CINNAMON BUNS
CINNAMON BUNS
CINNAMON BUNS

Ingredients
  • 100g/3½oz unsalted butter
  • 200ml/7fl oz milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 250g/9oz plain or wholemeal plain flour
  • plus extra for dusting
  • 250g/9oz strong white flour
  • 1½ tsp fast-action yeast
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
  • 4 tbsp caster sugar
  • 2 free-range eggs
  • olive oil
  • for greasing
  • 75g/2½oz unsalted butter
  • softened
  • 100g/3½oz caster sugar
  • 2 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 free-range egg
  • beaten
Directions
  • In a small saucepan heat the butter
  • milk and salt until the butter is melted. Allow the mixture to cool until it is lukewarm.
  • In a large bowl
  • stir together the flours
  • yeast
  • cardamom and sugar until combined. Make a well in the centre and crack in the eggs. Pour in the lukewarm milk mixture and stir everything together to form a sticky dough. You may have to use your hands as the dough becomes stiffer.
  • Oil the work surface with a teaspoon of olive oil. Turn the dough out onto the oiled surface and knead vigorously for 5-8 minutes
  • using a plastic scraper as needed to prise the dough from the work surface. Don’t be tempted to add flour
  • as this will make the buns dry and tough. Keep kneading until the dough is considerably less sticky
  • smoother and more elastic. Shape into a ball
  • and put into a large
  • greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and set aside in a warm place to prove for an hour
  • or until doubled in size.
  • Meanwhile
  • for the filling and topping
  • mix the softened butter in a bowl with half the sugar and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon. Use a fork to mix the sugar and spice into the butter until it is completely combined. Mix the remaining sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl and set aside.
  • When the dough has risen
  • turn out onto a floured work surface and gently roll out into a 36x24cm rectangle. Spread the cinnamon-sugar-butter evenly over the dough with a table or palette knife.
  • With the longest edge closest to you
  • roll the dough up into a cylinder. Cut into 12 even slices.
  • Place each slice onto a flattened out paper cupcake case on a baking tray
  • or into a greased muffin tin. (Baking in a muffin tin will make your cinnamon buns taller and domed.) Cover with a clean tea towel and set aside to prove again for 30-45 minutes
  • or until risen.
  • Pre-heat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
  • Brush the tops of the buns with beaten egg and dust liberally with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 12 minutes until the buns are dark golden-brown. Enjoy warm with a cup of coffee.