How to make cinnamon buns – recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass
There are few joys quite like a sticky bun.As soft and sweet as an edible pillow, they’re a lovely thing to sink into with a cup of coffee and, though they look impressive, they’re also unexpectedly easy to make at home.This Scandinavian version is cinnamon flavoured, but feel free to change the seasoning to suit your palate.Prep 30 min Rest 1 hr+Cook 25 min Makes 71 tsp ground cardamom seeds (from about 25 pods; see step 1)300ml whole milk 50g butter, roughly cubed425g plain flour 60g caster sugar ¼ tsp fine salt 7g fast-action/instant yeast 1 egg Oil, for greasingFor the filling75g butter, softened50g dark brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon ½ tsp saltTo finish1 egg, lightly beaten Demerara or granulated sugarGround cardamom is fairly easy to find these days, but if you don’t mind a bit of fiddly work, you should get a teaspoon or so of powder from the ground seeds of about 25 pods.Alternatively, for a milder flavour, use the seeds whole and strain them out of the milk later.
Put the milk in a small pan on a medium-low heat, add the cardamom and bring to a gentle simmer, keeping it just below the boil (keep an eye on it, because milk can catch and burn quickly).Take off the hob, stir in the butter, and leave to infuse and cool to blood temperature; if the mixture is too hot, it’ll kill the yeast.Mix the flour, caster sugar and salt in a large bowl.Add the yeast (if you prefer fresh yeast, you’ll need 21g, or 10g of active dry yeast, both of which will require reactivating before use).It’s always worth checking the best-before date on yeast, because its potency deteriorates with time.
Old yeast = greasy cinnamon flatbreads.Beat the egg lightly.Once the milk has cooled to warm, make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, tip in the beaten egg and stir in to combine.Add or strain in the milk, then stir to make a soft dough that comes away easily from the sides of the bowl.Lightly grease a work surface (this is to avoid adding more flour to the dough) and tip the dough on to it.
Knead vigorously for about eight minutes; at first, it will be very soft, but persevere and keep kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic (a dough scraper will be useful here).Alternatively, work it in a food mixer on a medium-low speed for about five minutes.Wipe out the bowl, oil it lightly, then return the dough to the bowl.Cover with a tea towel or similar, and put somewhere draught-free and not too chilly for about 30 minutes, until well risen.(A cold oven, with a bowl of hot water in the base, is a good option if there’s no obvious draught-free spot in your place.
)Meanwhile, beat all the filling ingredients until soft and easily spreadable; feel free to replace the cinnamon with another flavouring or spice, such as vanilla seeds, grated citrus zest, cocoa powder, grated nutmeg, etc.Grease a deep, 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin.Roll out the dough on the same greased surface to a roughly 35cm x 25cm rectangle.Smear the filling all across its surface (your hands are the best tools for this), then, starting from one of the long edges, roll up the dough tightly, like a swiss roll.Rotate so the seam is at the bottom, then cut into seven equal slices.
Arrange the slices in the greased tin, spacing them out evenly, with the smallest in the middle, then cover and leave to prove for about 30 minutes, until the dough springs back when prodded gently.Meanwhile, heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6.Paint the buns with the beaten egg, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown.
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