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These quick & easy 20 minute maple pecan cinnamon twists are made with refrigerated crescent dough and are perfect for brunch, a snack, and even a sweet breakfast treat. Buttery crescent dough filled with a pecan cinnamon mixture and baked to perfection! Top with a simple maple and powdered sugar glaze and enjoy.
Cinnamon rolls are a rare indulgence in our house. For many reason. They take forever to make. Like so much time that I know if I even attempt to make them I will get stressed out, and if I bake while I’m stressed, things never turn out. The other reason being is that each cinnamon rolls basically has a million calories. And let’s face it, cinnamon rolls and warm chocolate chip cookies basically turn me into a weak person who has no self-control 🙂
Which is why I love these maple pecan cinnamon twists! They only take 20 minutes to make, they taste just like cinnamon rolls, and they’re slightly lower in calories and sugar and all that yummy stuff.
These can be a bit tricky to make the first time. But no worries because they do not have to perfect. Just remember that if they are rolled up perfectly or not, they will still taste exactly the same. Delicious!
The dough for these cinnamon twists is just a can of refrigerated crescent dough. You will need 2 of them. Roll them out and instead of having 8 crescent dough pieces, you are going to want only 4 rectangles. Which equals 2 crescent triangles with the seams pinched together. You will end up with a total of 8 of these maple pecan cinnamon twists; 4 from each can.
Mix up a simple mixture of sugar, cinnamon, and pecans. Roll up each rectangle, starting from the long side. The tricky part is cutting the rolled up pieces in half. In half as in lengthwise you will end up with two long ropes from one rolled up twist. Be sure to use a sharp knife that can easily cut the rolled up twist in half as it will make the cute nicer and easier.
As they bake they will puff up nicely. I was still able to fit all 8 on my cookie sheet and it worked out just fine.
Once they’re out of the oven mix up a simple maple glaze and drizzle over the crescent twists. I waited until mine were cooled so that the glaze would not immediately melt into the cinnamon twists. You can glaze straight from the oven if wanted but the twists are so hot that the glaze will run off or melt right into the twist. I would suggest waiting to glaze until they have cooled for at least 10-15 minutes.
And there you have it. An easier, quicker version of the classic cinnamon roll. No yeast to worry about! I love making these for Sunday mornings or even as a treat for the kids after school. These were gobbled up in no time at my house.
Happy Sunday friends and thanks for stopping by today ♥
Maple Pecan Crescent Cinnamon Twists
Ingredients
Cinnamon Twists
- 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury refrigerated crescent rolls
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
Maple Glaze
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon maple extract
- 1-3 tablespoons milk I used heavy cream
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a cookie sheet by spraying with cooking spray or lining with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, combine the pecans, sugars, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Unroll both cans of crescent dough and separate each can into 4 rectangles (2 of the crescent triangles together). Firmly press together the perforations to seal the 2 crescent triangles together. You will end up with 8 rectangles of dough.
- Brush each rectangle with some melted butter and sprinkle a heaping 1 tablespoon of the pecan/sugar mixture over the butter. Repeat for each rectangle. Starting at the long side of the rectangle, roll up tightly just like cinnamon rolls. Pinch edges to seal.
- Take a sharp knife and cut each roll in half LENGTHWISE. You will end up with 2 rope twists from each rectangle. Take the two pieces and twist them around each other. Place on the prepared cookie sheet. Repeat this process with the remaining pieces.
- Bake for 10-13 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. Let cool for about 10-15 minutes before glazing.
- To prepare the glaze: mix all ingredients together in a small bowl until desired consistency is reached. Add more or less milk and/or powdered sugar depending on how thick or thin you want the glaze.
Notes
Nutrition
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I love these. So easy to make. And so pretty. I feel like a real baker.
Thank you for your comment! I’m sure they were beautiful!