berdie
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To: nickcarraway
guess i'll stick with these...

17 posted on 08/17/2014 1:32:39 PM PDT by Chode (Stand UP and Be Counted, or line up and be numbered - *DTOM* -vvv- NO Pity for the LAZY - 86-44)
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To: RitchieAprile

Which Woodinville? AK, or Alabama or Florida?


18 posted on 08/17/2014 1:40:04 PM PDT by laplata (Liberals don't get it .... their minds are diseased.)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
Probably some gay couple will demand rolls at their wedding.

-PJ

19 posted on 08/17/2014 1:43:27 PM PDT by Political Junkie Too (If you are the Posterity of We the People, then you are a Natural Born Citizen.)
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To: All
$45 by mail? Make these for much less.

Yummy treats stuffed w/ cinnamon-y apples, drenched in caramel and icing. Uses convenient refrigerated cinnamon roll tubes--straight from the oven, drench w/ icing and luscious caramel. Pull apart and munch--OK to lick your fingers!

FILLING Micro a min 5-6 diced apples, tbl brown sugar, 1/2 tea cinnamon, drizzle of lemon/juice (micro apples tender not mushy).

ROLLS Press out thinly each cinnamon roll from 8-count tube; center w/ spoonful apple filling. Roll up lengthwise; cut three pieces. Tuck in apples. Place three pieces in each cupcake tin – cut side up. Bake at temp on package; JUST lightly brown. Remove to counter---drizzle tops w/ icing and Hershey's dulche de leche.

ICING Add bit l/juice to icing included in tube.

20 posted on 08/17/2014 1:46:46 PM PDT by Liz
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