Think cinnamon. Think warm and soft Amish Friendship Bread bread dough. Think vanilla glaze drizzled liberally. And then some.
>> Need an Amish Friendship Bread Primer with the ten day instructions? Go here!
I love it when members of our Friendship Bread Kitchen community share their Amish Friendship Bread recipes. This one by Cynthia Nussbaum of Rittman, OH is one of our all-time favorites.
Think cinnamon. Think warm and soft Amish Friendship Bread bread dough. Think vanilla glaze drizzled liberally. And then some.
Amish Friendship Bread Cinnamon Twists
Think cinnamon. Think warm and soft Amish Friendship Bread bread dough. Think vanilla glaze drizzled liberally. And then some.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Amish Friendship Bread Starter
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup very warm water
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 egg
For the Filling
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar firmly packed
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons softened butter
For the Drizzle
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons water or milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or maple flavoring
Instructions
- Combine yeast, starter and water in mixing bowl. Let mixture stand for 5 minutes.
- Add flour, salt, butter and egg and mix together using the dough hook on low speed until dough forms.
- Once dough begins to form (flour may be in bottom of bowl), increase the speed to medium and knead for 4 minutes. Dough will cling to dough hook; clean the sides of bowl during this time.
- Remove dough from bowl; the dough will be soft but not sticky. Let it rise in a greased bowl in warm place for 1 1/2 hours.
- While the dough is rising, make the filling. Combine sugars and cinnamon thoroughly. Divide in half to use on each rectangle. Set aside with butter.
- Dough will have risen, but not doubled. Divide dough in half.
- Using very little flour (if any), pat or roll one half into a 12″x 9″ rectangle.
- Spread a thin layer of softened butter over each rectangle. With a butter knife, score the rectangle into thirds horizontally on the 12″ side (be sure not to cut through).
- Using one half of filling, spread an even layer in the middle section. Fold up bottom section over top of filling.
- Spread a thin layer of butter over this section, then spread filling evenly over top.
- Fold the top third over the filling and press lightly to seal.
- There may be small amount leftover after filling each rectangle.
- You should now have a long strip 12″ x 3″. Cut this in half. Then cut each half into fourths to make 8 pieces.
- Hold each strip at both ends and twist once in opposite directions. When twisting, some of the filling may come out, which is fine. Place each twist on greased baking sheet about 1″ apart. Press both ends of twists to baking sheet.
- Repeat with remaining half of dough and remaining half of filling to make 8 more twists.
- Let rise at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours on the baking sheet, covered in a warm place.
- Bake at in a preheated oven at 375° F (190° C) for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned.
- While the twists are baking, prepare the drizzle. Combine drizzle ingredients and mix well.
- Remove from oven and drizzle the icing while hot.
- ENJOY!
Notes
From Cynthia Nussbaum: “The dough for this recipe is made using a stand mixer and a dough hook. I did not test it mixing or kneading by hand. It would need a longer mixing and kneading time if done exclusively by hand. This recipe can be started so that it is ready to bake when needed. I started this at night and let rise on the baking sheet until morning. In the morning, just pop it in the oven and bake. It’ll be ready for breakfast or brunch!”
From Cyndie Shumaker: “I didn’t have a dough hook so I kneaded by hand for 4 minutes. They turned out great. I made 12 from each rectangle instead of 8 and I like that size better.”
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>> Have you tried this? Share your best pic with us or leave a comment below and let us know how it worked for you!
Dough did not expand much on first 1.5 hours. Did not proof in the 8 hours I was at work. I’m going to guess that these will taste dense. Wondering what I did wrong. I’ll bake and check black in on how they turn out.
Yep. Dense. Great flavor, but not the light, flaky, pastry type thing I was expecting. I guess I’ll try again in 10 days with my next starter.
So easy! So good! The dough is wonderful to work with. One half of the dough I made the twists and cinnamon pinwheels with the other half. Chef’s kiss!! Many thanks to all the hard work you have put into this great site.
I made these yesterday and drizzled lemon glaze over and they are soooo good!
I cut them a little smaller and they are just right!
so happy to have found this recipe I will be making it often!
These directions were so easy to follow. They were fun to make. These twists taste phenomenal. Thanks for sharing this!
Lovely little recipe, I made the dough and fillings mostly as published (cutting back on sugar slightly)
allowed to proof on the counter for about 4 hours until just under doubled in size.
Covered with lightly greased plastic film and retarded overnight in the refrigerator.
The next day rolls where removed and allowed to come to room temp to fully proof covered with a tea towel
Fully proofed = very puffy, soft, slightly jiggly, and doubled or just a shade larger than twice the raw dough per-counter proof size. in my 71 degree kitchen this took another 3.5 hours.
Baked as directed to a temp of 205 F. buns where great warm and glazed. I will bake these again for sure.
So glad they worked out for you, Malachi! And thank you so much for sharing those tips. Those are definitely helpful, especially for those trying to bake in the winter. Happy baking!
For making the cinnamon twists…
Can you make using 1 cup starter called for in the recipe from the starter recipe (day one) or do you have to use starter on the 10th day?
Thanks, I’m anxious to try this…I love cinnamon twists.
Hi Suzanne! Because your starter is doing some of the leavening in this recipe (along with the yeast), you want to have an active starter that has probably gone through at least 1 or 2 10 day cycles. Does that make sense?
Yes, it does make sense. Thank you so much for responding.
I can’t wait to make them. I’ll let you know how they turn out.
So I have been using this recipe, and added a twist to it, I have been using pie filling and then instead of twisting I been cutting them so they look like cinnamon rolls, they turn out great.!! So I switch from twists to rolls to switch it up every now and then
That sounds delicious, Kasey! If you take any pictures of these, feel free to share them on our group Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/amishfriendshipbread
We’d love to see them!
I make these twists often. As there is just my husband and myself, I usually give away half of the baked twists to a neighbor or a friend. They are in great demand! However, during this current covid situation, due to our age and my husband’s asthma, we are not in contact with others for the time being. About a month or so ago, I took half the dough (by weight) wrapped it tightly in Saran and put it in a freezer ziplock bag. Last week I took it out of the freezer the night before I wanted to bake. Next morning, let it come to room temp on the counter and then proceeded to let it rise. Rolled it out and filled it and shaped the twists. Let them rise for several hours and baked. Turned out perfectly.
That’s awesome, Karen! We love hearing success stories like that. Thanks for sharing!
I’m not a big fan of straight powder sugar icing so I added a few blobs, tablespoons maybe, of whipped cream cheese to ease some of the powder sugar taste.
That sounds delicious, Jennifer!
That’s a great idea!!
Followed the recipe to the T… These were DELICIOUS.
Woot! That’s great to hear, Melanie! 🙂
I just made these tonight. I tweaked it a little by turning it into a King Cake to celebrate the Madrid Gras season. Rather than twisting small sections, I twisted the two large rectangles and laid them on a pizza stone to form one large circle…the shape of the King Cake. It was really good! My hubby really liked it. I did have to add about 1/3 cup of flour to the dough to get it to come together. Other than that, I follow the ingredients as written. It was hard to transfer the king cake to a platter but that’s mostly due to the shape. If I make it again, I’ll definitely do the small twists. I’m sure they are much easier to work with than my giant ring. Overall, this is a great recipe!
So glad to hear you were inspired to adapt this for a King Cake for Mardi Gras! That’s on my list to make for next year, LOL!
I only have a metal mixing bowl for my kitchen aid. Will that be ok? The starter recipes tell you not to use metal so that’s why I ask.
It should be fine, Jen! Check out the “Health and Safety” section of our FAQ library for more detail on when (and when not) to use metal utensils: https://www.friendshipbreadkitchen.com/faqs/#health4
Im not sure why but the filling had turned liquid an pooled around the bottom of the twists. Even more of the cinnamon-y goodness leaked out while cooking, making the bottoms crispy, and Tasting of burnt sugar. How do I prevent this loss of goodness?
If I mix these up at night can I put them in the refrigerator to raise the 8 hrs. Concerned that letting them raise that long not refrigerated would be too long since most rolls would be ready to bake within an hr or so after the final raising.
Hi Joyce! We haven’t tried letting these rise in the refrigerator, but it should be fine. If you take them out of the fridge and they don’t appear to have risen, let them come back up to room temperature before baking.
The ingredient list could use a breakdown. For example the butter – it says “1/2 cup butter” and “3 tablespoons for drizzle” however butter is called for the drizzle, filling, and drizzle. Not sure how much butter goes into the dough and how much goes into the dough while filling?
Hi Tiffany. I’ve made this recipe many times, (making some now) and the website has changed since I first found it & the spacing is wrong. “For the filling” and “For the drizzle” should actually be a space down as a heading for the next few ingredients. So, no egg in the filling and no butter in the drizzle. I hope that helps!
The first time I tried the recipe I must have made an error in making the dough as they did not really turn out that well. That being said, I have made these numerous times since then with excellent results. My family gobbles them up often before they have a chance to cool off so I have not had any that have made it to the glaze stage. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’d love to bake these for Mother’s Day.
I’ll have to try this when I get my starter going.
I’d be making them fr my two sons, and myself of course,
I would like to try this and share it with my husband and kids!
I’d make this recipe for my friends Cindy and Alice. They often host me when I’m working in their respective towns, so it’d be great to bring along breakfast.
I would love to try this!
I don’t have a friendship bread starter, but I do have a sourdough starter… I am trying this out with my starter tonight. I guess I’ll know in the morning if it works out. Wish me luck!!!
Did not work at all…
Hi Jodie! What went wrong? Remember that an Amish Friendship Bread starter has sugar, flour and milk whereas most sourdough starters have only flour and water. This recipe has worked well for us so maybe try it again with an Amish Friendship Bread starter if you have a chance? Also make sure your active yeast, baking soda and powder are fresh. Good luck next time!
I didn’t have a dough hook so I kneaded by hand for 4 minutes. They turned out great. I made 12 from each rectangle instead of 8 and I like that size better. Thanks, Cynthia.
Cindie
Thanks for sharing this, Cindie! We’ll add it as a Kitchen Tip from you — thank you!
These look so yummy and so delicous. I can’t wait to make these and try these out. I love cinnamon rolls. I would love to win a copy of this cookbook to add to my collection. Always looking for good and newer recipes. I love to bake.
Ooh, I can’t wait to have a bag ready to go – I definitely want to try this recipe!
These look delicious! I make a Cinnamon Twist with a basic yeast sweet roll dough-so nice to have a recipe using Friendship Bread starter.
Thank you Cynthia!
I love anything with cinnamon! I’ll have to try these, they sound delicious!
These didn’t turn out well for me. The dough was too stiff even though I didn’t add all of the flour called for. They were chewy and hard instead of soft and fluffy. Also, for me, the directions for the “twist” was difficult to follow. I might try these again with more water and less flour.
Is there any way to freeze either the dough or the finished rolls? There’s just the two of us here, unless we have friends over to feed. These sound so yummy, but I’m afraid that it would be a waste if any of the bread were to go bad before having a chance to eat it all.
Yes, it’s easy to freeze either, Christina, though I would recommend freezing the dough and bake as needed.
Thanks! Today’s baking day, so I’ll give it a try.
That’s what I do: freeze half the dough. Thaw in fridge the night before I want to bake. Let dough come to room temp and proceed. Turns out perfectly.
The cinnamon twists are super good. And my 15 year old daughter didnt have any troubles making these.