Just four ingredients and the magic of puff pastry dough to make these Cinnamon Twists, a perfect treat for the holidays or any day of the year!
In my 10+ years of personal cheffing, I used store-bought puff pastry dough to create impressive appetizers and desserts that took much less time than anyone would guess. But that magic trick is not just for chefs! In fact, I wrote my first e-book Puff Pastry Magic, to share those secrets with everyone.
This Cinnamon Twist recipe is a perfect example—with the tips and techniques for working with puff pastry dough below, you can serve perfectly crispy cinnamon-sugar treats every time.
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Why You'll Love This Cinnamon Twists Recipe
- Only 4 Ingredients: These cinnamon twists have only 4 ingredients, most of which you may well have on hand in your refrigerator or freezer.
- So Easy: The prep for these twists takes only 5 minutes. Then just pop them in the oven for 15 minutes, and they’re done!
- Make-ahead: You can make these ahead of time and freeze before you bake them, so they are ready to bake whenever you are ready to serve.
Ingredients for Cinnamon Twists
- Puff Pastry: Look for all-butter puff pastry dough—it is slightly more delicate to work with than vegetable oil-based puff pastry dough, but so much more delicious! Buying puff pastry that is pre-rolled into sheets makes this recipe super easy, but you can also roll out a block of puff pastry dough and get the same result.
- Sugar: So important for this recipe! Cinnamon on its own would be too bitter. You could replace with a sugar substitute, as long as it is granulated.
- Cinnamon: The cinnamon flavor in these twists is just lovely, but you could also play around with other spices as well. Try adding nutmeg, allspice, or some ground cloves as well to double-down on those wintery spices.
How to Make Cinnamon Twists
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon together in a small bowl. Taste and if you'd like a more sugary mixture, add another tablespoon of sugar.
Sprinkle a little bit of flour over a large cutting board. Unfold a puff pastry sheet, and roll gently with a rolling pin to even out the surface and flatten just a little.
Whisk 1 egg in a small bowl to make an egg wash. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash in a thin layer all over the rolled out dough. (You won't need all of the egg wash.)
Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over the dough, reserving a little for the end.
To make long breadsticks, cut dough vertically into slices that are close to 1-inch wide. To make short breadsticks, cut the dough in half horizontally to make two rectangles. Then slice each rectangle into 1-inch slices. Pick up each strip, hold each end, and twist several times.
Place twists on baking sheet, leaving an inch of space between them. (You may need to bake these in two batches if they don’t all fit on your baking sheet.) Brush any exposed dough not covered in cinnamon sugar with egg wash, and sprinkle with any reserved cinnamon sugar.
Bake for 15 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.
👩🍳 Expert Tips
The key to working with puff pastry is making sure that it is at the right temperature. Wait until your puff pastry sheet is defrosted (but not too soft) to unfold it. Unfolding the dough when it is still quite cold can cause it to break or tear. Then, don’t wait too long to begin working with your dough. If it warms up and gets soft, it is much harder to make the twists before the dough becomes droopy. But don’t worry, if the dough becomes too soft to work with, just pop it into the refrigerator for a little while until it firms up again.
These cinnamon puff pastry twists are excellent as is, but you can also serve them with a glaze or dipping sauce. Try making the powdered sugar glaze from my Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls with Apple recipe.
You don’t need to brush the exposed dough in your twists with egg wash before baking, but it gives these homemade cinnamon twists a little extra shine.
For best results with these cinnamon-sugar twists, take care to not cut the dough strips too thin. Very thin strips stretch easily when you twist them, becoming even thinner. When baked, they may brown more than you’d like and won’t have the same fluffy layers as a slightly thicker strip. Similar advice goes for the length. As mentioned in the instructions, you can choose to make long cinnamon twists, but the longer the strip, the harder it is to twist it evenly.
Love cinnamon? Try these delicious Cinnamon Crescent Rolls from our friends at One Hot Oven.
Fancy a savory version of this recipe? Once you’ve tried these cinnamon pastry twists, try making these Easy Puff Pastry Cheese Straws. Slightly different technique when using cheese, but totally delicious!
How to Store Cinnamon Twists
Store cinnamon twists in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. Note that they will quickly lose their crispness though—I recommend reheating them in an air fryer or a hot oven when you want to serve them again. You can also freeze the twists, though I would recommend freezing before baking (see instructions in the FAQs)!
🧐 Recipe FAQs for Puff Pastry Cinnamon Twists
Yes, you can freeze these twists before you bake them, so you always have some on-hand when you get a craving for them. Just follow the instructions up through making the twists, then lay each twist on a parchment-lined small baking sheet. Move the baking sheet into the freezer and freeze until twists are completely firm. Then, you can move the twists into a freezer-safe ziplock bag and keep frozen for up to 3 months. Bake straight from the freezer—you may need to add a couple of minutes to the baking time.
Yes. They are at their most crunchy and delicious right after baking, and up to 1-2 hours afterwards. After that, they lose a little crunch. That said, they will keep well at room temperature for a few days (stored in an airtight container), and can be reheated in a 375-degree oven for 3-5 minutes to bring back some of their crunch!
Yes, you can make cinnamon twists with pizza dough, pie crust dough, or crescent rolls. If you are using dough other than puff pastry, you can follow the same instructions but replace the egg wash with melted butter. If you are using crescent rolls, brush one sheet with melted butter and then top with cinnamon-sugar, then put another sheet on top and press together. Then slice and twist from there.
Other Easy Puff Pastry Dessert Recipes
Looking for more puff pastry ideas? Here are a few of my favorite dessert recipes featuring puff pastry.
Puff Pastry Magic eBook
20 no-fuss recipes for savory and sweet dishes that will wow your guests!
If you try this easy Cinnamon Twists recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me. And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I'd love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
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Cinnamon Twists
Ingredients
- 2-3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon flour for rolling out dough
- 1 egg
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry dough, thawed (8.8 ounces)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Stir 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Taste, and add more sugar if you'd like the mixture a little sweeter.
- Sprinkle flour over a large cutting board.
- Unfold puff pastry sheet, and roll gently with a rolling pin to even out the surface and flatten just a little.
- Whisk egg in a small bowl to make egg wash.
- Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash in a thin layer all over the rolled out dough. (You won't need all of it.)
- Sprinkle most of the cinnamon sugar evenly over the dough, reserving a little.
- To make long breadsticks, cut dough vertically into slices that are close to 1-inch wide.
- To make short breadsticks, cut the dough in half horizontally to make two rectangles. Then slice each rectangle into 1-inch slices.
- Pick up each strip, hold each end, and twist several times.
- Place twists on baking sheet, leaving an inch of space between them. (You may need to bake these in two batches if they don’t all fit on your baking sheet.)
- Brush any exposed dough not covered in cinnamon sugar with egg wash and sprinkle with reserved sugar.
- Bake for 15 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Instagram Users: Now that you've made this Cinnamon Twist recipe, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I'd love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
Bobby Ellis says
Good recipe, only concern was the 18+ ads on the site with people in exposing clothing everywhere that I scrolled. I'm not sure who's responsible for the ads, but it would definitely be a better experience if the website monitored what ads they allow.
Molly Pisula says
I don't have much control over the ads, but I do try to report anything I see that is inappropriate to my ad network. Appreciate you letting me know!