By Alison Roman
Updated Jan. 9, 2024
- Total Time
- About 1 hour, plus resting and proofing
- Rating
- 4(4,590)
- Notes
- Read community notes
What these cinnamon rolls lack in bells and whistles, they make up for in butter and brown sugar. As classic as can be, they are also the ultimate make-ahead breakfast treat, because they can be assembled the night before baking. The success of these rolls depends on the yeast to provide proper lift and rise, so make sure yours is still fresh and alive before diving in. Also be sure to budget a few hours for letting the dough rest and rise. This recipe calls for a 9-by-13 baking pan, but if you have a 9-inch round pan, feel free to use that instead; the rolls will be more tightly huddled together, beckoning to be pulled apart.
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Ingredients
Yield:9 rolls
- 1cup whole milk
- 4tablespoons sugar
- 2¼teaspoons/7 grams active dry yeast (¼-ounce envelope)
- 4cups/510 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1½teaspoons baking powder
- 1¼teaspoons kosher salt
- 1large egg, lightly beaten
- 6tablespoons/85 grams unsalted butter, melted
- Nonstick spray or vegetable oil, for the bowl
- 1¼cups/250 grams light brown sugar
- 2tablespoons ground cinnamon
- ¼teaspoon kosher salt
- ½cup/114 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
- 3cups/362 grams confectioners' sugar
- 5 to 6tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream
For the Dough
For the Filling and Assembly
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (9 servings)
685 calories; 20 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 120 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 74 grams sugars; 8 grams protein; 410 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Make the dough: Warm milk in a small pot over medium heat until it’s warm to the touch but not yet simmering (110 degrees). Add 2 tablespoons sugar and the yeast, whisking to dissolve and break up any clumps. Let sit until it’s slightly foamy and starting to bubble, about 2 to 5 minutes. (If this doesn’t happen after about 5 minutes, check the expiration date on the yeast; it might be dead.)
Step
2
Meanwhile, combine flour, the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, the baking powder and the salt in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix briefly to combine.
Step
3
Add milk mixture, followed by the egg and, with a wooden spoon or the mixer on low, stir to combine, just to eliminate any obviously dry or wet spots. If using the mixer, you may need to scrape the dough off the paddle. Add melted butter and continue to stir until a shaggy lump of dough forms, again scraping down the paddle and helping things along with your hands if necessary to combine.
Step
4
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, or keep in the mixing bowl and change to the dough hook attachment. Knead dough until it’s smooth, shiny and elastic, about 4 or 5 minutes. (You shouldn't have to add any more flour at this point, but if the dough seems especially sticky, give it a light dusting.)
Step
5
Lightly grease a large bowl with nonstick spray or vegetable oil and place dough in the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free area. (If it’s cold outside, on top of the stove is generally a good bet, as long as the burners and oven aren't on.) Let sit until the dough has about doubled in size, 1½ to 2 hours.
Step
6
Punch dough down to release any air that has built up. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, place in the refrigerator and chill the dough for at least an hour (and as long as overnight).
Step
7
Fill the dough and shape the rolls: Once dough is chilled (it should feel firm and no longer flimsy), turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll to a 16 x 10-inch rectangle. The rolled dough will be about ¼- to ⅓-inch thick.
Step
8
Combine brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Brush surface of the dough with half of the melted butter and sprinkle brown sugar mixture in an even layer, patting to make sure it’s sticking. Drizzle with remaining butter.
Step
9
Starting at the end closest to you (the long side of the dough), roll dough up into a tight coil, pressing lightly as you roll to make sure there are no gaps between the dough and the filling.
Step
10
Cut log into nine even pieces, about 1¾-inch thick. Lightly spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray and arrange dough in three rows of three pieces each, with the spiral facing upward and with space in between each piece. (At this point, the rolls can be covered tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight, if you'd like.)
Step
11
Cover rolls lightly with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free area until the rolls have puffed (they won't quite double, but they will be noticeably fluffier and closer to touching) and spring back slightly when pressed with your finger, about 1 hour. (If you refrigerated the rolls overnight, this may take 1½ to 2 hours.)
Step
12
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place rolls in oven and bake until they are golden brown and fluffy and the sugar has started to bubble up around the edges, caramelizing on the sides of the buns, about 32 to 35 minutes.
Step
13
Meanwhile, make the glaze: combine confectioners' sugar and milk and whisk until it is thick but can still be drizzled, like a thinner frosting. (If the glaze is still too thick, thin with more milk by the teaspoonful to get desired consistency.) Keep in mind the glaze is to be applied while buns are warm, and it will thin out upon contact, so it’s best to err on the thicker side.
Step
14
Once rolls are out of the oven, drizzle with the powdered sugar glaze and let cool slightly in the pan before digging in.
Ratings
4
out of 5
4,590
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Cooking Notes
Mary
I made these through step 10 (forming and cutting into rolls) and then froze the individual, uncooked rolls. On Christmas Eve, I let them thaw/rise overnight in the oven. They puffed up beautifully and were delicious Christmas morning. Now I keep a batch on hand in the freezer, ready to go.
TC outwest
I have made my own cinnamon rolls for years. This recipe has too much sugar - the bread dough doesn't need more than 1 T for one loaf worth of dough - and the sugar filling is also way too much for my taste. My recommendation: use a good basic bread recipe, skip the baking powder, brush the rolled dough with melted butter, sprinkle with maybe 1/4 of the sugar listed here. You will let the nice yeasty flavor come through, and if you like it sweeter, use the icing for that.
Aaron
To state the obvious, yeast is alive. As supplied dried, they are in suspended animation. Here are some temperatures you should know if you work with yeast:Freezer: Don't store dried or fresh yeast here.Refrigerator: Optimum for long term storage of dried yeast. Dough will rise very, very slowly here.68F: Yeast culture (dried yeast, water and sugar) will grow optimally. Rising takes longer.95F: Dough will rise with best results.120F: Danger!140F: Yeast *will* die.
Mark
THESE ARE AMAZING! The recipe should clarify that once you achieve 110 degrees that you should remove milk from heat before adding sugar and yeast. This recipe doesn’t tell you to do this and for a novice baker like myself it is confusing. Remove milk from heat!!!! Otherwise these were so fun to make and I will make them for the rest of my life.
Rebecca B
I also made these for Christmas morning.
I had to make some adjustments due to lethargic yeast (2.5 extra tsp. of baking powder) and having only a 9x9 pan. Since the rolls were almost touching from the start, I had to take the oven down 25°, add 15 minutes of baking time, tent with foil, and use a cookie sheet to catch oozing caramelized sugar.
I chose to scale down the sugar a bit - 180g of brown sugar instead of 250g, and 2/3 of the glaze.
They were bloody perfect.
Karissima
When rolling out dough, leave 1" at the far end of the rectangle free of all butter/filling. When you're ready to roll it into a log, paint that 1" with water—fill a small glass half full, dip a couple fingers, and wet dough lightly. The wet dough will stick to the dough rolled over it. Let the log rest on the seam as you prepare to cut off the rounds. Use a 9" piece of unflavored dental floss or thread. Slide under log, cross ends over top, and pull to cut.
Aaron
I was curious about price per serving so I worked out the cost for these vs. alternatives. All prices are based on store brand ingredients or store pre-made rolls except Cinnabon and are per roll:Recipe: $0.45Pillsbury:$0.40Pillsbury Grands: $0.90Store bought: $1.25Cinnabon: $4.25I find the recipe far superior to all of the alternatives and are far less expensive than all but the worst alternative. Freezing excess rolls before baking, and thawing the night before baking works fine.
Marc
I made these Christmas morn. Only tweak was I added toasted pecans (chopped into small bits) and that added some crunchy texture. Next time I'm going to add chocolate chips because anything worth baking is worth adding chocolate to..
Rebecca B
Deanna, I had a similar problem - my yeast wasn't completely dead, but nearly so. And as I started on Christmas Eve, there was nothing to do but improvise with what was on hand.
I ran a search on yeast-free cinnamon rolls, and found one of proportional size that called for 4 teaspoons of baking powder. So that's what I used in this recipe...and prayed that the x-factor (yeast of indeterminate efficacy) didn't wreck them.
They were so perfect, I made them again 4 days later.
J. Walt
Instead of melting butter for filling (which creates a slippery mess as you roll and cut the dough), I just let the butter for the filling soften at room temp while the dough chills for an hour. Then mix the sugar (half amount) and cinammon into the softened butter. Very easy to spread with a spatula onto the rolled out dough, sugar/cinammon stuck to dough just fine and there wasn't meltong butter oozing out everywhere as I rolled up the dough.Good cinammon rolls, bake time is a bit wonky.
Megs
Great recipe - added currents, used Lebkuchen spice, and added lemon zest to the icing. Lemon juice dunked apple chunks would be fun to add.
Also reduced sugar as suggested - 3/4 cup brown sugar in filling, and did 1 cup icing sugar with 2 tbp milk. More than enough, and was not overly sweet with these proportions.
A new family classic!
Michelle
I changed a couple things based on comments below. I lowered the heat to 350 and I baked for around 25 minutes. 32-35 minutes as the recipes states would have been way too long.I also decided to add cream cheese and vanilla as some suggested and I am glad that I did.This was my first time making cinnamon buns so I was very unsure on how it would turn out. They were very, very good and I will definitely use this recipe again!
Carie
I made this recipe as written and it was a huge hit! A couple of notes -- I reduced oven temp to 350 and used the same baking time. Also, I only needed 2/3 of the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture and 1/3 of the icing for the top. No need to make all of it, unless you LOVE icing. Wonderful, classic cinnamon rolls that are gorgeous.
Adrian P. Mollo
Terrific recipe. Enjoyed at home and shared leftovers with neighbors. I halfed the icing amount. Used a little cream cheese and vanilla to cut sweetness. Nice! Consider alternate icing recipes, e.g., coffee and maple syrup icing from the Pioneer Woman. Consider reduce amount of filling. Dear wife thought it was fine, but I think it was a bit too sweet. But don’t reduce too much, otherwise may not get caramelization on sides, top. For my oven, bake full amount of time (32 to 35 mins.).
Don Nealious
Why the baking powder? Most cinnamon roll recipes only call for yeast. Just curious.
alannah
Mistake in the recipe - If you cut the rounds 1 3/4 inch as the recipe suggests you will end up with only 6 rolls as supposed to the required 9. Also, I reduced the filling as others have noted. It looked like way more filling than shown in the video and seemed excessive. Otherwise good recipe!
EKSanfilippo
Made on a snow day - mid for the amount of steps required.
Molly
These were delicious and rich, like a once/twice a year treat. I made as written. I wouldn’t want a less sweet or rich version.My only hiccup was that my dough at step 4 seemed stiffer than the recipe describes, although I carefully followed measurements and method. The final buns were not *quite* as tender as I hoped, and I attribute this to my dough. But the flavor was great so I will give these another go and hope for slightly pillowier results.
Toni
I made this exactly as directed and they were amazing. I wish I had added some chopped pecans and raisins - that might not be what the purists in my house were looking for, but I would have liked it. None the less, a terrific recipe and one I will make again.
Anne with an E
SO GOOD. Definitely a complex kitchen project, so dedicate a snowy day for it. I used maybe 3/4 of the sugar filling and they came out perfect; sweet but not overpoweringly so. I considered making a cream cheese frosting, but chose the OG frosting from this recipe and glad I did. I think if I made a heavy cream cheese frosting, they would have been unbearably sweet and rich.
tjb
Why does the flour amount differ between the video and the written recipe? I followed the written recipe, measuring by weight, and the dough is workable but still tearing rather than stretching after 15 minutes of kneading. Could it be the larger amount of flour or the fact that I used bread flour rather than all purpose flour?
jennymac
Yeah waaaaay too much sugar for me! Ill cut the filling part in half at least next timeAlso make sure milk is only warm to touch if its too hit yeast will die!!!
Lunasmom1
Great rolls! Made them for breakfast today. The dough is nice and soft. Added pecans to the filling and a dash of cinnamon to the glaze. Only suggestion is you don’t need quite as much filling or glaze - had leftovers for both.
Melissa
The best cinnamon rolls- grown children ask for them Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas every year.I use the dough setting on my bread machine. To start the dough, I sometimes mix the softened butter with the cinnamon sugar, it's easier to spread. I use the rolling in to push the cinnamon sugar slightly into the dough. I lower oven temp to 350.
Ray
How do you prevent the cinnamon sugar from leaking out when baking?
Mamadoesitall
These are amazing! My family devoured them in minutes. Making a double batch today to freeze for easy weekend breakfast.
Sophia Lyons
I halved the recipe and still got 6 big rolls that rose to fill a 9" cake pan. Only baked for 25 minutes/to 190 degrees internal, the last 5 covered with foil to keep them soft. We always make a cream cheese glaze, perhaps with some orange zest if you're so inclined. Add 1/3 cup of milk or cream to the pan before baking, and we brush with a little melted butter after baking to keep them soft.
Buttermilk
Add 1/2 of warmed buttermilk to the pan before baking. Rolls were tender and moist.
Too Dry
Dry, dry, dough is very dry.Had to add warm milk.Hope it turns out.
Ellie
Mine were less than perfect! How do you get the right sized rectangle when rolling out the dough? How do you measure the roll to get 9 slices? I thought these looked too big so I made 12 slices. Not a good idea? My dough sat in the refrigerator overnight and oozed filling and then stuck to the pan after baking. I used convection, reduced temperature but they were not soft after baking. Thanks for any and all advice.
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