Shaping Cinnamon Buns

Our answer

Nigella's Norwegian Cinnamon Buns recipe (from HOW TO BE A DOMESTIC GODDESS) uses most of the dough to make the classic swirled bun, but part of the dough is stretched out over the bottom of the dish that the buns will be proved and baked in. The reason for this is to help make a base for the buns, so that the filling doesn't flow out of the buns as they bake.

Nigella's cinnamon buns have a fairly plain dough which is slightly enriched with butter and eggs, but the filling is generous with its quantities of butter, sugar and spice. When the buns bake the filling can tend to run out into the pan, and in some cases the sugar will start to catch and burn on the bottom of the pan. By adding a dough base, which fuses with the cinnamon swirled dough on top, the sweet and spiced filling is kept inside the buns. This makes the buns more delicious to eat, and also reduces the risk of a scorched base.