Cinnamon Twists
Strips of puff pastry brushed with butter, coated in cinnamon sugar, twisted and baked for 15 minutes until crisp and golden.
Photograph credit: Cinnamon Twists detail by Janet Hudson · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Don't Make These Mistakes
Use plenty of cinnamon sugar.
Press the ends down so they do not unravel.
Lift them off the tray while hot.
Cooking Cinnamon Twists
Tap a step to highlight it, or turn on Cook Mode for large type and step-by-step focus.
-
Heat the oven to 200°C / 390°F and line 2 trays. Mix the sugar, cinnamon and salt.
-
Unroll the pastry and brush with the melted butter. Scatter over two thirds of the cinnamon sugar.
-
Fold in half like a book and press down. Cut into 12 strips, 2 cm wide.
-
Twist each strip into a spiral, press the ends down on the trays and sprinkle with the rest of the sugar.
-
Bake for 15 minutes until puffed and deep golden. Move to a rack while hot.
What's Going On Here
Puff pastry does the hard work in this recipe: a bought sheet, a brush of butter and a shower of cinnamon sugar produce a crisp, flaky, caramelised pastry in under half an hour. The twists look as if they came from a bakery, which makes them a good thing to serve with coffee when guests arrive unexpectedly.
The cinnamon sugar is plain: caster sugar and ground cinnamon in a ratio of about 4 to 1. A bit more sugar than you think is needed, because it caramelises on the pastry as it bakes and forms the crisp crust. A pinch of salt cuts the sweetness and brings out the cinnamon. Mix it in a bowl, and have it close to hand.
Fold, cut, twist. Brush the pastry with melted butter, scatter half of the sugar over it, then fold it in half like a book and press down. Cut into 12 strips, 2 cm wide. Hold each strip at both ends and twist in opposite directions until it forms a spiral. Lay on a lined tray and press the ends down so that the twist does not unravel.
Chill the twists for 10 minutes if the kitchen is warm, then bake at 200°C / 390°F until puffed and deeply golden. Take them off the tray while they are still hot, otherwise the caramelised sugar sets and sticks them down. Serve warm or cool.
After You've Cooked It
Best the day they are made. Keeps for 2 days in a tin.
Serving Cinnamon Twists
- Coffee
- Hot chocolate
- Hot tea
- Vanilla ice cream
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
Cooked this? Keep a note for next time
Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
You Might Also Like
More American cooking and baking ideas from Weekly Delight.
Cinnamon Swirl Bread
A soft, enriched yeast loaf rolled up with a butter, brown sugar and cinnamon filling. Toast a slice for breakfast…
Cast Iron Cornbread
Cornbread baked in a very hot buttered skillet, with a crisp golden crust and a moist, tender crumb.
Hot Dog Buns
Soft, slightly sweet white rolls shaped long and narrow, proved twice and baked for 15 minutes at 200C.
Magic Cookie Bars
Seven layers, no mixing bowl: buttery crumb base, condensed milk, chocolate, butterscotch, coconut and pecans…
Pecan Sandies
Crumbly, tender butter cookies studded with toasted chopped pecans and rolled in icing sugar while still warm. A…
Almond Crescent Cookies
Buttery almond crescents shaped by hand, baked for 15 minutes and rolled twice in icing sugar while still warm.