By Kat Boytsova
4.7
(44)
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova
After seeing the cinnamon roll from Paris's Circus Bakery pop up everywhere on Instagram, we developed this recipe as an homage. (Hey, it was cheaper than a plane ticket.) Circus Bakery's roll is made with sourdough, but our cardamom-scented version is more briochelike; of course, they're both streaked with a sweet, buttery cinnamon filling. It takes some practice to master the distinctive twisted shape—try it out a few times with a twisted-up towel or piece of parchment paper to get a feel for it. And if your knot isn't perfect, don’t worry! The buns will be delicious no matter what.
Recipe information
Total Time
5 hours 20 minutes, plus an overnight proof
Yield
Makes 8
Ingredients
For the Dough:
1 cup whole milk
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3 1/2 cups (475 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (105 g) granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp. (3 g) ground cardamom
1 tsp. kosher salt
6 Tbsp. room temperature unsalted butter, plus more for bowl
For the Filling and Assembly:
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
3 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups (packed) brown sugar, divided
All-purpose flour (for surface)
Preparation
For the Dough:
Step 1
Heat milk in a small saucepan over low until just warm; an instant-read thermometer should register 105°F–115°F. Pour into the large bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk in yeast and let sit until foamy, 10–15 minutes. You should see a layer of foam on the surface; this means that the yeast is active.
Step 2
Add egg, egg yolk, flour, granulated sugar, cardamom, and salt to yeast mixture and mix with dough hook on low speed until well combined. Increase speed to medium and continue to mix until dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Gradually add butter 1 Tbsp. at a time, mixing to incorporate slightly before adding more. When 6 Tbsp. butter are incorporated, mix until dough is smooth, supple, and shiny, 10–15 minutes longer (you need to mix this long to develop the gluten).
Step 3
Transfer dough to a large buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel, and let sit at room temperature until doubled in size, 1–1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down, cover bowl tightly in plastic wrap, and chill overnight (the slow proof creates more flavor because it gives the yeast more time to process the sugar).
For the Filling and Assembly:
Step 4
Mix butter, cinnamon, and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a medium bowl until combined.
Step 5
Have your tools and filling nearby; you want to work quickly and keep dough as chilled as possible to make rolling more manageable. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured piece of parchment paper and roll to a 1/4"-thick rectangle, about 16"x12". Cover with plastic and chill until dough is firm, 30–60 minutes.
Step 6
Spread butter mixture over two-thirds of dough. Fold plain side over the middle, then fold opposite third over (like folding an envelope). Roll to a 12"x8" rectangle about 1/2" thick. Slice lengthwise into eight 1"-thick strips.
Step 7
Working one at a time, lay strip on clean work surface with long side facing you. Using your palms, gently twist each end in opposite directions until entire strip is spiraled. Hold one end of strip between a thumb and index finger. Working away from you, tightly wrap strip around 3 fingers. Wrap around fingers again, placing second loop closer to the palm of your hand. As you bring strip across the back of your hand, cross over first loop, angling toward the end of your index finger. Cross dough over front of your hand and tuck the end into the center while removing your fingers and pushing through to the other side to create a knot. Check out step-by-step photos here. You want to twist these tightly so that they rise while baking. If you’re having trouble, twist them into any kind of knot that you can—just make sure it's wrapped tightly.
Step 8
Divide cinnamon twists between 2 rimmed baking sheets, spacing evenly apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until doubled in size, 45–60 minutes.
Step 9
Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 325°F. Bake cinnamon buns, rotating pans from top to bottom halfway through, until deeply golden brown, 25–30 minutes.
Step 10
Bring remaining 1 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Generously brush syrup over hot buns. If you like a sweeter pastry, wait 5 minutes, then brush again.
Step 11
Do Ahead: Buns can be made 2 days ahead. Tightly wrap with plastic and store at room temperature.
TagsCinnamon RollPastriesCinnamonCardamomSideBreakfastBrunchBakingStand MixerEpicurious
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Reviews (44)
Back to TopTriangleA-mazing! I saw these in April and saved the recipe and am so happy i did! I make cinnamon rolls for Christmas and wanted to change things up. These are not just beautiful they are delicious! The first time i made them as the recipe called for and was not disappointed. The cardamom is a grown up taste. I get it at a spice shop so its a bit stronger than the supermarket variety. I made them with a bit less cardamom the second time around and they were just as yummy.
lucy from the shore
long island, ny
1/5/2022
Delicious, fun to make, and the perfect amount of sweetness for a breakfast pastry. Really enjoyed making these, they will be making many appearances once the holidays are in person again! They had a beautiful golden crust on the outside with a soft middle and were just stunning. Reading through the reviews I decided to add a teaspoon of sugar to the warm milk and yeast as recommended on my dry yeast packet (might not have mattered) and subtly dialed up the cardamom since others said it was lost for them. While I used pre-ground cardamom from the spice cabinet for the dough, I ground my own cardamom seeds and added maybe about a 1/4 tsp into the cinnamon sugar mix. The smell was amazing as they baked. My partner and I loved the flavor and thought both the cinnamon and cardamom where in good balance. After trying to follow the Epicurious photos provided, I ended up referencing a recipe on Jamie Oliver's site, "Beautiful vegan Swedish cinnamon buns," because it had GIFs.
Anonymous
Seattle, WA
3/17/2021
I like this new twist (no pun intended) to the cinnamon bun. Cardamom is a great addition. It was a great weekend baking project but it is a bit time consuming. I agree with other reviewers on only needing half the syrup and I will probably skip rotating the buns to the bottom rack next time as it ended up burning some of the filling that had come out. Very tasty and worth the effort!
casualcookie
Ottawa, ON
2/21/2021
These are phenomenal. I read all the reviews before embarking, so I increased the cardamom to 1 tbsp. I disagree with the reviewer who said these are "too tough, with too much crust". The coiling of the dough essentially mimics traditional cinnamon rolls, with the same soft centre in the middle. It sounds like he overbaked his, because mine came out lusciously soft. My big tip would be to continue twisting the dough strip as you wrap it around your fingers. That way, the strip still looks spiralized even after it's coiled. I also halved the glaze as per another reviewer's suggestion, and it was more than enough - even after two coats.
cheching
Toronto, ON
1/2/2021
This was a really yummy recipe that I’m definitely using again. Some tips I would add:•If you don’t have a stand mixer, melt the butter and allow to cool and add to the wet ingredients before the flour. Make sure you knead sufficiently.•I ground up my own cardamom from the pods and the flavor was very vibrant and you could really smell and taste it.•I also added clove to the cinnamon mixture because I though it would go well the the cardamom and the cinnamon and it worked really well. (^○^) (๑>◡<๑)
Maya Therrien
Tacoma, WA
11/3/2020
Amazing. Followed the recipe exactly. Tying the knots is not as complicated as you might think. They turned out beautifully. 8 rolls are large. You will want to eat a whole one.
geriyoshioka
Skokie, IL
9/14/2020
Lovely, and easier to pull together than expected. This is the family's new favorite cinnamon roll, but I agree with others that it could benefit from some tweaking to bring out a bit more depth in the dough. A bit more cardamom, for sure, and perhaps starting with sourdough like it says is used in the original? I also like the suggestion of making smaller rolls, although we found it easy enough to half these - and sharing one makes it feel like you're not so quite off the rails on your diet. :)
eliseintosh
Portland, OR
6/20/2020
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