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These Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls are soft and fluffy with the best buttery and cinnamon filling. A classic sweet roll recipe that is topped with fluffy buttercream. These are the best thing for brunches or holiday breakfasts.
Who doesn't love a warm, gooey cinnamon roll? These rolls are easy and are going to become a new favorite for every occasion and celebration.
Homemade Cinnamon Roll Ingredients
- Milk
- Salted Butter
- Sugar
- Quick Rise Yeast
- Unbleached All Purpose Flour
- Salt
- Brown Sugar
- Cinnamon
- Powdered Sugar
- Pure Vanilla Extract
Substitution Suggestions:
- Milk: I prefer to use 2% or whole cows milk for cinnamon rolls. However, if needed you can substitute a nondairy milk.
- Salted Butter: I almost always use salted butter in my baked goods. You can use unsalted butter, but I would add an extra ¼ teaspoon of salt to the dough and the cinnamon sugar filling.
- Quick Rise Yeast: Quick rise yeast makes these rolls come together faster. 1 packet or 2 ¼ teaspoons of active yeast can be used, but remember the rise time is going to be much longer.
- All Purpose Flour: I prefer to use nothing but all purpose flour because it gives the rolls a softer texture. Bread flour can be used, but the rolls will have a more chewy texture.
- Brown Sugar: I like to use a blend of sugar and brown sugar in the filling, but if you prefer you can use all white sugar.
- Frosting: If you love Cream Cheese Frosting you can make a batch of that and frost the rolls. Here's my perfect Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe!
How to Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
- First step, is to make the dough. Melt the butter until just starting to bubble. Remove from heat and stir in milk and sugar. Add the mix to a stand mixer or large mixing bowl. Sprinkle with the instant yeast and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Add the salt, and 1 cup of all purpose flour at a time, mixing on low with the dough hook attachment or a wooden spoon/rubber spatula. A good way to test if you have enough flour is to pinch the dough with your fingers, the dough should be smooth and a tad tacky, but it should not stick to your fingers when pinched. If the dough is still too sticky, add a couple tablespoons of flour at a time.
- Bump up the speed and knead the dough on medium for 1 minute or knead by hand until smooth.
- Cover the bowl with a clean towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm, draft-free place and let rise for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
How to Roll the Dough
- Once the dough is doubled, dump it out on a lightly floured surface and roll into a 15x10 inch rectangle that is about a ½ inch thick.
- Melt the butter, and spread it out over the dough leaving a 1 inch space on one long end of the dough. This is for sealing after rolling up the dough.
- Mix together the sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle it evenly over all the melted butter.
- Now, roll the dough up tightly starting from the long side with butter and cinnamon sugar. Pull the end up and pinch it slightly to seal. Adjust the ends of the roll if needed so they are flat and smooth.
- Cut the log into 12 rolls using a dough cutter or serrated knife. For even rolls, cut the log in half, and then cut each half in half. Then cut each quarter into thirds to make 12 rolls.
- Place rolls in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Cover with towel or plastic wrap and let rise again for 30 minutes in warm area.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F while the rolls rise.
- Bake the rolls for 15-20 minutes until the tops are golden brown and the center is no longer doughy.
Cinnamon Roll Buttercream Frosting
- While the rolls are baking, make the frosting. Beat together the softened butter and 1 cup of powdered sugar until smooth.
- Add the vanilla extract, remaining powdered sugar and milk. Beat on low until fully combined, then bump up the speed and beat on medium until light and fluffy.
- Dollop each roll with frosting and then using an off set spatula spread the frosting to cover the entire roll.
Tips for the Best Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
- Don't boil the butter or scorch the milk. This can kill the yeast. Melt the butter just until it starts to bubble. While the butter is melting, let the milk sit out at room temp. Then stir in the milk and sugar and add it to your mixing bowl. A perfect temperature is not over 115°F. I don't ever take the temp of the butter, as long as you don't boil it you'll be safe.
- Make sure your yeast isn't old and expired. I keep my yeast in the freezer and it lasts a very long time.
- Fluff your flour and then spoon it and level it off to measure. This will help eliminate adding any extra flour which can make the rolls dense and not fluffy.
- For a quicker rise, preheat your oven to 175°F. When the dough is ready to rise, shut the oven off and place the covered dough in the oven to rise. It will only take 15-20 minutes to rise this way. Do the same thing after the rolls have been cut and are ready to rise again.
Make Ahead Instructions
These rolls can be made ahead of time, and then just popped in the oven when ready. Make the rolls until they are sliced and placed in the baking dish. Then cover and place in the fridge overnight. When ready to bake, take the rolls out and let sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Then bake and frost! The frosting can also be made the day before. Just mix it again until fluffy before frosting the rolls. This makes holiday mornings super easy!
Storing Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Store the frosted rolls tightly covered for 3 days at room temperature or in the fridge for 5 days. Reheat in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.
Freezing Baked Cinnamon Rolls
The baked rolls can be frozen for up to 4 months. Tightly wrap them with plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Thaw the rolls overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a few hours. You can warm them individually in the microwave. If you froze them without frosting you can reheat the rolls, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven for 10-15 minutes. Frost them after warming.
How to Freeze Cinnamon Roll Dough
The dough can also be frozen. Prepare the rolls up until they are sliced and in the baking dish. An aluminum foil pan works great for freezing. Cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap and foil. Then freeze the dough. When ready to use the dough, thaw it overnight in the fridge. Once thawed, remove from fridge and let it rise in a warm place for an hour or so. Then bake and frost. Or you can let the dough thaw on the counter overnight. It will thaw and rise and then be ready for the oven once you are awake!
Other Easy Homemade Bread and Rolls:
- Easy Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Pizza Dough
- Garlic Parmesan Focaccia Bread
- Homemade French Bread
- No Knead Dinner Rolls
- Easy Homemade Bagels
Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
These Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls are soft and fluffy with the best buttery and cinnamon filling. A classic sweet roll recipe that is topped with fluffy buttercream. These are the best thing for brunches or holiday breakfasts.
Servings: 12
Ingredients
Cinnamon Roll Dough
- ¼ cup salted butter
- 1 cup milk, 2% or whole milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons quick rise yeast
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 cups all purpose flour
Cinnamon Roll Filling
- ¼ cup salted butter, melted
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Buttercream Frosting
- ½ cup salted butter, softened
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- In a small sauce pan over medium low heat, melt the butter until it just starts to bubble. Remove from heat and stir in milk and sugar.
- Pour the butter, milk and sugar mix into the bowl of stand mixer or a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and let sit for 5 minutes.
- With the dough hook attachment or a wooden spoon/rubber spatula, stir in the salt and 1 cup of flour at a time on low speed. To test if you have enough flour pinch the dough with your fingers, the dough should be smooth and a tad tacky, but it should not stick to your fingers when pinched. If you need more flour add it 2 tablespoons at a time.
- Bump up the speed to medium and knead the dough for 1 minute, or knead by hand until smooth.
- Cover bowl with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Once its doubled, dump it onto a lightly flour surface and roll it out into a 15x10 inch rectangle that is about ½ inch thick.
- Brush the dough with the melted butter leaving a 1 inch space on one long edge for sealing.
- Mix together the sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle it evenly over the melted butter.
- Roll the dough tightly starting from the long edge. Pull the end up and lightly pinch to seal the dough.
- Cut the dough into 12 rolls using a dough cutter or serrated knife. (Cut in half, then cut the halves in half to create 4 pieces. Cut each quarter into thirds.)
- Place rolls in a greased 9x13 baking dish, cover and place in warm area again for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake rolls for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and center is no longer doughy.
- While the rolls bake, make the frosting. Beat together the butter and 1 cup of powdered sugar until smooth.
- Add the vanilla extract, remaining powdered sugar and milk. Beat on low until fully combined. Then bump speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy.
- Dollop each roll with frosting then spread it out with an off set spatula.
Notes
- For a quicker rise, preheat your oven to 175°F. When the dough is ready to rise, shut the oven off and place the covered dough in the oven to rise. It will only take 15-20 minutes to rise this way. Do the same thing after the rolls have been cut and are ready to rise again.
Nutrition
Serving: 1roll | Sodium: 245mg | Calcium: 46mg | Vitamin C: 1mg | Vitamin A: 512IU | Sugar: 39g | Fiber: 1g | Potassium: 83mg | Cholesterol: 43mg | Calories: 414kcal | Trans Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Fat: 16g | Protein: 4g | Carbohydrates: 64g | Iron: 2mg
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