Getting sticky with it
The cinnamon bun is perfect for holiday baking but there are simpler variations that can be tried anytime
It's an early holiday morning. Sleepy-eyed, you sneak out of bed into the kitchen. The only sound you can hear is the soft whirr of the refrigerator. You pull out the tray of cinnamon buns from the refrigerator and then jump back into bed for about an hour and a half or so. That's just the amount of time the dough needs before it meets its fate in the oven. Another thirty minutes of baking, and the whole house is redolent with a sweet, warm, cinnamon rich smell. It's a smell that you always want your house to be enveloped in, a smell that was worth the break in your sleep. The oven timer goes off, you pull out the tray to be greeted by golden-hued spirals of sweet buns. It's time to summon the family and share cinnamon buns over coffee.
Making cinnamon buns is no big feat. It takes as much active time as, say, cupcakes. The inactive time is spent either waiting for the dough to rise or for the buns to bake in the oven (You do know that poking into the dough in anticipation is not counted as active time?) It probably feels like a lot of work because of all the expectation that builds while you wait, that you can't think of anything else but how the dough will transform into cinnamon clouds of heaven.
There are two types of cinnamon buns you can make. The flaky, almost pastry like (the kind you get at Cinnabon) or the ones made with dough that's enriched with milk, eggs and sugar — a poorer cousin of the brioche. The latter is simpler and one that I have baked many times. Once you've got the hang of it, you won't need to wait for a holiday to bake. Also, you can use the same dough to make dinner rolls, the Jewish Challah or the Babka.
The first time I tried a cinnamon bun recipe, I went all out — piping hot sugar syrup to make caramel and a hunt for pecans around the city to make sticky cinnamon buns — caramel coated and spotted with bits of toasted pecans. That was dessert for breakfast.
Other variations worth a shot include: nuts and raisins rolled into the filling, cream cheese icing spooned over the buns or a generous amount of fig jam spread on the dough before rolling.
Cinnamon Bun Recipe
Ingredients
Dough: 1/4 cup warm water l1 tsp instant yeast l60g sugar l3/4 cup milk l100g butter l 3 large egg yolks l 500g flour
Filling:100g demerara l1 tbsp ground cinnamon l100g unsalted butter
l Dough: In a bowl combine warm water, yeast and 1 tsp sugar. Stir to dissolve and let it sit until foamy, about five minutes. Add milk, butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, salt and 3/4th of the flour. Knead until blended. Add the remaining flour and knead the dough until smooth and slightly sticky (add flour if it's too wet).
l Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn dough over in bowl to coat it with the butter inside. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. Then punch down the dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let sit 20 minutes.
l Filling: Combine brown sugar and cinnamon and softened butter. Roll out dough into a 12x 18 rectangle and spread the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting with the long side, roll dough into a cylinder. Place seam side down and cut crosswise into 15 slices. Dental floss does a neat job. Place dough slices in a large buttered baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
l The next morning, remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 90 minutes. Preheat oven to 190°C. Brush the top of the dough with egg wash (equal parts egg and water beaten together) Bake golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm.
The cinnamon bun is perfect for holiday baking but there are simpler variations that can be tried anytime
It's an early holiday morning. Sleepy-eyed, you sneak out of bed into the kitchen. The only sound you can hear is the soft whirr of the refrigerator. You pull out the tray of cinnamon buns from the refrigerator and then jump back into bed for about an hour and a half or so. That's just the amount of time the dough needs before it meets its fate in the oven. Another thirty minutes of baking, and the whole house is redolent with a sweet, warm, cinnamon rich smell. It's a smell that you always want your house to be enveloped in, a smell that was worth the break in your sleep. The oven timer goes off, you pull out the tray to be greeted by golden-hued spirals of sweet buns. It's time to summon the family and share cinnamon buns over coffee.
Making cinnamon buns is no big feat. It takes as much active time as, say, cupcakes. The inactive time is spent either waiting for the dough to rise or for the buns to bake in the oven (You do know that poking into the dough in anticipation is not counted as active time?) It probably feels like a lot of work because of all the expectation that builds while you wait, that you can't think of anything else but how the dough will transform into cinnamon clouds of heaven.
There are two types of cinnamon buns you can make. The flaky, almost pastry like (the kind you get at Cinnabon) or the ones made with dough that's enriched with milk, eggs and sugar — a poorer cousin of the brioche. The latter is simpler and one that I have baked many times. Once you've got the hang of it, you won't need to wait for a holiday to bake. Also, you can use the same dough to make dinner rolls, the Jewish Challah or the Babka.
The first time I tried a cinnamon bun recipe, I went all out — piping hot sugar syrup to make caramel and a hunt for pecans around the city to make sticky cinnamon buns — caramel coated and spotted with bits of toasted pecans. That was dessert for breakfast.
Other variations worth a shot include: nuts and raisins rolled into the filling, cream cheese icing spooned over the buns or a generous amount of fig jam spread on the dough before rolling.
Cinnamon Bun Recipe
Ingredients
Dough: 1/4 cup warm water l1 tsp instant yeast l60g sugar l3/4 cup milk l100g butter l 3 large egg yolks l 500g flour
Filling:100g demerara l1 tbsp ground cinnamon l100g unsalted butter
l Dough: In a bowl combine warm water, yeast and 1 tsp sugar. Stir to dissolve and let it sit until foamy, about five minutes. Add milk, butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, salt and 3/4th of the flour. Knead until blended. Add the remaining flour and knead the dough until smooth and slightly sticky (add flour if it's too wet).
l Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn dough over in bowl to coat it with the butter inside. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. Then punch down the dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let sit 20 minutes.
l Filling: Combine brown sugar and cinnamon and softened butter. Roll out dough into a 12x 18 rectangle and spread the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting with the long side, roll dough into a cylinder. Place seam side down and cut crosswise into 15 slices. Dental floss does a neat job. Place dough slices in a large buttered baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
l The next morning, remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 90 minutes. Preheat oven to 190°C. Brush the top of the dough with egg wash (equal parts egg and water beaten together) Bake golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm.
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