I am woefully behind the pack in the Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge. I think most people are on the L's or the M's. I am still puttering along in the C's. For a while, I blamed the cross-country move. Then I blamed house renovations. And there's always the baby. But clearly I just need to suck it up and get back to baking.
The eighth BBA bread is that lovely, decadent waist-spreader - the Cinnamon Bun. Now, I already had a go-to cinnamon bun recipe by my favorite food geek, Alton Brown. His recipe makes a delicious, quintessential batch of cinnamon buns with oozy goozy filly and irresistible cream cheese icing. If you substitute a tablespoon of espresso or strong coffee in the icing, you have a perfect lazy Sunday morning. I trot these buns out to impress visitors and satisfy sweet tooths. I even modified it a bit for a very pumpkiny Thanksgiving morning treat.
The verdict: Both recipes gave us flavorful buns that would delight any hungry breakfast-seeker. However, we have concluded that the perfect Cinnamon Bun would be a frankensteinian amalgamation of elements from both recipes. The Reinhart recipe yielded beautifully risen, cinnamon-laced, doughy clouds, and naturally, was the clear winner in terms of bread texture, flavor, and bun-poofiness. However, the Alton Brown recipe was the winner in terms of quantity and flavor of the filling - the little bit of melted butter helps with gooeyness of the filling that I think we can all agree is paramount to a satisfying cinnamon bun experience. I truly despised the addition of the lemon flavors in the Reinhart recipe. I found the citrus to be harsh and distracting. I also quite disliked the white fondant glaze. It was much too sugary in a slap-you-in-the-face kind of way.
Therefore, let me introduce to you my Cinnamon Frankenbun (just in time for Halloween): The Reinhart dough recipe minus the lemon (vanilla, perhaps?), the Alton Brown filling, and the Alton Brown cream cheese icing with the brewed espresso substitution. Ahhhh, perfection at last.
Cinnamon Frankenbuns
adapted from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice and Alton Brown
Dough:
- 6 1/2 tablespoons (3.25 ounces) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 1/2 tablespoons (2.75 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 large egg, slightly beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (.22 ounce) instant yeast
- 1 1/8 to 1 1/4 cups (9 to 10 ounces) buttermilk, room temperature
Filling:
- 8 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 cup packed
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch salt
- 3/4-ounce unsalted butter, melted, approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons
Icing:
- 2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened, approximately 1/4 cup
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon strong coffee
- 5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
1. In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the sugar, salt and butter on medium-high speed. Whip in the egg and vanilla until smooth. Then add the flour, yeast, and buttermilk. Mix on low speed until the dough forms a ball. Switch to the dough hook, and increase the speed to medium, mixing for approximately 10 minutes, or until the dough is tacky but not sticky. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to cover it with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap.
2. Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.
4. Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.
3. Mist the counter with spray oil, and transfer the dough to the counter. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, lightly dusting the top of the dough with flour. Roll it into a rectangle about 2/3 inch thick and 14 inches wide by 12 inches long for larger buns, or 18 inches wide by 9 inches long for smaller buns. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the surface of the dough, and roll the dough up into a tight log, creating a spiral as you roll. With the seam side down, cut the dough into 8 to 12 even pieces, each about 1 3/4 inches thick for larger buns; or 12 to 16 pieces each 1 1/4 inch thick for smaller buns.
4. Line 1 or more sheet pans with baking parchment. Place the buns approximately 1/2 inch apart.
5. Proof at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size.*
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack on the middle shelf.
7. Bake the buns for 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
8. Cool the buns in the pan for about 10 minutes, and then glaze the tops. Remove the buns from the pans, and place them on a cooling rack. Wait at least 20 minutes before serving.
* Alternately, you can stick the rolls in the refrigerator overnight and then proof them in the morning for a quick breakfast treat. Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes.