It is Easter weekend when I’m writing this post but apparently someone forgot to tell the weather. It is gently snowing and any eggs the Easter bunny leaves behind would freeze before they could be collected and put in baskets.

Traditionally this would be the time of year for hot cross buns. Maybe someday, but not today. This is the day for warm cinnamon buns served alongside a giant cup of tea.

Makes 16 rolls

Ingredients:

• dough:
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 tsp quick rise yeast
  • 4 cups AP flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 2 egg yolks (save the egg whites for brushing the buns and for other recipes)
• filling:
  • 1/4 cup unsalted flour
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
• finishing:
  • 1 tbsp egg white
  • 1/2 tsp white sugar

Directions:

1. Prepare dough
   • Heat milk (1 cup) until hot but not boiling
   • Add butter (1/4 cup) to hot milk and stir until it melts
   • Let cool to slightly warmer than room temperature
   • Stir yeast (1 1/2 tsp) into milk mixture
   • In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour (4 cups), sugar (1 tbsp) and salt (1/2 tsp)
   • Add egg yolks (2) and milk mixture
   • Using the dough hook, knead for 5-7 minutes, until a smooth and elastic dough forms
   • Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl with lots of extra space, cover with a slightly damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled (about 45 minutes to an hour)
2. Prepare filling
   • Heat butter (1/4 cup) until softened but not melted
   • Stir in brown sugar (1/4 cup) and cinnamon (1 tbsp)
3. Assemble and Bake
   • Roll dough out until fairly thin (about a 1/4 inch or 1/2 cm), aim for something fairly rectangular
   • Spread filling over dough, going right to the edges except leave about 1 inch (2.5cm) clean along one of the long ends of the rectangle
   • Gently roll the the dough starting at the end opposite the clean end
   • Pinch the clean end closed to create as tight a seal as possible (to keep the all-important filling inside!)
   • Slice the tube into 16 slices – You can stop here and have perfectly nice rolls or you can try any kind of dough origami you like, see notes below for what I did
   • Arrange on a cookie sheet, leave space for them to grow, and lightly cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel
   • Set aside for 30 minutes
   • Preheat oven to 400 degrees f
   • Brush rolls with egg whites and sprinkle with sugar (1/4 tsp)
   • Bake 8 -9 minutes

Notes:

If you want to make these extra-fancy, all you need is a chopstick. You will be amazed at how quickly these come together. Start with the rolls described above.

Step 1: Press chopstick into the bottom of the roll (seam side) parallel to the cut edges. Press hard but not so hard that you puncture the dough.

Step 2: Flip roll over and do exactly the same on the top side of the roll.

Step 3: You will now have something that is a bit more oval than round – pinch the ends of the oval together and marvel at your creation. Make sure you don’t tell your guests how easy this was.