Cinnamon Knots

In an episode of the iconic television comedy Seinfeld, after waiting in line at the bakery, Elaine gets upset when the last chocolate babka is sold to another customer. Although a cinnamon babka is still available, she claims that it is a “lesser” babka. Jerry then becomes the cinnamon babka’s advocate, stating that people love cinnamon and that there is nothing inferior about it. My family members would heartily concur. I have been baking cinnamon buns as a Friday afternoon treat since my children were young and for the price of a big thank you smooch, my grandchildren continue to enjoy them when they visit.

Cinnamon Knots

The sweet dough recipe by Marsha Fernandez, published on allrecipes.com, is the starting point for cinnamon knots. Described as a Cinnabon clone, it can be used to make babka as well as cinnamon buns. The cinnamon buns can be shaped in a number of ways, including cinnamon knots, illustrated so beautifully in the best-selling cookbook, Anna Olsen’s Baking Wisdom. Shape them any way that you like, but make sure that they’re filled with lots of cinnamon and sugar. In Jerry Seinfeld’s immortal words, “Cinnamon takes a back seat to no babka!” Have a happy, healthy, and sweet New Year.

Assemble your ingredients. The butter or margarine for the cinnamon filling should be allowed to come to room temperature so that the filling can be spread easily and evenly.

Dissolve the yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar in 1 cup of lukewarm (110 F.) milk (dairy or plant-based), in the bowl of a stand mixer. When the yeast begins to bubble, add the vegetable oil, sugar and eggs to the mixture. Using the flat beater, beat on low speed until combined. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Continuing on low speed, add the bread flour, 1 cup at a time, until a dough starts to form. Remove the flat beater and using the dough hook attachment, beat the dough for 5 minutes on medium speed until a smooth, elastic, dough forms. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed lightly with cooking spray and allow it to rise at room temperature until it doubles in size (about 1 hour).

Combine the filling ingredients in a medium bowl. Press and stir with a fork until a thick paste forms. Set this mixture aside.

Spray the counter with cooking spray or dust lightly with flour. Spray your rolling pin with cooking spray or dust lightly with flour. Roll out the dough into a rectangle that measures 12 X 21 inches. The shorter side should be parallel to the edge of the counter. Spread the cinnamon and brown sugar paste evenly over the bottom half of the dough. Fold the unfilled half of the dough over the half that is spread with the cinnamon-brown sugar paste. Press the edges to seal them. The filled rectangle should measure about 12 X 10 inches.

Cut the filled dough into 12 strips using a sharp knife or pastry wheel, ensuring that each strip has a folded end. Holding a single dough strip at either end, twist the strip, turning each end in the opposite direction. Bend the strip into a “U”. Cross the ends of the strip over each other, leaving a small hole in the middle. Pull the top tail of the strip under and through the hole from the bottom. Pull the bottom tail of the strip, over and through the hole from the top, to create a knot. Spray a muffin pan with baking spray, or line the muffin cups with foil or parchment muffin papers and spray. Place each knot snugly in a muffin cup. Cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with cooking spray and allow the “knots” to rest at room temperature for 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly beat an egg that has been mixed with a tablespoon of water and a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Brush the tops of the cinnamon knots with the beaten egg mixture. Top with a sprinkling of turbinado sugar or pearl sugar. Bake the cinnamon knots for 23-25 minutes, until golden brown. Allow the cinnamon knots to cool for 20 minutes before removing them from the muffin pans. If they are sticking to the muffin pan, gently run a thin metal spatula around the inner rim of the muffin cup to help them release. Allow the cinnamon knots to continue cooling on a rack.

Print Recipe

Cinnamon Knots

Cookies, Cakes, Pies and Desserts

By allrecipes.com, adapted by Nanette – Serves: 12

Prep Time: 1 hour + 1 + 1 hour resting times – Cooking Time: 23-25 minutes – Total Time: 3 1/2 hours total, 1 1/2 hours active

Pillowy soft sweet yeast dough knots, layered with a generous amount of sugar and cinnamon and topped with a crunchy crystal sugar topping.

Ingredients

• Dough:
• 1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C), dairy or plant-based
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• ⅓ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 4 ½ cups bread flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 ½ teaspoons rapid-rise yeast (instant yeast)
• Filling:
• 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• ⅓ cup butter or margarine, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• Topping
• 1 egg, beaten lightly
• 1 tablespoon water
• ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar or pearl sugar, for sprinkling the tops of the cinnamon knots

Instructions

1

Dissolve the yeast and1 teaspoon of sugar in 1 cup of lukewarm (110 F.) milk (dairy or plant-based), in the bowl of a stand mixer. When the yeast begins to bubble, add the vegetable oil, sugar and eggs to the mixture. Using the flat beater, beat on low speed until combined. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Continuing to mix on low speed, add the bread flour, 1 cup at a time, until a dough starts to form. Remove the flat beater and using the dough hook attachment, beat the dough for 5 minutes on medium speed until a smooth, elastic, dough forms. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with cooking spray and allow it to rise at room temperature until it doubles (about 1 hour).

2

Combine the filling ingredients in a medium bowl. Press and stir with a fork until a thick paste forms. Set this mixture aside.

3

Spray the counter with cooking spray or dust lightly with flour. Spray your rolling pin with cooking spray or dust lightly with flour. Roll out the dough into a rectangle that measures 12 X 21 inches. The shorter side should be parallel to the edge of the counter. Spread the cinnamon and brown sugar paste evenly over the bottom half of the dough. Fold the unfilled half of the dough over the half that is spread with the cinnamon brown sugar paste. Press the edges to seal them. The filled rectangle should measure about 12 X 10 inches.

4

Cut the filled dough into 12 strips using a sharp knife or pastry wheel, ensuring that each strip has a folded end. Holding a single dough strip at either end, twist the strip, turning each end in the opposite direction. Bend the strip into a "U". Cross the ends of the strip over each other, leaving a small hole in the middle. Pull the top tail of the strip under and through the hole from the bottom. Pull the bottom tail of the strip, over and through the hole from the top, to create a knot. Spray a muffin pan with baking spray, or line the muffin cups with foil or parchment muffin papers and spray. Repeat with the remaining strips of dough. Place each knot snugly in a muffin cup. Cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with cooking spray and allow the "knots" to rest at room temperature for 45 minutes.

5

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly beat an egg that has been mixed with a tablespoon of water and a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Brush the tops of the cinnamon knots with the beaten egg mixture. Top with a sprinkling of turbinado sugar or pearl sugar. Bake the cinnamon knots for 23-25 minutes, until golden brown. Allow the cinnamon knots to cool for 20 minutes before removing from the muffin pans. If they are sticking to the muffin pan, gently run a thin metal spatula around the inner rim of the muffin cup to help them release. Allow the cinnamon knots to continue cooling on a rack.

Notes

The cinnamon knots taste best on the day that they are baked. They also freeze beautifully. Wrap each cooled knot in plastic wrap and place in a resealable plastic bag before freezing. The sweet dough recipe can also be prepared in a bread machine. Add the ingredients as instructed by the bread machine manufacturer. The sweet dough can also proof in the fridge overnight.