Cinnamon Buns: Daring Bakers Challenge!

What a wonderful recipe for this month's Daring Baker's Challenge: Cinnamon or Sticky Buns from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice. They smelled so delicious coming out of the oven! I couldn't sleep because of the lovely aroma--I just wanted it to be morning so I could have a bun! Thanks Marce (Pip in the City), for your choice!

I have to admit, I waited to the last minute for this month's challenge. I wanted to make both sticky and regular varieties but didn't leave myself the time. They were really very easy to make and assemble. I love Reinhart's recipes--they are so nice to follow and give great instructions. This cookbook makes great bread baking so accessible to the home baker. I definitely recommend it for anyone wanting to learn about yeast breads.


Although I think my grandma's sweet rolls are still my favorite, these rolls were very good. The dough was great to work with, soft but not sticky, slightly sweet, and had a hint of citrus that smelled amazing even while kneading it. Instead of the lemon extract I used Princess Cake Flavor, giving it a bakery taste with vanilla, butter, and lemon scents. Yum! I also used this flavoring in the fondant glaze that was drizzled on the warm buns. (I only made 1/4 of this glaze and it was the perfect amount--all of it would have been so overwhelmingly sweet.) I think orange would be wonderful too.


Just several notes for next time I bake them....I'll make them a bit smaller and place them closer than 1/2 inch apart--almost touching-- in a round cake pan instead of a baking sheet. My favorite buns were the soft ones on the inside that were really smushed up against their neighbors. Also, I will roll out the dough a little thinner. The recipe specifies 2/3 inch, but mine was closer to 1/2. I'll use more of the cinnamon-sugar mixture next time as well. I only used about half of the mixture and felt they needed a little more. Raisins would be tasty! And I must try these with all butter--I think the flavor of the dough would be richer.I look forward to trying the sticky buns! These rolls tasted and looked like they had come from a bakery. Thanks Daring Bakers! Another fun and yummy challenge! Check out all of the other delicious looking buns on the Daring Baker's Blogroll. Continue for Cinnamon Bun recipe.

Cinnamon and Sticky Buns
from Peter Reinhart´s The Break Baker´s Apprentice


Days to Make: One (1); Active/Resting/Baking Time: 15 minutes to mix, 3 1/2 hours fermentation/shaping/proofing, 20 - 40 minutes to bake

Recipe Quantity: Eight(1) - twelve (12) large rolls or twelve (12) - sixteen (16) small rolls


Ingredients:

6 1/2 tablespoons (3.25 ounces) granulated sugar

1 teaspoon salt
5 1/2 tablespoons (2.75 ounces) shortening or unsalted butter or margarine**
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon lemon extract OR 1 teaspoon grated zest of 1 lemon**
3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached bread or all-purpose flour**
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/8 to 1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk, at room temperature OR 3 tablespoons powdered milk (DMS) and 1 cup water**
1/2 cup cinnamon sugar (6 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar plus 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon)

White fondant glaze for cinnamon buns or caramel glaze for sticky buns (at the end of the recipe.)

Walnuts, pecans, or other nuts (for sticky buns.)
Raisins or other dried fruit, such as dried cranberries or dried cherries (for sticky buns, optional.)


Step 1 - Making the Dough: Cream together the sugar, salt, and shortening or butter on medium-high speed in an electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a large metal spoon and mixing bowl and do it by hand).Note: if you are using powdered milk, cream the milk with the sugar, and add the water with the flour and yeast.Whip in the egg and lemon extract/zest until smooth. Then add the flour, yeast, and milk. Mix on low speed (or stir by hand) until the dough forms a ball. Switch to the dough hook and increase the speed to medium, mixing for approximately 10 minutes (or knead by hand for 12 to 15 minutes), or until the dough is silky and supple, tacky but not sticky. You may have to add a little flour or water while mixing to achieve this texture. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

Step 2 - Fermentation: Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.

Step 3 - Form the Buns: 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 with flour to keep it from sticking to the pin. Roll it into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick and 14 inches wide by 12 inches long for larger buns, or 18 inches wide by 9 inches long for smaller buns. Don´t roll out the dough too thin, or the finished buns will be tough and chewy rather than soft and plump. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the surface of the dough and roll the dough up into a cigar-shaped log, creating a cinnamon-sugar spiral as you roll. With the seam side down, cut the dough into 8 to 12 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.

Step 4 - Prepare the Buns for Proofing:For cinnamon buns: line 1 or more sheet pans with baking parchment. Place the buns approximately 1/2 inch apart so that they aren´t touching but are close to one another.For sticky buns: coat the bottom of 1 or more baking dishes or baking pans with sides at least 1 1/2 inches high with a 1/4 inch layer of the caramel glaze. Sprinkle on the nuts and raisins (if you are using raisins or dried fruit.) You do not need a lot of nuts and raisins, only a sprinkling. Lay the pieces of dough on top of the caramel glaze, spacing them about 1/2 inches apart. Mist the dough with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap or a food-grade plastic bag.

Step 5 - Proof the Buns: Proof at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size. You may also retard the shaped buns in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, pulling the pans out of the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours before baking to allow the dough to proof.

Step 6 - Bake the Buns:Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) with the oven rack in the middle shelf for cinnamon buns but on the lowest shelf for sticky buns.Bake the cinnamon buns for 20 to 30 minutes or the sticky buns 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. If you are baking sticky buns, remember that they are really upside down (regular cinnamon buns are baked right side up), so the heat has to penetrate through the pan and into the glaze to caramelize it. The tops will become the bottoms, so they may appear dark and done, but the real key is whether the underside is fully baked. It takes practice to know just when to pull the buns out of the oven.

Step 7 - Cool the buns:For cinnamon buns, cool the buns in the pan for about 10 minutes and then streak white fondant glaze across the tops, while the buns are warm but not too hot. Remove the buns from the pans and place them on a cooling rack. Wait for at least 20 minutes before serving.For the sticky buns, cool the buns in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes and then remove them by flipping them over into another pan. Carefully scoop any run-off glaze back over the buns with a spatula. Wait at least 20 minutes before serving.

Toppings for the Buns:

White fondant glaze for cinnamon buns:

Cinnamon buns are usually topped with a thick white glaze called fondant. There are many ways to make fondant glaze, but here is a delicious and simple version, enlivened by the addition of citrus flavor, either lemon or orange. You can also substitute vanilla extract or rum extract, or simply make the glaze without any flavorings.Sift 4 cups of powdered sugar into a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon or orange extract and 6 tablespoons to 1/2 cup of warm milk, briskly whisking until all the sugar is dissolved. Add the milk slowly and only as much as is needed to make a thick, smooth paste.When the buns have cooled but are still warm, streak the glaze over them by dipping the tines of a fork or a whisk into the glaze and waving the fork or whisk over the tops. Or, form the streaks by dipping your fingers in the glaze and letting it drip off as you wave them over the tops of the buns. (Remember to wear latex gloves.)

Caramel glaze for sticky buns:

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature.2. Cream together for 2 minutes on high speed with the paddle attachment. Add 1/2 cup corn syrup and 1 teaspoon lemon, orange or vanilla extract. Continue to cream for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.3. Use as much of this as you need to cover the bottom of the pan with a 1/4-inch layer. Refrigerate and save any excess for future use; it will keep for months in a sealed container.

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Milk Chocolate and Caramel Tart: Daring Bakers Challenge

My first Daring Baker's Challenge!! How exciting! This month's challenge was hosted by Veronica of Veronica's Test Kitchen and Patricia of Techicolor Kitchen. Thanks! I'm always excited to make a tart of any kind!

This recipe, from Eric Kayser's Sweet and Savory Tarts, started with a hazelnut shortbread crust. This was fairly straightforward, although my dough was very sticky and I had to piece together the edges of the crust. It was blind baked before adding the filling.


The caramel layer turned out beautifully--the best part of this tart in my opinion. The original recipe said to dry melt the sugar but I chose to add a little water and corn syrup. The trick with caramel is to just let it sit and boil without any stirring until it is a deep amber color. The richer the color, the richer the flavor.

After adding the cream and butter, it was so smooth and yummy looking! You can see my reflection on the surface when I took a photo. :) The caramel was then poured into the baked crust and baked until set. It kind of looked like a pumpkin pie.

After cooling, it was topped with a chocolate whipped cream and chilled. This challenge was fairly uncomplicated--a good one for my first! I thought that the tart was ok, but the balance was off. The chocolate mouse was a little overpowering and I didn't care much for the crust. But I liked the caramel layer. Yum--like a candy bar. It's fun being part of a group of food bloggers to share ideas and see others comments. There are some great pictures from this challenge--check out the Daring Bakers blogroll to see them. Continue for Milk Chocolate and Caramel Tart recipe.

Milk Chocolate and Caramel Tart
adapted from Eric Kayser’s Sweet and Savory tarts

Chocolate Shortbread Pastry
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Refrigeration: overnight
To make 3 tarts, 9 ½ inches (24 cm) squareor 10 inches (26 cm round)

1 cup (250g ) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (150 g) confectioners’ sugar
½ cup (50 g) ground hazelnuts
2 level teaspoons (5 g) ground cinnamon (I omitted this)
2 eggs
4 ½ cups (400 g) cake flour
2 ½ teaspoons (10 g) baking powder
1 ½ tablespoons (10 g) cocoa powder

One day ahead:
1. In a mixing bowl of a food processor, cream the butter. (Next time I'll try my stand mixer.)
2. Add the confectioners’ sugar, the ground hazelnuts, and the cinnamon (if using), and mix together.
3. Add the eggs, one by one, mixing constantly.
4. Sift in the flour, the baking powder, and the cocoa powder, and mix well.
5. Divide the dough into 3 pieces, form a disc with the dough, and cover in plastic wrap. (Dough was fairly sticky).
6. Chill overnight. (I froze 2 of my crusts at this point.)

The next day:
1. Remove one piece of dough from fridge and let sit about 15 min. (You can begin making caramel filling.)
2. Preheat oven to 325 °F (160 °C).
3. Put dough on a piece of parchment paper, sprinkle lightly with flour, and roll out to fit 10 inch tart pan. (My dough was very sticky and I ended up pressing it out rather than rolling it.)
4. Over turn dough into tart pan, piecing together if dough rips.
5. Cover bottom of tart with a piece of parchment then top with dried beans to weigh it down. (After baking, my parchment stuck a bit to the tart--I'll leave this out next time.)
6. Put crust in freezer for about 15 min.
7. Place crust on a baking sheet, and bake for 15 min.

Caramel Filling
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1 T light corn syrup
1 cup (250 g) heavy cream, slightly warmed
1/4 cup (50 g) butter, cut into pieces
2 whole eggs, room temp.
1 egg yolk, room temp.
2 ½ tablespoons (15 g) flour

1. Combine sugar, water, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan and stir to combine.
2. Place over medium high heat--DO NOT STIR. Mixture will come to a boil--DO NOT STIR.
3. Let caramel become a nice dark amber color--don't rush this. The caramel will have more flavor as the color intensifies.
4. When desired color is attained, remove from heat.
5. Add warmed heavy cream (place briefly in microwave to warm cream a bit first), whisking constantly. Be careful--the mixture will bubble vigorously when you add the cream.
6. When the mixture is smooth, stir in the butter.
7. Set aside to cool.
8. In a small bowl, whisk eggs and egg yolk. Add a little of the flour and whisk. Add remaining flour and whisk until smooth.
9. When caramel has cooled to warm, add flour mixture and whisk until combined.
10. Pour into baked tart crust and bake for 15 min at 325. (I baked mine for 35min.--my caramel was still very giggly after 15min.)
11. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Milk Chocolate Mouse
1 1/4 cups (300 g) whipping cream
1/2 lb (250 g) milk chocolate

1. Beat the whipping cream until stiff.
2. Melt the chocolate in the microwave.
3. Gently fold chocolate into the cream.
4. Spread over the cooled caramel mixture, smoothing it with a spatula.
5. Chill for one hour before serving.

Caramel Fragments
1/2 cup sugar
2 T water
1/2 T light corn syrup

1. Combine in small saucepan.
2. Place over medium high heat and let it sit and boil--without stirring--until it reached an amber color.
3. Pour it onto waxed paper set on a baking sheet.
4. Allow to cool. Break into small fragments and use to decorate the top of the tart. (***I poured my caramel onto wax paper directly on the counter and it's stuck to the counter!! Ahhh!! I'll have to figure out a way to melt it off. :)

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