Mini Cake Batter Cinnamon Buns

I like to store things in giant ziplock bags. It's not what I would call entirely organized, but it's as organized as I can get. As long as I confine my ziplock bag use to baking goods it's not a problem. Things got a little crazy when I decided it was a brilliant storage device when moving. The next thing you know I had jewelry bags, junk bags, paper bags, pen bags..etc. Those ziplocks have yet to be unzipped. Anywho, in my kitchen I have a sprinkles bag. I don't know why at 22 years old I still gravitate towards sprinkles and bright colors, but I've accepted it. I'm a seven year old at heart.

Of course, for these I decided I wanted to use my favorites, the dinosaur sprinkles. So I guess I'm a seven year old boy at heart. Aside from opening a bag of cake mix all over my kitchen, these are a breeze to make. I bought a tube of crescent dough at the grocery store, but everything else I had on hand. My only advice would be to make sure the icing is a bit runny. I didn't measure (whoops) and proceeded to use the thicker icing instead of adding more milk (read: I was lazy). It covered up the cute little swirled tops. Lesson: don't be lazy, use your better judgment.

Enjoy!

Mini (no yeast) Cake Batter Cinnamon Buns
Recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction

• 1-8oz tube crescent roll dough
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup Betty Crocker Supermoist white or yellow cake mix (or any brand white or yellow cake mix)
• 1/4 cup sprinkles
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• cake batter icing (recipe below)
• sprinkles for topping

1. Preheat oven to 350F (or whatever your tube of crescent roll instructs). Spray 16 tins of a mini muffin pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
2. Roll out half of the dough (4 triangles) and close the seams together by pinching. Flip over and pinch those seams together as well.
3. Sprinkle the dough with half of your sprinkles and smooth out with a rolling pin. You want the dough to be totally seamless and the sprinkles to be pressed into the dough as much as possible. I do not have a rolling pin in my tiny apartment, so I covered the dough with parchment paper and rolled over it with a glass cup. The dough needs to be completely smooth and 1/4″ thick.
4. Brush dough with 1 Tbsp melted butter and cover with 2 Tbsp of the cake mix. Brush 1 Tbsp melted butter over the cake mix and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp brown sugar.
5. Roll into a log and cut into 8 equal buns.
6. Repeat steps 2-5 with the other half of the crescent roll dough.
7. Place 16 buns into the prepared muffin tins. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the buns are lightly browned.
8. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and spoon icing (recipe below) over top each bun. Top with sprinkles.

Cake Batter Icing

• 3/4 cup SIFTED Betty Crocker Supermoist white or yellow cake mix (or any brand white or yellow cake mix)*
• 2 Tbsp + 1 tsp half-and-half (or milk)

Whisk together sifted cake mix and half-and-half until fully combined.  Add more or less half-and-half depending on how thick you want the icing.  Spoon over warm cinnamon buns and top with sprinkles. Store cinnamon buns in fridge.