Schnecken (German sticky rolls)

Name: Schnecken (German sticky rolls)
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 40 min
Ingredients: 50 g (3 ½ tbsp) butter; 250 ml milk; 4 heaped tbsp (88g) granulated sugar; 1 tbsp dried fast acting yeast; 1 tsp salt; 1 egg (+ 1 egg yolk); 500 g (4 cups) plain / all-purpose flour; 175 g (¾ cup) butter; 175 g (¾ cup) soft brown sugar; 100 g (1/3 cup) golden syrup; 100 (1 cup) pecans; 140 g (1/2 cup) dried fruit; 1 tsp cinnamon; 225 g (1 cup) caster sugar; 55 g (3 ½ tbsp) butter

Schnecken or German sticky rolls are a delicious sweet bun with a sticky pecan topping and a dried fruit filling. With lots of easy steps, they’re a fantastic bake for getting kids busy in the kitchen.

Schnecken are a tasty German sweet bun. If you like cinnamon rolls you’ll love these. They take cinnamon rolls to a whole new level with the addition of a sticky, sweet pecan topping as well as a dried fruit and cinnamon filling.

Where do schnecken come from?

The name schnecken comes from the German word for snails and you can see why with the beautiful spiral, filled with cinnamon and dried fruit.

I remember eating some of these when we were on holiday in German, and these homemade ones are just as delicious.

How can kids help make schnecken?

This isn’t a quick bake, although none of the steps are difficult. There are lots of steps and stages but that means there’s a lot kids can help with.

Because there are so many different jobs kids can dip in and out of the bake at different times, perhaps not doing everything. Or you might find that because there is time between the stages as you’re waiting for the dough to prove your kids won’t lose interest.

The first job for kids is making the dough. It’s a bit of an unusual one, as you activate the yeast in warm milk before adding it to the flour. This was a nice added bit of science for the kids as they got to see the bubbles forming.

As with all dough recipes, your kids will enjoy getting to knead the dough. Whether you use a mixer or your hands, kneading is a fun job for kids and they get to see how the texture of the dough changes the more you work it.

Once the dough is ready there are a few other fun jobs for kids, from measuring out the filling ingredients and rolling up the spiral.

If your kids are a bit older, they might also like chopping up the pecans.

Ingredients

50g (3 ½ tbsp) butter
250ml milk
4 heaped tbsp (88g) granulated sugar
1 tbsp dried fast acting yeast
1 tsp salt
1 egg, + 1 egg yolk
500g (4 cups) plain / all-purpose flour

For the topping
175g (¾ cup) butter
175g (¾ cup) soft brown sugar
100g (1/3 cup) golden syrup
100 (1 cup) pecans

For the fruit filling
140g dried fruit
1 tsp cinnamon
225g (1 cup) caster sugar
55g (3 ½ tbsp) butter

How to make schnecken or German sticky rolls

Prepare the wet ingredients for the dough

Start by getting your kids to measure the butter out and add it to a small pan. Melt it slowly on the hob.

While the butter is melting, measure out the milk and sugar.

The easiest way of measuring out the milk is to use the ‘ml’ setting of your digital scales if you have them. If you don’t have digital scales, a measuring jug will do.

Add the milk to the melted butter along with the granulated sugar.

Heat the butter/milk/sugar mixture gently for a few minutes until it is tepid (warm, not hot). I tend to test it carefully with my finger to check, but only do that if you certain it’s not too hot!

Remove your pan from the heat and get your kids to add the yeast. Mix it in.

Leave the yeast mixture for 8-10 minutes. We thought it looked a bit weird but don’t worry, it’s just the yeast activating and making bubbles.

Make the dough

First, add the salt to your yeast mixture.

Now get your kids to crack the egg into a small bowl. While they are doing that, separate the yolk from another egg and add that to the cracked egg.

I find the easiest way of doing this is to crack the egg then pour the yolk from one half of the shell to the other, letting the egg white fall into a bowl below. If you’ve got older kids they might want to give this a try themselves.

Whisk the eggs with a fork then add them to your yeast mixture. Mix it all together.

Get your kids to measure the flour and add it to a large mixing bowl or freestanding mixer with the dough hook attached.

If you’re using a mixer turn it on slowly and get your kids to pour the milk/yeast mixture in. To make this step a bit easier, you could pour it into a measure jug first.

Keep adding the milk mixture until it is all in, then let the mixer run for another minute or so, until it’s well mixed.

If you’re using a mixing bowl, get your kids to pour the milk/yeast mixture in while you stir it together with wooden spoons.

The dough for this is quite soft and sticky.

Once it has come together, pop it in an oiled bowl and cover it with oiled cling film. Leave it somewhere warm to rise for around 2-3 hours or until it has tripled in size.

Form the schnecken

Grease the base and sides of a baking tin. 23 x 33cm is best but if, like us, yours is a wee bit smaller it’ll just mean your buns are a little bit more squashed. They’ll still taste great, but the spiral will end up a little less distinct.

Make sure your tin has sides, otherwise your dough will spill over the edges.

Prepare the topping

Get your kids to measure the butter and pop it in a small pan. Add the brown sugar and golden syrup.

Gently melt it all and mix it together.

Meanwhile, measure the pecans and, using a sharp knife, chop them into small chunks. If your kids are old enough you can let them use the knife to do this, rocking it back and forth over the nuts (and keeping fingers well away).

Pour the sugar, butter and syrup mixture into your prepared baking tin. Then get your kids to sprinkle the chopped pecans on top.

Prepare the schnecken filling

Get your kids to measure out the dried fruit, the cinnamon, and the sugar and mix them together in a small bowl.

Melt the butter in a small pot or in the microwave.

Make the schnecken

When the dough is ready get your kids to ‘knock it back’. That just means punch the air out and is a really fun job for little kids.

On a lightly floured work surface, get your kids to roll the dough out into a rectangle approximately 38 x 30cm.

Get your kids to brush the melted butter over the dough with a pastry brush. If you don’t have a brush, spread the butter with the back of a spoon.

Next, sprinkle the fruit and sugar filling over your dough rectangle, making sure you get it to all the edges.

Carefully roll up the dough from the long edge. Your kids can help with this, but make sure you get a nice tight roll.

Turn your roll so the seem side is facing down then using a sharp knife, cut your roll into 12 pieces.

We started by trimming the edges then cutting ours in half, then half again. Then finally each piece was cut into 3. You could also use a ruler if you want to be really precise.

Place each roll into your baking tin with the spiral side facing up.

Cover your schnecken with oiled cling film or a clean cloth and leave it somewhere warm to rise for around 40 minutes.

Bake the schnecken

Preheat your oven to 200C / 180C Fan / 400F

Pop your schnecken in the oven to bake for 35-40 minutes. It’s ready when it’s risen and turned a nice golden brown colour.

If it starts to look too brown before the end cover it with some foil.

Once it’s ready, turn it out onto a plate, leave it to cool slightly then serve and enjoy!