Baking with Kids - Easy Mini Cinnamon Snails
Otis (7 years) and I often look for recipes to make together. We discovered these cute cinnamon rolls but wanted to make them from scratch and we wanted to make them in a more child-friendly mini size. So we adapted a recipe. They were so fun to make and they taste delicious. They were so good I want to share with you!
Most cinnamon rolls recipes use yeast, these are easier for children to make (and are foolproof) using self-raising flour.
Ingredients for the Dough:
2 Cups Self-Raising Flour
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
100g Melted Butter
2 Egg Yolks
150ml Milk
Ingredients for the Filling:
1 Teaspoon Ground Cinamon
4 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Melted Butter
Ingredients for the icing:
Icing Sugar
Warm Water
Ingredients for Decoration:
Toothpicks
Mini Marshmallows
Method:
- Preheat oven to 180°C and line a cake tin (we use a 24x24cms brownie tin). We use butter to coat tin and line it with parchment paper.
- Mix dry ingredients for dough including flour, sugar and, cinnamon.
- Mix wet ingredients for dough including melted butter, egg yolks and, milk.
- Combine mixtures of dry and wet ingredients and mix until the dough forms.
- Briefly knead dough on floured bench.
- Roll dough out into a rectangle. Trim edges so they are straight (make a nice rectangle not an oval shape).
- Brush the melted butter over the dough.
- Combine the cinnamon and sugar for the filling, then sprinkle it evenly over the dough.
- Cut the dough in half to make two smaller rectangles.
- Roll each rectangle up lengthways, like you are making two long logs.
- Cut each log into approximately ten evenly sized rolls, mine aren't exact but work out ok!
- Place rolls into cake pan evenly spaced, side up.
- Brush rolls with extra milk, not necessary but adds a slight shine.
- Place pan in oven set at 180°C and bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool.
- Use food colouring pen and mini marshmallows to make snail eyes. Cut toothpicks to approximately 4 cm. Place marshmallow eyes on the end of the toothpick.
- Insert toothpick eyes on the end of the cooled snail.
- The cinnamon snails can be eaten like this but you can also add icing. We use a simple glacé icing. Place a couple of large spoons of sifted icing sugar in a small bowl. Add warm water slowly while stirring. Combine to make a soft paste texture.
- Put icing in a small icing bag or make a small bag from parchment paper. Once the cinnamon snail has cooled add icing to snail shell in a small spiral shape. If you don't want to use a bag you could drizzle the icing from a spoon over the cinnamon snail.
- Step back and admire your snails!
These are bite-sized and are very more-ish. Perfect (but sweet) for play-dates, children's parties or just for snack time!
If you are making these with a young child or a toddler, you could premake the snails and have the child help you add the eyes - this was Otis' favourite part, besides the eating part!