Quick and easy cinnamon buns
Ingredients
150g butter, plus extra for greasing
100g icing sugar, sifted
½ tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
250ml buttermilk
2 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp mixed spice
75g soft light brown sugar
25g caster sugar
Fine salt
300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
Method
■ Melt the butter in a small pan or in a bowl in the microwave. Lightly grease a large baking tray with the extra butter.
■ To make the glaze, mix 3 tablespoons of the melted butter in a bowl with the icing sugar and vanilla paste. Add 1 tablespoon boiling water and 2 tablespoons of the buttermilk, and stir to combine. Cover and chill.
■ To make the cinnamon filling, mix 3 tablespoons of the melted butter with the ground cinnamon, mixed spice, soft brown sugar and caster sugar. Add a pinch of salt, then stir the mixture together until it resembles wet sand. Set aside.
■ Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/ gas mark 6.
■ To make the dough, combine the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in a mixing bowl and add a generous pinch of salt. Make a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in the remaining melted butter and the rest of the buttermilk.
■ Stir well using a rubber spatula until the wet and dry ingredients are fully combined. The dough might seem dry, but keep stirring until the dry ingredients absorb the wet – the dough will be shaggy, not smooth, at this point.
■ Tip the dough out on to a lightly floured work surface and knead for 3-4 minutes.
■ When ready, the dough will look smooth and have a slight shine, and you’ll feel it is more elastic. Flour the work surface again and pat the dough out to a rough 20 x 30cm rectangle.
■ Sprinkle the cinnamon filling in an even layer over the dough, leaving a rough 1cm border.
Press the filling into the dough. Roll up the dough lengthways as tightly as you can, to form a long sausage shape.
■ Cut into 12 equal pieces. Transfer the buns to the prepared tray, cut-side up, leaving about 2cm of space between each. Bake for 20 minutes or until puffed up, golden and sticky.
■ Cool for 30 minutes, then remove the glaze from the fridge and spread over the buns. Serve immediately or let the glaze set.