German Cinnamon Rolls

These delicious flaky and warm Franzbrötchen - German Cinnamon Rolls are perfect for breakfast or brunch. Made with a homemade croissant style dough and filled with a sweet and spicy cinnamon sugar mixture that is a perfect balance between a laminated pastry and cinnamon buns.

Ingredients and substitutions for German Cinnamon Rolls

• Plain flour: All purpose or plain flour work here to create a soft dough that is both easy to work with as you layer in the butter.
• Yeast: Yeast doesn’t just help give our cinnamon rolls that rise during the proofing and baking process.
• Sugar: Superfine or caster sugar in the dough helps to sweeten without adding additional flavor, you could substitute in equal measure with light brown sugar, if you prefer. I do not recommend substituting with a darker sugar as that would lend an overpowering flavor.
• Milk: This helps give our rolls that nice soft crumb and the golden crust alongside our butter. You could substitute with water in equal measure if you prefer.
• Eggs: Adding moisture and binding the dough together, the eggs help with rising as they act as a leavening agent as well as giving our rolls that nice light crumb thanks to the fat from the yolks.
• Butter: Room temperature unsalted butter is added to our dough once the gluten has begun to form because it helps to create a smooth and luscious dough with the chilled butter that is later added resulting in those croissant like layers. You could substitute non dairy butter in equal measure, however, I have not tried this and do not recommend substituting in oil.
• Ground cinnamon: The flavor punch for our entire rolls, you’ll want good ground cinnamon for this, and if your ground spices are over 3 years old, you might want to buy some new stuff for this. It’s worth it, trust me!

See recipe card for quantities.

How to make German Cinnamon Rolls:

Step 1: Yeast base: Stir the flour, instant yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl and stir to combine with a well in the center.

Step 2: Shaggy dough: Pour the lukewarm milk and eggs into the well and stir until it is a shaggy dough.

Step 3: Butter dough: Add the room temperature butter and knead until smooth and butter is fully incorporated.

Step 4: Doubled: Cover the dough in a bowl with a wet tea towel until double in size.

Step 5: Square butter: Tap and roll the butter between two pieces of greaseproof paper to a 23 cm / 9 inch square approximately ¼ inch thick. Chill.

Step 6: Square dough: Punch to deflate the risen dough and upturn onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out to a 35 centimeter / 14 inch square and place the butter diagonally on top.

Step 7: Fold: The corners of the dough over to fully cover the butter, ensure you cannot see any butter once the dough is pinched closed.

Step 8: Roll: Out to a 20x30 cm / 8x12 inch rectangle in one direction and then fold the rectangle in 3, to a wide rectangle. Refrigerate and repeat 3 times.

Step 9: Spiced sugar: Stir the sugar and ground cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.

Step 10: Halved dough: Halve the dough, returning 1 piece to the fridge whilse you roll the second into a 33 cm / 13 inch square that is approximately ¼ inch thick and top with half the sugar all the way to the corners.

Step 11: Roll: Into a tight scroll before you evenly cut to 6 equal portions.

Step 12: Press: With a flour covered wooden spoon handle into the center of one roll firmly parallel to the cut edges.

Step 13: Bake: Until golden and flaky in appearance. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Step 14: Serve em up: Alongside with your favorite hot beverage and dig in!

FAQ’s for the best German Cinnamon Rolls

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German Cinnamon Rolls

Sylvie Taylor

This Franzbrötchen - German Cinnamon Rolls recipe includes layers of flaky dough wrapped in a cinnamon sugar to create a memorable mix between a croissant and cinnamon roll for a very underrated German dish!

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Prep Time 2 hours hrs

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Chill time 3 hours hrs

Total Time 5 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine German

Servings 12

Calories 447 kcal

Ingredients

  

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Laminated dough

• 580 grams / 4 ? cups plain flour
• 3 grams / 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 40 grams / 3 tablespoons superfine/caster sugar
• ¾ teaspoon sea or kosher salt
• 200 milliliters / ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons milk lukewarm
• 90 grams / 2 medium eggs room temperature
• 65 grams / 2.29 ounces butter room temperature and evenly cubed
• 250 grams / 8.18 ounces butter cold

Cinnamon filling

• 150 grams / ¾ cup superfine/caster sugar
• 6 grams / 2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

Instructions

 

Laminated dough

• Place the flour, instant yeast, sugar and salt into a large bowl and stir to combine creating a well in the center.
• Add the lukewarm milk and eggs and stir the mixture until the mixture is a shaggy dough.
• Toss in the room temperature 65 grams / 2.29 ounces butter and combine until the dough comes together.
• Knead until the dough feels smooth and the butter has ben fully incorporated, approximately 10 minutes with a hand beater.
• Cover with a wet tea towel and set aside in a warm place until doubled in size, for at least 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, place the large portion of butter between two pieces of greaseproof paper and tap lightly with a rolling pin to flatten until you can roll it out to a 23 cm / 9 inch ¼ inch thick square with nice even edges. Chill until ready to use.
• Once the dough has doubled in size, punch to deflate and invert onto a lightly floured surface.
• Roll out to a 35 centimeter / 14 inch square and place the butter centered diagonally on top so you have the square dough with a diamond butter square in the center.
• Fold the corners of the dough over like you would if you create a square envelope to fully cover the butter, ensuring you cannot see any of it once the dough is pinched closed.
• Roll the dough out in one direction to a 20x30 cm / 8x12 inch rectangle and then fold the rectangle in 3, to a wide rectangle.
• Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes before repeating the roll out process twice more to a 20x30 cm / 8x12 inch rectangle and 3 way rectangle fold and refrigerate.
• Preheat your oven to 200C/400F and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.

Cinnamon filling

• Stir the sugar and ground cinnamon in a bowl until combined. Set aside.
• Remove the chilled dough from the fridge and cut in half.
• Refrigerate 1 half and rolling the second into a 33 cm / 13 inch square, approximately ¼ inch thick.
• Sprinkle over half the sugar mixture evenly all the way to the edges.
• Carefully roll into a tight scroll.
• Measure out to 6 equal portions and slice evenly.
• Place onto your lined baking tray.
• Lightly flour the handle of a wooden spoon and press firmly into the center of one roll, parallel to the cut edges and hold in place for 30 seconds.
• Remove the wooden spoon and the edges of your dough should be slightly fanned.
• Repeat with your remaining dough.
• Place into the oven and bake until golden and flakey in appearance, approximately 20 minutes.
• Remove and set aside to cool completely.
• Serve em up with your favorite hot beverage on the side.
• Enjoy.

Notes

• Ground cinnamon: The flavor punch for our entire rolls, you’ll want good ground cinnamon for this, and if your ground spices are over 3 years old, you might want to buy some new stuff for this. It’s worth it, trust me!
• Indenting your dough: You don’t necessarily need a wooden spoon here. Anything approximately ? inch thick such as a small rolling pin or even a round heavy bread and butter knife handle would work, just make sure flour will stick so that your mark is left in the dough to hold it firmly as it bakes and puffs up.
• Serving your rolls: These are best served the day they are made. However, you can reheat in the oven for 5 minutes up to 2 days set at 180C/350F.

Adapted from Food52

Nutrition

Calories: 447kcal

Keyword bread, breakfast, brunch, holiday baking, pastry

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