This year I gave no room for suggestions for Christmas morning breakfast. I wasn't interested in any requests for cereal or cinnamon rolls in a tube. No freezer waffles or anything like that. I wanted these Cinnamon Sugar Twists. Christmas Eve, I had a pretty decent to do list for food prep - but these were an easy part of it. I would suggest you be careful placing the pieces of dough in the butter... I plopped one and a full-on shower and wardrobe change was necessary. Oops. I made them the day before and tossed them right in the fridge. On Christmas morning when I got up to walk (since the magic is less, they let me walk before we started at 8 AM) I took them out and tossed them in the oven with the light on - just enough to get the rising and proofing and getting to room temp. In the middle of gifts - got the oven on and the twists baking. The icing was nice because you could dip, drizzle or do whatever you want. I have different levels of icing appreciation in my house. We all loved these twists and even had some as leftovers! I kind of like this being my own self decided Christmas breakfast! Watch out family! Who knows what might happen next!
Cinnamon Sugar Twists
Ingredients
Dough:
1 ¼ cups milk (preferably not skim milk)
¼ cup room temperature water
6 tablespoons butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast
1 large egg
1 ¼ teaspoons salt
4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Cinnamon/Sugar:
1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
1 ½ tablespoons cinnamon
12 tablespoons butter, melted
Icing:
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the dough, heat the milk until tiny bubbles form around the edges and the milk is steaming. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
Add the water, butter, and sugar. Let the mixture cool until warm (an instant-read thermometer should read 110 to 115 degrees F).
Add 2 cups of the flour and sprinkle the yeast on top. Mix until combined. dough will be thin. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 5-10 minutes until slightly puffy and bubbly.
Add the egg and salt. Add the remaining flour (start with 1 3/4 to 2 cups flour) and mix, adding additional flour gradually, until the dough clears the sides of the bowl and forms a soft, sticky ball. Don't over flour the dough.
Knead for 5-6 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm spot until doubled, 45 to 60 minutes. Lightly grease a half sheet pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
Gently punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly greased countertop. Pat or roll the dough into a 15X10-inch thick rectangle.
Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough in half lengthwise (like a hot dog bun). Then cut into about 1 1/2-inch strips (so you'll end up with about 20 strips total – see pictures in the post for a visual).
For the cinnamon and sugar, in a medium bowl or shallow dish (like a pie plate), stir together the brown sugar and cinnamon.
Dip each strip fully into the melted butter and then coat in the brown sugar/cinnamon mixture. Twist one or two times (try not to stretch the dough while dipping and twisting) and place side-by-side on the prepared sheet pan (two long rows of 10 strips each).
Cover and let rise until noticeably puffy, 30 to 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes until baked through and very lightly golden.
For the icing, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. Add additional milk to thin (or more powdered sugar to thicken). The icing should be thick but pourable.
Serve cinnamon twists warm or at room temperature. They can be served with icing on the side for dipping or the icing can be drizzled over the top of the twists. The cinnamon twists are also delicious served plain without icing.
