Cinnamon Scrolls
Who doesn’t love a cinnamon scroll?! They’re a classic for a reason. These scrolls have all the hallmarks of a cinny scroll you know and love - spiralled soft, pillowy buns filled with cinnamon goodness and topped with a luscious cream cheese icing.
But they also have a delicious surprise hiding underneath. The generous amount of sweet, buttery filling not only ensures a beautifully filled and spiced bun. It also melts into the tray as it bakes creating a beautifully caramelised base which hardens as it cools in the tray.
Ingredients
Roux (aka Tangzhong)
20g plain flour
100g milk
Dough
350g plain flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 ½ teaspoons, or a 7g sachet, of dried instant yeast
165g milk, ideally room temperature
1 egg, room temperature
60g unsalted butter, room temperature
20g honey
Filling
200g unsalted butter, room temperature
100g brown sugar
50g caster sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Icing
100g cream cheese, room temperature
50g unsalted butter, room temperature
150g icing sugar
20 – 40ml milk
Method
Start by making the roux by placing the flour and the milk into a small saucepan over a low/medium heat. Mix with a spatula to combine, and continue mixing until the mixture starts to thicken, eventually forming a thick paste. Keep stirring and scraping for a minute or two before removing from the heat and scraping the mixture into the bowl of your stand mixer and leave to cool for a couple of minutes.
To make the dough, add the flour followed by all the dough ingredients into the stand mixer bowl. Attach the dough hook and mix on a low/medium (speed 3 or 4 on my KitchenAid) for approx. 15 minutes, or until the dough comes together as a single, stretchy dough. Use the windowpane test to see if the dough is ready.
Grease a medium bowl with butter. Scrape the dough into the prepared bowl, and then do 4-6 coil folds to shape the dough into a ball.
To do a coil fold, simply dampen your hands with some water and then tuck your hands underneath the centre of the dough, slowly lifting it up so the sides of the dough dangle down and coil back under the dough as you lower it back down into the bowl. Spin the bowl 90 degrees and repeat the coil fold steps 1-4 more times until your dough has a smooth and round shape in the bowl. Cover with a clean tea towel or shower cap and leave to proof for 1-2 hours (depending on the temperature in your kitchen), or until doubled in size.
While the dough is proofing make the cinnamon filling. Place the all the filling ingredients into a medium bowl and beat together with a wooden spoon. Set aside until the dough is proofed.
Once the dough it proofed, scrape the dough onto a lightly floured bench. Roll and stretch the dough into a rectangle approx. 50cm x 30cm. Gently spread the cinnamon filling to cover the entire surface of the dough. With the long 50cm edge closest to you, roll the dough to form a spiral log that is 50cm-wide. Slice the spiral log into 12 even pieces and place on a large baking tray or slice tin lined with baking paper. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to proof for about an hour or until risen by about 30-50%.
You can test the proofing by gently pressing the dough with a floured finger to create a dent. If the dent springs all the way back right away the dough needs to proof for longer. If the dent springs back slowly, but not all the way back, the dough is ready for baking. If the dent doesn’t spring back at all the dough is over-proofed.
While the dough is proofing, pre-heat your oven to 170 degrees C. Once the dough has proofed, bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. If you have a digital thermometer you can test the doneness of the buns by inserting the thermometer into the sides of a bun. The buns are done when they reach about 90 degrees C.
Leave the buns to cool to room temperature, and let the buttery caramel on the bottom of the tray to set. Once cooled, make the icing by placing the cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and about 10ml of the milk into a bowl and beating with hand beaters. If you want a thinner icing add some more milk until you reach your preferred consistency. If you want a thick icing, add some more icing sugar. Generously spread a spoonful of the icing on each bun and the tear off a scroll and enjoy!
These scrolls are best enjoyed on the day they’re baked, but will keep well for 1-3 days kept in an airtight container. Store any iced buns in a container in the fridge. Let them come to room temperature before eating.
