Smitten Kitchen’s Twist on Cinnamon Buns Is Honestly Brilliant

Whereas I grew up popping open tubes of canned cinnamon buns, I’m now firmly within the made-from-scratch camp. And though I have already got a go-to recipe — which I look for almost any excuse to make — I’m at all times intrigued after I come throughout new approaches.

Enter: Smitten Kitchen’s eye-catching Twisty Cinnamon Buns. As a substitute of spherical buns, the layers of cinnamon sugar are uncovered, twisted, and baked collectively, leaving you with a babka-like iteration of the basic morning candy. The entire thing is then minimize into squares and individually frosted. I had no alternative however to provide it a attempt.

Get the recipe: Smitten Kitchen’s Twisty Cinnamon Buns

You’ll begin by making the dough, which is a straightforward mixture of flour, immediate yeast, sugar, salt, butter, eggs, and milk. Deb warns that the dough shall be a lot wetter than different enriched doughs, however that its stickiness is intentional. When you get the sticky dough right into a clean, cohesive ball, you’ll drop it into an oiled bowl, cowl with plastic wrap, and both let it rise at room temperature for a few hours till doubled in dimension, or let it rise slowly within the fridge in a single day.

In the event you’ve let it rise at room temperature, toss it within the fridge for at the least an hour to make it simpler to roll out. In the event you let it rise in a single day, you’ll merely take away it from the fridge once you’re able to roll it out. Roll the chilled dough into a really giant rectangle, brush melted butter excessive, and sprinkle it generously with a brown sugar and cinnamon combination. Roll it tightly into a protracted cylinder.

It sounds identical to making common cinnamon buns, proper? Right here’s the place the recipe diverges. You’ll chill the cylinder, then slice it in half crosswise. Subsequent, working with one piece at at time, slice each bit in half lengthwise, exposing its cinnamon layers, then twist the minimize halves collectively. This twist is then minimize in half crosswise and positioned in a greased baking pan. You’ll repeat with the remaining piece so you’ve gotten 4 twists aspect by aspect within the pan.

Lastly, the twisted cinnamon buns are baked, cooled barely, then minimize into squares and served with a easy cream cheese icing, which everybody can slather on as they like.

To be sincere, I began having doubts about this recipe virtually as quickly as I dedicated to making an attempt it. I’m at the moment with out my stand mixer, and Deb extremely recommends utilizing one due to how moist and sticky the dough is. However after scrolling via each single touch upon her weblog and Instagram, I discovered all kinds of strategies on the right way to make them with out a mixer, each from readers and Deb herself. Some readers had success with a meals processor, whereas others stated their meals processor smoked up. Deb beneficial utilizing a Danish dough whisk to combine the dough by hand, however earlier than I added it to my procuring cart, I assumed I’d give it a go along with my very own two arms and a rubber spatula.

Honestly, it wasn’t the dough that gave me hassle. In truth, I’m completely happy to report I had no hassle mixing the dough by hand. It was messy and sticky, sure, nevertheless it got here collectively. The place I struggled was the reducing and twisting. This course of was difficult, and my twists didn’t finish practically as fairly as Deb’s. I additionally wasn’t as actual as I ought to have been when measuring the size of my twists, so that they have been too small for my pan and didn’t utterly fill out the pan when baked.

However in any case was stated and achieved, and I sat all the way down to my heat sq. topped with icing, my qualms have been settled. These buns have been so completely moist, fluffy, and cinnamon-kissed, I forgot about my struggles with rolling and twisting them. Whereas I may not trouble with their further fussiness on most events, I do suppose they’re definitely worth the effort as a part of a particular, show-stopping brunch unfold. Since they are often minimize into any dimension squares you want, they’d accompany a mixture of different brunch dishes significantly properly.

My absolute favourite half about this recipe wasn’t truly the rolls themselves, however how tangy the cream cheese icing was. In contrast to a whole lot of icings, it wasn’t enriched with butter, so the cream cheese was allowed to be entrance and middle. That is an icing I’ll make repeatedly — even when I’m not making these rolls.

Most significantly, don’t let this recipe intimidate you prefer it did me. Sure, it’s a bit fussy, however the following tips will assist set you up for achievement.

Have you ever tried Smitten Kitchen’s Twisty Cinnamon Buns? Tell us within the feedback!