Cinnamon Buns

Well, i bet that title post is what made you click. There is no shame in admitting it, because those two words put together = heaven. Don't even try to deny it, because I know you would be lying, as no one can resist sugary, buttery, cinnamony goodness. There just so yummy, i get distracted and casually invent new words! 

These are no ordinary cinnamon buns, as they are super rich and buttery. They are also folded in a traditional Nordic way, and as well as being loaded with cinnamon, they have cardamon in them as well. They are almost like a hybrid between croissants and cinnamon buns, as they have layers which are soft and flakey, almost pastry like.

Feel free to add your own flavours, such as vanilla or saffron, or if you don't like cardamom feel free to remove it. I also added a lot more cinnamon than the recipe suggests, the filling didn't  taste that nice on its own, but since the cinnamon is distributed throughout 16 buns it tasted fine( and actually needed more to suit my tastes).

Ingredients

Dough

135g caster sugar

100g butter

700g plain flour

18g dried yeast

1 egg

200ml milk

100ml cream

Filling

90g caster sugar

150g unsalted butter

1-2 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tbsp cardamom seeds from pods, ground( to taste)

Glazing syrup 

1 egg, beaten

50ml golden syrup or treacle, mixed with 1 tbsp water

2 tbsp caster sugar

1. Beat together the butter a and sugar until light and fluffy

2. Add in the egg and beat for a further 2 mins

3. Fold in the sifted flour and yeast, alternating with the milk and cream, until you have a smooth and slightly sticky dough

4. Knead for 15 mins until the dough is smooth and elastic, cover and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour

5. Shape the risen dough into a rectangle, roll out to 2cm thick, keeping in as much air as possible

6. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, add in the cinnamon and cardamom to taste spread evenly over the dough

7. Fold the dough in half, the half again, keeping in a rectangle shape

8. Roll out again to 1.5 cm thick, cut the dough into 2cm wide strips, it should make about 16 strips

9. Roll each strip around 3 fingers twice, using your thumb as an anchor point, fold the end of the strip over the loops & tuck it under. Or roll into snail shapes.

10. Place onto lined baking tray, and cover with a tea towel, and allow to rise for 45 mins

11. Preheat the oven to 200°c, gas 6

12. Brush the buns with beaten egg. And place in the oven for 10mins or until golden brown

13. Once cooked immediately brush with the syrup and sprinkle with sugar.

Filo Pastry Mince Pies

With two days till Christmas and I've suddenly realised i haven't done any proper Christmas food, on my blog. *Slaps self on wrists*. Without any further dilly dadaling, i will introduce you to these beautiful little morsels, that grace my Christmas, and definitely should yours.

These, are my take on mince pies; introduced by my mum, as she was never fond of normal shortcrust pastry. Any homemade mince pies are normally far superior to the supermarket ones, with little filling and overly sweet pastry, and these in my opinion are better than ones with shortcrust pastry. These are extremely crispy and crunchy which pairs nicely with the soft mincemeat. 

 These, are also super quick and easy to make without any rolling out of pastry. And not to mention, alot healthier with filo pastry being low in fat, which is always good when piling on the pounds at Christmas. 

Ingredients

1 270g pack filo pastry
1 510g jar mincemeat
melted butter

1. preheat oven at 180 °
2. lay out filo pastry
3. divide equally and cut into 8 squares
4. brush 3 layers of filo with butter and layer up 
5. place a heaped teaspoon of mincemeat in the centre of the square
6. pinch the ends together
7. brush with melted butter and place in the oven until golden brown and crisp.
8. serve warm or cold
9. enjoy. (possibly with mulled wine, family & friends)

Merry Christmas

Emma x