Everyone loves Grandma's cinnamon buns, especially when they're hot out of the oven. These lovely sweet rolls do take some time to prepare, however most of the time is spent kneading, rising, and baking.
Kneading this maple cinnamon roll dough by hand can be hard work, but some bakers find it to be good therapy. It's much easier to knead if a large electric stand mixer is used. A Kitchen-Aid mixer is a great time—and hand-saver!
Yeast Bread Making Tips
Check out the article How to Make Basic Homemade Bread for more information on where to buy ingredients, what vital wheat gluten is, what type of yeast to buy and how to use it, and much more.
Don't skimp on quality with maple syrup. Make sure it's pure syrup, not the sugared-down version sold in the pancake aisle at the grocery store.
Soy lecithin and vital wheat gluten almost seem to make the cinnamon buns rise higher and have a nice soft texture. If you can't find these ingredients, leave them out, but you may notice a slight difference. You can find these products in health food stores.
King Arthur specializes in hearty flours, and their bread flour is superb. That said, any good quality bread flour will do. This nice hearty Healthy Multi-Grain Bread Recipe is made with whole wheat bread flour.
Saf Instant Yeast works best in these cinnamon rolls because they only need one rise. If you use another brand of yeast, you may have to let the dough rise twice. Saf Instant Yeast can be found in any large supermarket or bakery supply store. It goes a long way. Read Instant Yeast vs. Active Dry Yeast in Homemade Bread Recipes for more details.
Maple Cinnamon Buns Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 Tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup pure Vermont syrup
- 1 Tablespoon liquid or granular soy lecithin, optional
- 1 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons vital wheat gluten
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 3 cups bread flour
- 1 Tablespoon instant yeast
- Sticky Goo, recipe follows
- Maple icing, recipe follows
Sticky Goo Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
Maple Icing Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sifted confectioners' sugar, more or less
- 1 Tablespoon milk or water, as needed for spreading or drizzling consistency
- 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup, or 1/2 teaspoon pure maple extract
Directions: How to Make Maple Cinnamon Rolls
- Spray 1 large cookie sheet with vegetable spray, or line with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine water, oil, maple syrup, and lecithin, and blend with a whisk. Add sea salt, wheat gluten, 2 Tablespoons cinnamon, bread flour, and yeast. Attach the mixing bowl to the mixer fitted with a dough hook.
- Mix on low speed until dough forms a ball, about 5 minutes. The dough may try to ride up the hook. If this happens, stop the mixer and push the dough down, adding more flour as needed if the dough is too sticky. Turn the mixer on low again, and continue to knead another 5 minutes or until dough forms a membrane when stretched (sort of like a balloon that doesn't tear). This is a tricky step as the dough may need more or less kneading time. If it's being kneaded by hand, the dough may need up to 15 minutes of kneading.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean counter or surface that's well coated with flour. Knead the dough a few more times by hand and form it into a ball. Cover the dough with a light towel, and let it rest for about 10 to 20 minutes.
- In another bowl, make Sticky Goo by combining 6 Tablespoons cinnamon, butter, and brown sugar, and mix with a rubber spatula until creamy.
- Using a rolling pin, roll out dough into a rectangle approximately 12 inches long by 18 inches wide with the long side facing you. Spread the Sticky Goo on the dough leaving 1 inch on each side clear. Starting with the wide side nearest you, roll the dough up tightly into a jelly roll-type log. Roll it all the way to the end. Pinch the seams all the way down the roll to seal the edges. Smooth the roll as you go to make it an even thickness from one end to the other.
- Cut off the ragged edges at the end of both rolls with a serrated knife to make them both even. Cut the roll into 10 equal slices, about 1 1/2 inches thick. Place the 10 cinnamon rolls close to each other, but not quite touching on the prepared pan. Cover with a towel, and let rise in a warm spot for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until double in size. Keep away from drafts as even the slightest breeze could cause the batch to deflate. Likewise, make sure not to bump the rolls around or disturb them as this too could flatten the entire pan of rolls.
- Halfway through the rising time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Gently place the cinnamon rolls in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. You'll know when they're done when the cinnamon rolls are light golden brown and puffy. Remove the rolls from the oven and cool on wire racks. Ice with Maple Icing when cool.
- Mix Maple Icing ingredients together in a small bowl, adjusting milk or water as needed for spreading or drizzling consistency. Wait until icing dries to wrap cinnamon buns in plastic wrap.
- Yields 10 Maple Cinnamon Rolls
Donna Diegel - Donna Diegel is an experienced baker and published author with more than 25 years of experience in the food industry.
