Cinnamon Raisin Buns

I've wanted to make these buns for ages but haven't had the time to give them a go.  I woke up this morning with nothing planned so it was the perfect time to try them out and I'm so pleased I did! These buns are the perfect cross between sticky and sweet, packed full of raisins and cinnamon. I'm a total novice when it comes to bread dough but I found the recipe simple and easy to follow - the original recipe can be found here, but I adapted it for myself by switching the mixed fruit for sultanas (I can't stand the peel in mixed fruit - urgh) and adding a LOT more cinnamon - its my favourite!

Ingredients:

Bun dough:

500g strong white flour

1tsp salt

1x7g sachet fast-action dried yeast

300ml milk

40 unsalted butter, softened

1 egg

vegetable or olive oil, for greasing

Filling:

25g unsalted butter, melted

75g soft brown sugar

3tbsp ground cinnamon

150g raisins or sultanas

Glaze:

2tbsp milk

2tbsp caster sugar

Method:

1. Sift the flour and salt together into a large bowl, make a well in the centre and add the yeast

2. Warm the milk and butter in a pan over a low heat until the butter melts and the mixture is lukewarm - keep an eye on this as its heating and don't let it boil!

3. Add the milk mixture and egg to the flour and stir until the ingredients come together to form a soft dough - you might need to add a little extra flour

4. Turn the dough onto a well floured surface and knead for about five minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic and stops feeling sticky - you might need to add a fair amount of flour to make this happen so don't worry if this is the case. If you've never kneaded bread before BBC Food has a great guide here - the main thing to keep in mind is that you can't be too tough on the dough - its a great stress reliever!!

5. Lightly oil a bowl and place the dough in, turning it so it also gets a light covering of oil. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave in a warm place for an hour, or until the dough has doubled in size. 

6. Knock back the dough (this means knocking all the air out of it, basically give it a good punch) and turn out onto a floured work surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle about ½cm thick, brush with the melted butter and sprinkle over the sugar, raisins and cinnamon.

7. Tightly roll up the dough to form a long sausage shape. Cut 4 cm slices and place them onto a lightly oiled baking tray. Cover with a tea towel and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes.

Before...

..and after

9. Preheat oven to 190°C, bake the buns for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven but leave the buns on the tray

10. To make the glaze heat the sugar and milk in a saucepan until boiling, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3 minutes

11. Brush the buns with glaze then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

These do take a while to make, but don't let that put you off - they really are worth the effort. I can't put my finger on what it was exactly, but I found making these to be a really enjoyable experience!