(Relatively) Healthy Cinnamon Buns

spatchcock's Note:

Found these on weightwatchers.com---they are wonderful! You'd never know they're healthy....(prep time is rising time for the dough).

• Total Time: 1 hrs 50 mins
• Prep Time: 1 hrs 20 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 12 buns

• 1 cup nonfat milk
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 1 tablespoon yeast, about 1 package
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted, divided
• 1/4 cup unpacked brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dark corn syrup
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon orange zest, grated
• 1/4 cup raisins or 1/4 cup dried cherries or 1/4 cup cranberries

Directions:

1. Stir together milk, vegetable oil, sugar and salt in a small saucepan.
2. Heat to lukewarm.
3. Pour yeast over 2 tablespoons lukewarm water and let sit 5 minutes.
4. Stir into milk mixture.
5. Transfer warm milk to a large mixing bowl and beat in half the flour by hand or with an electric mixer.
6. Mix in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough.
7. Let rest 10 minutes; knead well on a floured board or with an electric mixer and dough hook; let rest 10 minutes.
8. Spray a large, clean bowl with cooking spray, add dough, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
9. Lightly coat a 9-inch round baking pan with cooking spray.
10. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll into a 12 x 10-inch rectangle.
11. Spray with cooking spray.
12. Stir together brown sugar, corn syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg and orange zest; brush over dough.
13. Sprinkle with raisins.
14. Roll up tightly, like a jelly roll.
15. Cut into 12 pieces.
16. Place buns cut-side up in baking pan.
17. Cover with plastic and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
18. Preheat oven to 350°F.
19. Bake buns until firm and nicely browned on top, 30 minutes.
20. Cool completely before inverting onto a serving plate.
21. No guilt!

Reviews

[Studentchef]

These were so good and so moist. I used a little extra milk by mistake, but it kind of really helped, as it made the cinnamon buns more moist. I used dried cherries, because they were a delicious change from the raisins usually found in these kinds of cinnamon buns.

[pennygirl1]

Don't laugh, but the first time I made these I by mistake grabbed the cayenne pepper instead of the cinnamon, so the filling was spicy and the whole thing tasted gross. The second time, it tasted very good, but wasn't the right texture. The dough didn't rise and it was very heavy. It could have been my yeast because that also happened to the dough the first time I made these.

[Changling]

I made these a couple of weeks ago and they turned out really tasty. I made a fat free glaze will a little vanilla, fat free milk, and powdered sugar. The only problem I had was when I rolled up the dough it was pretty sticky and difficult to cut. Filling kind of went everywhere. I managed to stuff them into the pan and they resembled cinnamon buns. I also had to almost double the amount of filling to spread it over the dough. They turned out really well but I was kind of having my doubts at first. Thanks for the low fat recipe!