Cinnamon buns ala Christina Tosi

It's no wonder that Christina Tosi worked at WD-50 in New York, because in my book she is the Wylie Dufresne of the pastry world.  But without the smoke !  Every time I see one of her creations I am amazed.  She is the pastry chef at Momofuku Milk Bar and is known for her Crack Pie and Compost Cookies(both on my recipe to do list).  But she also does a mean cinnamon bun.  She does some type of cinnamon bun pie creation-I have only seen pictures and can't seem to find the recipe browsing the Internet.  But what I did find was her recipe for her cinnamon buns.

This is probably one of the easiest cinnamon bun recipes I have come across. I'm always looking for that "best recipe ever" and this comes pretty close.  The amount of brown sugar and butter creates an incredible caramel filling .  It's like eating a cinnamon bun with a side of caramels.  And like most cinnamon buns these are heaven when reheated.  The caramel that leaks out during baking, hardens just like a candy caramel and when reheated it gets all gooey delicious again.  Try this recipe and tell me how fabulous it is.  If you make this for brunch for your house guests you will never get them to leave - seriously addictive breakfast food.

Tosi's Famous Cinnamon Bun Recipe
Yields twelve 

Ingredients

Buns

1 cup whole milk, warm

1 tablespoon warm water

1 packet (2 ¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast

4 ½ cups all-purpose or bread flour, plus more for dusting

½ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

1 cup packed light brown sugar

5 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Cream Cheese Frosting

3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

⅛ teaspoon kosher salt

1. Whisk the warm milk, water, and yeast together in a small bowl. Let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes or so.
2. Combine the flour, granulated sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix together on low speed. Add the egg, egg yolk, butter, and yeast concoction and mix until the dough comes together as a thick, sticky mass. This should take about 6 minutes.
3. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the dough out onto a work surface and form it into a smooth ball. Put the dough ball into a greased bowl, seam side down, cover it with a kitchen towel, and set in a draft-free spot to rise for an hour, or until it’s doubled in size.
4. While the dough is rising, make the filling by mixing together the brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl.
5. Punch down the proofed dough and put it onto a well-floured counter. Use a rolling pin to roll into a 16 inch square. Spread the cinnamon filling evenly over the surface, then roll the dough tightly into a big tube, making sure to keep all the filling inside.
6. Using a sharp knife, slice the tube into 12 rounds, each about 1 ⅓ inches thick. Arrange the rounds cut side down in a 9×13 inch baking dish, leaving 1 inch between them. Let them rise for another 1-2 hours, until they’ve doubled in size. *See notes for overnight instructions.
7. Heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
8. Bake for 20 minutes, or until they are just starting to brown on the edges.
9. Meanwhile, make the cream cheese frosting: Combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on high for 1 minute. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and salt and paddle on low to combine, then whip on high for 2 minutes, or until the frosting is pale white and fluffy.
10. Remove buns from the oven and, while they are still warm, spread the frosting generously over them. Serve immediately 

*Overnight Instructions – Prep through step #6 but let them rise, loosely covered, in the fridge overnight. Then all you have to do is take them out in the morning and let them come to room temp for about half an hour before baking in the oven.Pop them in the oven in the morning and enjoy the cinnamon smell in your kitchen and hot cinnamon buns fresh from the oven.  The frosting keeps beautifully overnight in the refrigerator too-just place it out on the counter to come to room temperature while the buns bake.  Enjoy !