Almost-Famous Cinnamon Buns

Ahhh… who doesn’t love a fresh out of the oven cinnamon roll/bun? The scent alone will awaken anyone with a pulse.

Well, as soon as I saw this recipe in the November edition of the Food Network Magazine, I was determine to try it out myself and see how close it came to the original.

If you’ve never tried making cinnamon buns at home before, a side from requiring a little patience to let the yeast activate and the dough rise, the process is quite simple. Don’t be afraid to try this particular recipe out.

Not much else needs to be said about this recipe, other than you won’t be disappointed. It is definitely pretty close, some might even argue that these turned out better than the original.

Almost-Famous Cinnamon Buns
November 2009 Food Nework Magazine

For the Dough
1 cup whole milk
1 1/4(.25)-ounce packet active dry yeast
1/4 cup plus 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the bowl
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

For the Filling
All-purpose flour, for dusting
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon

For the Glaze
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Make the dough: Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over low heat until it reaches about 100 degrees F. Remove from the heat and sprinkle in the yeast and 1/4 teaspoon sugar (don’t stir). Set aside until foamy, 5 minutes. Whisk in the melted mutter, egg yolk and vanilla.

Whisk the flour, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, the salt and nutmeg in the bowl of a stand mixer. Make a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture. Mix on low speed with the dough hook until thick and slightly sticky. Knead on medium speed until the dough gathers around the hook, 6 minutes. (Add up to 2 more tablespoons flour if necessary.)

Remove the dough and shape into a ball. Butter the mixer bowl and return the dough to the bowl, turning to coat with butter. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, 1 hour 15 minutes.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 12-by-14 inch rectangle with the longer side facing you.

Spread with the softened butter, leaving a 1/2-inch border on the far long edge. Mix the sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the butter.

Brush the unbuttered far edge with water. Roll the dough away from you into a tight cylinder and press on the long edge to seal.

Cut the cylinder with a sharp knife to make 6 equal size buns.

Roll out the dough, fill and cut into buns. Butter a 9 by 13 inch baking pan; place the buns cut-side down in the pan, leaving space between each. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, 40 minutes. You can refrigerate these overnight at this point or if patience isn’t one of your virtues proceed proceed to the next step.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Bake the buns until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Cool in the pan 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Sift the confectioners’ sugar into a bowl, then whisk in the cream and melted butter. Transfer the buns to a rack and spoon the glaze on top while still warm.

Notes:

• Yeast rising time… in my case it took 10-15 minutes, but I made a double batch.
• I didn’t see the need to add any additional flour during the kneading process, the dough came together perfectly.
• The recipe says to divide/cut the roll into 6 equal-sized buns, I decided to cut each of my rolls into twelve buns. I was happy with the portion size, not skimpy at all…(something to keep in mind)
• Since I made two batches and divided the dough into twelve buns, I buttered two regular sized sheet pans.
• In lieu of waiting the 40 minutes to let the cut buns rise, I placed the prepared pans in the fridge overnight. Took them out the following morning, and followed the directions from Alton Brown’s Overnight Cinnamon Roll Recipe picking up at “Remove the rolls from the refrigerator…” just for the proofing stage, I still baked them in a 325 degree oven for a little shy of 30 minutes. The recipe actually calls for approx 35 minute baking time. So just start keeping an eye on them at minute 29 to be safe.

Tagged as: Vanilla