Easy Cinnamon Roll Recipe

I always used to believe that Easy Cinnamon Roll Recipe were something you simply bought, either from a bakery or from a cardboard tube in the fridge section. But when I actually prepared a batch from scratch one Sunday that was particularly lazy, I found that the dough isn’t difficult, it just requires a bit of patience during the rising process. The result is much better than anything available in a can—soft and fluffy rolls, studded with cinnamon sugar and topped with a cream cheese frosting that melts into all the layers. It’s not a fast recipe since the dough has to rise twice, but the amount of time you need to spend doing things yourself is actually quite short; most of it involves just waiting while the dough rises, which is why It’s ideal for a weekend morning if you don’t want to rush.

Why This One Works

The dough contains just as much butter and egg as is needed to give it a rich taste without making it heavy, and it is the proper rising that results in the rolls having a soft and fluffy texture rather than a dense one. The filling is simple, consisting of butter, brown sugar, and a good deal of cinnamon, but it is spreading it right from edge to edge that causes the swirl to appear in each and every slice. The cream cheese frosting, which is poured on while the rolls are still warm, is absorbed just sufficiently to flavour the entire roll rather than merely lying on top.

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls: Better Than the Can

I stopped buying cinnamon rolls after making these. Soft, fluffy, and swirled edge to edge, with frosting that melts into every layer.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Resting Time 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Servings: 12

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

What You’ll Need

• Makes 12 rolls.
• For the dough:
• 1 cup warm milk
• 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup melted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups all-purpose flour

For the filling:

• ½ cup softened butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2½ tablespoons ground cinnamon

For the frosting:

• 4 ounces cream cheese softened
• ¼ cup softened butter
• 1½ cups powdered sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• A splash of milk if needed

Method

 

1. How to Make It

In a large bowl

1. Combine the warm milk and the yeast and leave it for about five minutes until foam appears on the surface; if there is no foam then the milk was either too hot or too cold and in that case you should start again with fresh yeast

Mix the sugar

1. The melted butter, the eggs, and the salt into the mixture. Add the flour a cup at a time until a soft dough has been obtained. Knead the dough for 6 to 8 minutes, either by hand or using a dough hook, until it is smooth and only slightly sticky.

Put the dough

1. Into a bowl that has been greased, cover it and allow it to rise in a warm place for approximately an hour until it has increased in size. This is known as the ‘just wait’ step.

Break up the dough and roll

1. It out on a surface dusted with flour until it forms a rectangle, about 16 by 12 inches in size. Spread the softened butter over it, mix the brown sugar and the cinnamon, and then sprinkle this mixture on top, pressing gently to make it adhere.

Take the dough

1. And roll it up tightly using the longer edge. Cut it into 12 even rolls with a sharp knife, or insert a length of dental floss underneath the log and cross it over the top to get a neater cut.
2. Place the rolls in a baking dish that has been greased, cover them and let them rise once more for 30 to 45 minutes until they have swollen out visibly. Then bake them
3. At 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes until they are golden on top and are cooked through in the centre.
4. While they are baking, beat the cream cheese, the butter, the powdered sugar and the vanilla together until the mixture is smooth. If the mixture is too thick to pour then add a little milk. As soon as the rolls come out of the oven spread the cream cheese mixture on them.

A Few Things I’ve Learned Making This

1. Make sure that the milk is warm since hot milk will kill the yeast and as a result the dough will never rise. You shouldn’t omit the second rise because it’s this step that gives the rolls their final rise. When rolling out the dough, shape it tightly rather than make it perfectly straight; the dough will still end up as beautiful rolls even if it’s a bit crooked. And you should frost the rolls while they’re warm, not when they’re cold, so that the frosting melts into the layers.

If You Want to Switch It Up

1. Chew the dough the night before and then allow the shaped but unbaked rolls to rise slowly in the refrigerator all through the night. In the morning, let them come to room temperature before baking. To give the result a bit of crunch, include some chopped pecans or walnuts in the filling. Replace half of the brown sugar with maple sugar in order to obtain a more intense flavour. If you don’t prefer cream cheese frosting, a simple glaze made from powdered sugar, milk and vanilla will do just as well.

Storing Leftovers

1. Covered rolls will remain fresh at room temperature for about two days or can be kept for up to five days in the refrigerator. To restore the fresh-baked softness, microwave one roll for around 15 seconds. Even unbaked, shaped rolls freeze well and can be thawed in the fridge over night before being left to come to room temperature before baking as normal.
2. Questions People Ask Me

Can I make these without a stand mixer?

1. Yes you can prepare these without a stand mixer; although hand mixing takes a bit longer the dough still comes together in the same way.

Why didn’t my dough rise?

1. My dough never rose—normally this is down to the yeast: either it has expired or the milk was too hot. You must always check that the yeast foams during the first five-minute rest.

Can I prepare the dough in advance?

1. Yes, either the dough or the shaped rolls can be placed in the fridge overnight and the flavour will in fact improve slightly.

Is it necessary to use cream cheese frosting?

1. By no means. A simple glaze is quite acceptable if you prefer to keep things simple.

Notes

Though these rolls require a considerable amount of time, very little of it involves any real work—you just have to mix the ingredients, wait, roll them, wait again, and then bake them. The result is a batch of rolls that are better than those you can buy in a shop, and your kitchen stays fragrant the entire time. If you make them once on a slow Saturday morning, you’ll see why people take the trouble to do so.