Cinnamon Roll

A cinnamon roll (also cinnamon bun, cinnamon swirl and cinnamon snail) is a sweet roll served commonly in Northern Europe and North America. It consists of a rolled sheet of yeast-leavened dough onto which a cinnamon and sugar mixture (and raisins or chopped grapes in some cases) is sprinkled over a thin coat of butter. The dough is then rolled, cut into individual portions, and baked. This construction method is used because it would be impossible to mix in cinnamon flavor into the dough, as it would kill the yeast. In North America, cinnamon rolls are frequently topped with icing (often confectioner's sugar based) or glaze of some sort. In northern Europe, nib sugar is often used instead of icing.

In Sweden, the country of its presumed origin, the cinnamon roll takes the name of kanelbulle (literally: "cinnamon bun") and October 4 has more recently started to be promoted as "kanelbullens dag" (Cinnamon roll day). A German variety originating in Hamburg and its surroundings is the Franzbrötchen.

The size of a cinnamon roll varies from place to place, but many vendors supply a smaller size about 5 centimetres (2.0 in) in diameter and a larger size about 10 centimetres (3.9 in) to a side. The largest variety can be found in Finland, called Korvapuusti, where it can be up to 20 centimetres (7.9 in) in diameter and weighing 200 grams (7.1 oz).

The Finnish "Boston cake" is a "cake" made by baking cinnamon rolls in a round cake pan instead of baking them separately, so that they stick together to form a round cake.