Have you ever dreamt of winter hibernation in a beautiful house in the French countryside? Quiet mornings spent brewing coffee to sip next to freshly made cinnamon rolls only to be followed by lazy afternoons reading fireside? This had been one of my dreams for many years and this past December all the winter stars aligned and pointed us south-west. We bundled up the dog, sorted out a stack of good reading material and packed a few baking essentials to head off for a week in Basse Normandie.
I decided to make classic American cinnamon buns never to be confused with their equally delicious Swedish counterpart, "kanelbullar". These are the buns that will rouse even the most ardent late sleepers with their buttery cinnamon drenched aroma. Topped with cream cheese frosting they make for a decadent morning bun served alongside your favorite brew.
I adapted the recipe for these cinnamon buns from the lovely cranberry-orange breakfast bun recipe found over on Smitten Kitchen I omitted the cranberries and made cream cheese frosting for my glaze. I'd suggest keeping the orange zest as it really brightened up the dough. I also used Vietnamese cinnamon which is known for being a very rich aromatic variety.
For more information on the beautiful manoir we stayed in head over to my friend Julie's website at The French Manoir