Bottoms-Up Cinnamon Caramel Pinwheels Recipe

Nothing says love like ooey-gooey home-baked cinnamon rolls. And if you will be celebrating brunch with Mom this weekend—or maybe an afternoon nibble and coffee—these would be a great, and probably unexpected, treat.

This is the fast version of a sticky bun, says baking expert and cookbook author Elinor Klivans, who created this recipe for Real Food. You spread a brown-sugar glaze in the bottom of a pan, pat out a soft biscuit dough, roll the dough up with cinnamon sugar, and bake. Then feast on the fastest, stickiest, cinnamon-swirl buns around.

Including some cake flour in the dough adds to the tenderness of the biscuit, says Klivans. Before the biscuits are rolled up, you can sprinkle a 12 cup of raisins, dried cranberries or chopped pecans over the cinnamon-sugar-covered dough. Or, sprinkle a 12 cup chopped pecans or walnuts over the glaze before adding the biscuits. (You could make these even more quickly by starting with a can of biscuit dough.) Put the biscuits in a double row, side-by-side, and roll out. Sweet.

Bottoms-Up Cinnamon Caramel Pinwheels

Makes 9 Buns

Glaze
14 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons honey
12 cup packed light brown sugar

Biscuits
112 cups all-purpose flour
12 cup cake flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
12 teaspoon baking soda
34 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (34 stick) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
14 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
14 cup granulated sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch round layer pan or baking dish with 2-inch-high sides with parchment paper.

2. To make the glaze: Combine the butter, honey, and brown sugar in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the butter and sugar melt and the glaze is smooth. Pour the glaze into the prepared pan, tilting the pan to spread it evenly. Set aside.

3. To make the biscuits: Into a medium bowl, sift both flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

4. Put about half of the flour mixture into a large bowl. Use a large spoon to mix in the 6 tablespoons melted butter, sour cream, and buttermilk. Add the remaining flour mixture, stirring until a soft, ragged dough forms and the flour is incorporated.

5. With floured hands, gather up the dough and knead the dough on a floured surface about 10 times until the dough looks fairly smooth and there is no loose flour. Pat the soft dough into a 12-by-7-inch rectangle that is about 38-inch thick. In a small bowl, stir the cinnamon and sugar together. Using a pastry brush, spread the remaining tablespoon of melted butter over the dough. Leaving a 1-inch plain edge, sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the dough. Roll up the dough, jelly-roll style. If any dough sticks, pat it back onto the dough cylinder. Pinch the ends together; the roll will be about 11 inches long. Use a sharp knife to cut 9 rolls. Place them cut-side up on the glaze in the prepared pan (place 7 rolls around the edge of the pan and 2 in the middle).

6. Bake until the tops feel firm and the edges just start to brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit 5 minutes. Turn out onto a serving plate and remove the parchment paper and discard it. Serve warm. The pinwheels can be made one day ahead, covered, and warmed sticky-side up in a low oven.

Nutrition Info (Per Serving): Calories 368 (171 From Fat); Fat 19g (Sat. 12g); Chol 51mg; Sodium 354mg; Carb 46g; Fiber 1g; Protein 4g

In her role as Senior Editor on Greenspring’s Custom Publications team, Mary leads Real Food magazine, the nationally syndicated publication distributed through our retail partner grocery stores. She also leads editorial on the nationally syndicated Drinks magazine and writes a weekly blog post focusing on food and drinks for MinnesotaMonthly.com. She rarely meets a chicken she doesn’t like, and hopes that her son, who used to eat beets and Indian food as a preschooler, will one day again think of real food as more than something you need to eat before dessert and be inspired by his younger brother, who is now into trying new foods.