Cinnamon Buns
The ultimate treaty! I like to make the dough the night before, prove it in the fridge and go to bed dreaming of cinnamon buns for breakfast or morning tea! You can make a quicker version and prove it in a warm place but the dough is much easier to handle when its cold the next day. Cuts nicer too.
Ingredients
(makes 12 buns)
Dough
1 cup milk
2 tsp dried yeast
2 medium size eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla paste
¼ cup sugar
½ tsp salt
150g butter, melted
4 ½ cups flour
Filling
100g softened butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp cinnamon
Glaze
3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp water
Cream Cheese Icing
150g cream cheese
½ cup icing sugar
3 Tbsp milk
Prep It
Heat milk in a small pot until almost warm but not hot! Remove from heat, sprinkle over yeast and leave for about 3 mins to dissolve and foam.
In a large bowl or bowl of mixer whisk together eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla and melted butter. Once yeast has foamed stir into egg mixture.
Add flour and mix well.
Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth for 8-10 minutes. Alternatively, knead in a mixer with a dough hook for about 5 minutes. She’s quite a wet dough so this is much easier in a mixer!
Prove It
Place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a clean tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for about 2 hours, until doubled in size. Alternatively, leave in the fridge overnight. Rolling a chilled dough makes life so much easier.
Roll It
Preheat oven to 200°C.
Make the filling by whisking softened butter, brown sugar and flour together in a small bowl.
Roll dough into a 30cm x 25cm-ish oblong shape with the long side facing you. It will be about half a centimeter thick. Spread filling mixture evenly over dough and roll up into a sausage. Don’t make it too tight. When it proves the dough will expand and if it’s rolled too tight that’s when the center of the buns ‘pop’ out when cooked.
Cut into 12 even size slices and place cut side up into a lined oven dish with about 2 centimeters between buns.
Place your buns somewhere warm to prove until puffy, about 30 minutes.
Bake It
Cook buns on the middle shelf in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown on the top and cooked through.
Get Glazey
While buns are cooking combine sugar and water in a small pot and place on medium heat. As soon as it boils remove from heat. Brush over buns as soon as they come out of the oven.
Ice Ice Baby
Whip cream cheese in a medium bowl preferably with a stand mixer or beaters, until fluffy. Sift in icing sugar, mix well and then add milk a little at a time until it’s almost pourable.
Spread over cooled buns.