No-Yeast Sticky Cinnamon Buns
My Own Easy Recipe for the Most Delicious No-Yeast Sticky Cinnamon Buns
The easiest Cinnamon Buns from scratch? Recipe right here! Soft, gooey, sweet, delicious... and no yeast is needed to make these cinnamon rolls. This is my best recipe for a sweet treat when unexpected guests drop in.
No yeast in the pantry?
No problem!
With this recipe, you can quickly bake up a batch of soft, sticky, incredibly tasty cinnamon buns. Perfect hot out of the oven with a cup of tea or coffee, these "rolls" of brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon are just the right degree of rich sweetness that you won't even need icing.
All photographs by the author, all rights reserved, unless otherwise noted.
How to Make Sticky Cinnamon Buns
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Ingredients
- Dough:
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup skim milk powder (optional)
- 8 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- dash of ground nutmeg
- 3/4 cup vegetable shortening
- 2 (scant) cups cold water
- Filling:
- 1/3 cup melted butter
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon or more to taste
- 1 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease one large (approx. 11x13) rectangular pan or two 8" or 9" square pans with 1-2 Tbsp melted butter, and sprinkle each square pan with 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1 Tbsp brown sugar. (Increase the amounts proportionally if you're using a large rectangle pan.)
- Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Cut in shortening with a pastry cutter (or two knives) to the consistency of fine crumbs.
- Gradually add the cold water, mixing as you do so. (Whether you'll need the full 2 cups depends on the brand of flour you use and the humidity of your kitchen. The dough should be very soft but not too sticky to handle.)
- Knead gently a few times on a lightly floured surface and roll out to a large rectangle - approximately 12x18 inches in size.
- Spread the melted butter evenly over the dough, then sprinkle with the cinnamon and brown sugar.
- Starting at a long edge, roll up the cinnamon bun dough into a log.
- Cut into 3/4" or 1 inch slices, and arrange the slices in your prepared pans.
- Bake 30 minutes at 350°F.
Icing for Cinnamon Buns
(Optional)
If your family has a real 'sweet tooth' you may want to drizzle a little icing over the top of your Cinnamon Buns, the way the bakeries and chain coffeeshops often do. Here's the most simple, easy recipe for making Cinnamon Bun Icing:
Two-Ingredient Recipe for Cinnamon Bun Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
+ 1 Tbsp milk
Combine and mix until smooth. That's it!
If you want more icing, increase the amounts of icing sugar (a.k.a. confectioner's sugar or icing sugar) and milk in the same proportions as given. To double the amount of icing, for example, you'd use 2 Tbsp milk to moisten 2 cups of icing sugar.
If your icing turns out to be too runny, mix in a bit more icing sugar - just a very little bit at a time. If the icing is too stiff to drizzle properly over the buns, add just one drop of milk at a time, stirring well after each drop. A little liquid goes a long way!
Put the icing into a pastry bag (or, if you don't have one yet, put it into a ziplock plastic bag and cut a small opening at one corner) and pipe it in swirls or zig-zag patterns over your slightly cooled Cinnamon Buns.
Icing or No Icing?
Do you prefer your Cinnamon Buns with icing, or are they yummy enough without it?
The Finished Product! - Yummy Homemade Sticky Cinnamon Buns
