Chocolate cinnamon buns

Pointers, tricks and troubleshooting tips for the perfect chocolate cinnamon buns

Are chocolate cinnamon buns easy to make?

All that’s required for a whole tray of perfect, even buns is a little care. You will want to make sure your dough has been adequately kneaded and proofed.

It’s also worth taking a little time to make sure your dough is rolled into a neat, even rectangle before spreading with the chocolate cinnamon filling, and then spread evenly.

If your buns are cut equal lengths they will cook evenly (a ruler can help here if you want to be sure) and if your dough becomes very soft and tricky to work with, just pop it in the fridge to chill - this can be especially helpful before cutting into buns.

Will I need any special equipment for this recipe?

Everything needed for this recipe should be easy to find in a standard home kitchen. A nice sharp knife will help when it comes time to cut your dough as it will help to avoid tearing or squashing the buns.

There is a full list of suggested equipment on the recipe card below, so it’s worth double checking you have everything before you start.

Are these chocolate cinnamon buns suitable for vegetarians?

These buns are suitable for vegetarians as they contain no meat, fish or poultry. While it’s unlikely any of the ingredients in this dish won’t be suitable for vegetarians, it’s best to double check.

Don't forget to also check anything extra you intend to serve the recipe with.

Are these chocolate cinnamon buns suitable for vegans?

These buns aren’t vegan by default because the dough is enriched with milk, butter and egg, but you should be able to use vegan, plant based alternatives. I haven't tested the following, and it will probably result in a slight change to the taste and texture, but they will likely still be absolutely delicious.

You can replace the butter in the buns with a plant-based vegan butter. If possible, grab one with a fat content of around 80% as it will behave in a similar way to butter. Avoid ones with a very high water content. Some vegan margarines are up to 50% water!

The milk can be replaced with your favourite plant milk. My preference when baking is unsweetened soya milk as I find it to be the most neutral and stable. Some plant milks split when used in baking, so you may need to experiment.

What you replace the egg with is up to you. The egg in this recipe helps to make the strands of gluten in the dough shorter, which leads to a more elastic, softer bake. The egg can also help to leaven (rise) the bread slightly and give it a bit more colour.

For a vegan bake, you can leave the egg out completely and the recipe will still work, just add a splash more milk. Egg-less buns will have a slightly different texture.

You can also use a substitute. Any of the the following options should work as an egg replacement (each = 1 egg, so multiply as needed for any given recipe):

• 3 tablespoons of aquafaba (the water you get in a tin of chickpeas).
• 1 tablespoon of crushed chia seeds or flax seeds mixed with 2 tablespoons of water and left for 10 minutes in the fridge.
• 3 tablespoons of applesauce (bear in mind this will add sweetness and potentially an apple flavour).

Don't forget to also check anything extra you intend to add or serve the buns are vegan too.

Are these chocolate cinnamon buns gluten-free?

These buns are not gluten-free as they contain strong bread flour. While I haven’t tried it, it should be possible to make a gluten-free version.

The quality of gluten-free flour can vary hugely, so if you have a preferred one to use for bread, go with that one. You won't get quite the same soft, elastic bun but they will still be delicious.

Double check all of your ingredients labels to make sure to check that they are gluten-free. Don't forget to also check anything extra you intend to serve the recipe with.

If I make this gluten free, should I still knead it?

We knead standard bread flour dough to help the gluten develop, so you don't need to knead gluten-free bread, other than briefly to bring it together.

Are these chocolate cinnamon buns healthy?

Chocolate cinnamon buns are high in sugar and should be enjoyed as a special treat in a sensible portion size. So once in a while as part of a healthy, balanced diet rich in a good variety of fruit and veg is OK.

Are these chocolate cinnamon buns safe to eat while pregnant?

These cinnamon buns should be safe to eat during pregnancy.

Make sure to use dairy products that have been pasteurised (it should say on the label).

Advice regarding egg safety is different in different countries, so check information local to you. At the time of writing (April 2021), the UK NHS advises that raw, partially cooked and fully cooked British Lion eggs (eggs with a lion stamp on them) are safe to eat.

The eggs in this recipe are thoroughly cooked as the buns take about 20 minutes to bake in the oven.

Make sure all the ingredients are in good condition and this meal is prepared safely and hygienically.

A Mummy Too does not offer medical advice. Please seek help from a medical professional if you need further information or have any concerns.

What goes well with chocolate cinnamon buns?

As this is such a rich and flavourful treat I think a simple tea, coffee or a glass of milk is the perfect accompaniment.

Having said that, half a bun with a little scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream compliments the chocolate and cinnamon perfectly.

If your buns have gone a little stale, you can cut them in half, toast them and spread them with salted butter from a dreamy treat.

Can I make chocolate cinnamon buns without the chocolate?

If you prefer your buns without chocolate and want to make classic cinnamon buns then you can simply leave the cocoa out of the butter. You can also leave it out of the icing, in which case you'll probably need a little less milk or it may be too runny.

Can I add extra chocolate to chocolate cinnamon buns?

These buns are already rather chocolatey, but if you want to add more chocolate then I would suggest kneading some light or dark chocolate chips into your dough after the first prove.

You could also grate a little white or milk chocolate over the icing just before it's set.

How should I store chocolate cinnamon buns?

These buns will keep quite well for up to 3 days if stored in an airtight container and placed in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight.

How long do chocolate cinnamon buns keep?

If stored correctly, these buns will last up to three days in the cupboard and at least three months in the freezer.

Can I leave chocolate cinnamon buns out on the counter?

As long as the buns are in an airtight container and out of direct sunlight, they can be stored on the counter.

Can I make chocolate cinnamon buns ahead?

While best served fresh, you can make these cinnamon buns a day in advance, and keep them in an airtight container.

While I haven't tried it, it should also be possible to place a covered tray of raw buns that haven’t had their final 30 minute proof in the freezer. When you want to bake them, give them several hours to defrost and wait for them to puff up before brushing with milk and baking. If you’re trying to get a lot done on the same day, this will save you time.

Can I keep chocolate cinnamon buns in the refrigerator?

You can keep baked chocolate cinnamon buns in the fridge, but it isn’t necessary to do so, and will impact the texture a little. This is because as the bread cools to fridge temperatures, the starch re-crystallises which makes the buns stiff, which means they end up being a similar texture to stale bread.

If you do want to refrigerate your buns, you can reverse this crystallisation by simply warming up the bread - see the answer to "What is the best way to reheat chocolate cinnamon buns?" below for the best way to do this.

Can I freeze chocolate cinnamon buns?

These buns freeze well, but you should get them into the freezer as quickly as possible - ideally as soon as they’ve cooled. A bun that’s a day or two old will have a noticeably different texture, so the faster you get them in the freezer the better they’ll be.

What is the best way to reheat chocolate cinnamon buns?

My preferred way of reheating cinnamon buns is to first melt around 2 tsp of butter in a frying pan over a low heat, then cut the buns in half as you would a burger bun. Place the buns in the pan with the middle of both halves face-down in the butter.

Give them just a minute or two to warm through - it doesn’t take long. Cooking them this way means even buns that are a day or two old become perfectly soft and warm as if they had just come out of the oven.

Another nice, simple method to reheat cinnamon buns is to wrap them in a single layer of foil, place them on a baking tray and pop them into the oven for 10 minutes at 180C (160C fan). They will come out soft and delicious.

Can I make chocolate cinnamon buns in a different quantity?

If you want to make more or less of this recipe then go right ahead. Just make sure you have enough high-walled sheet pans and oven space.

Look for the recipe card below. You'll see the servings near the top left. To change this to the number you want to make just click on it and a little slider will pop up. You can move the slider up or down to get the amount you want to make.

All the ingredient quantities will update automatically for you so that everything is in the right ratios.

Can I make chocolate cinnamon buns in a different tray?

It's best to use a tray with high walls and without much unused space, as this will make for nice, tall buns that don't spread out too much.

In a pinch, if all you have available is a round cake tin (or two) you can make something similar to the Swedish 'Butterkaka' and Finnish 'bostonkakku', both of which have the individual buns stick together to form a large, round cake.

Alternatively you can roll out a much longer and thinner rectangle, then roll up in a spiral to create one giant cinnamon swirl that could be cut into slices. The cooking times will likely differ, so keep an eye on your mega-bun, and use a wide cake tin with a removable base if possible as it will make getting your bun out much easier. If you don’t have one with a removable base, then ice it on a plate after getting it out.

Can I make chocolate cinnamon buns in a stand mixer such as a KitchenAid or Kenwood Mixer?

While mixing the ingredients together by hand and kneading the dough doesn’t take too long, you could also happily use a stand mixer. Use the dough hook and run it on low for no more than 5 minutes so that you don't overwork the gluten.

How can I make sure chocolate cinnamon buns are perfectly cooked?

If the buns are beautifully browned on top they should be cooked throughout. You can also use an instant read thermometer to check your buns by poking the centre, bread-iest part of the bun. If it reaches over 82C/180F then it’s cooked.

As long as the top isn’t burning (a nice, crisp top is desirable), then it’s best to err on the side of caution and give your buns an extra minute if they seem under baked. An under baked loaf isn’t just stodgy, but less flavourful, as the sugars and proteins will not have reached a temperature where they start to caramelise.

If you are worried that your buns are browning too much on top before they're cooked through, cover the top with foil to continue baking.

Why did my dish turn out burned?

If you buns seem burned on top, it is likely because your oven was too hot or you left your cinnamon buns in for too long so check both of these first.

The chocolate in the filling will go quite dark towards the end of baking and that's fine, but if you see it start to catch and begin to burn, it may become bitter. This is particularly likely if the oven is too hot or has hotspots in it.

If you're worried that this is happening before the cinnamon buns have baked through then you can place a sheet of tin foil loosely over the top of the tray for the remainder of the baking time.

Why didn’t my dish rise?

These buns will rise a fair bit during both the proofing stages (once in the bowl, once in the pan), and rise more when in the oven. What stage your troubles started will help you understand how to fix it.

If your buns didn't rise enough during one of the proofing stages this is usually because it is too cold. Yeast’s optimum temperature to grow and reproduce is between 27-32C (80-90F), so put the dough somewhere warmer or simply leave give yeast longer to do its thing.

If your buns hardly rose at all during the first proof and the temperature was warm enough, it’s possible your yeast was out of date and thus dead or dying. It's also possible you used milk or melted butter that was too hot and killed the yeast. Either way, it should have been noticeable a few minutes after adding the yeast to the liquids as dead yeast will not produce any foam. Unfortunately, if the yeast was dead and went into the dough there's no easy solution to fixing it, so it's best to start again.

It’s also possible you used the wrong type of yeast. This recipe uses instant yeast, which usually comes in 7g sachets. Using active dried yeast or fresh yeast will alter the amount you need to use - check the packaging for advice.

Once in the oven, the bread will also rise (called ‘oven spring’), thanks to a mixture of the yeast working at their ideal temperature (before getting too hot and being killed off), as well as the moisture inside the bread evaporating and helping to lift the dough. However, oven spring generally won’t give any bread more than a 30% increase in volume at most, and depending on the type of bread, may be even less.

The most common reason for no rise at the oven stage is that your oven is too hot, which will cause the outside of the buns to develop a crust before the rest of the dough has had time to expand. Confusingly, an oven that’s too cold will also mean you run into a similar problem, so make sure it’s preheated and at the correct temperature.

How can I add/change the flavours in this dish?

Cinnamon buns are popular throughout much of the world, with many countries having a twist on how it’s prepared or the ingredients used. Here’s some of my favourite additions and alterations.

Different filling ideas for cinnamon buns

• Scatter crushed nuts over the butter and cinnamon filling before rolling up for added crunch.
• Sprinkle small pieces of chopped apple or dried fruit such as raisin over the cinnamon butter before rolling up.
• Instead of cinnamon butter, mix equal amounts of chunky peanut butter and honey for a great alternative in taste and texture.

For topping ideas for cinnamon buns

• Add 1 tbsp warmed caramel sauce instead of 2 tbsp chocolate and reduce the milk by half.
• Sprinkle crushed nuts or flaked almonds on top of the icing.
• Sprinkle confectionery decorations such as hundreds and thousands (sprinkles) or sugar strands on top or in place of the frosting.
• Use a cream cheese frosting (you can choose to add or leave out the cocoa powder). The frosting used in this mini red velvet cupcakes recipe works fantastically.

What is the origin of chocolate cinnamon buns?

Cinnamon buns (also known as ‘cinnamon rolls’, ‘cinnamon swirls’, ‘cinnamon Danish’ and ‘cinnamon snails’) are a common treat in Northern Europe and North America. The pastry is yeast leavened, but how the dough is prepared or the toppings used can vary quite a bit beyond that, depending on the country. It's usually baked but can also be deep fried.

While it has been many hundreds of years since Roman spice traders introduced cinnamon to Europe, it's likely the cinnamon bun was first made popular in Sweden around the turn of the 19th century, becoming increasingly popular in the 1920s and cementing its place as a well-loved snack by the 1950s, spreading across much of Europe and North America as a popular bread to be enjoyed during breakfast or as a dessert.