Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Here at Delish, we believe that cinnamon rolls are the pinnacle of a cozy Sunday morning. If you're looking for a go-to, crowd-pleasing recipe to make every weekend, this is it. Our easy recipe perfects the beloved, soft, and fluffy sweet pastry—follow it to a T if you’re looking to go classic, or use it as a jumping-off point to add your favorite seasonal flavors (the flaky and buttery dough is unbeatable, and can take everything from chocolate to fruit).

What People Are Saying:
"I’ve always wanted to make homemade cinnamon rolls, but was a little intimidated. These were not only DELICIOUS, but amazingly perfect looking. Thanks for the easy to follow step-by-step instructions. I can’t wait to make them again for a special brunch." - BlueSword

How To Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

INGREDIENTS

• Milk, Butter, & Eggs: The key to soft, fluffy cinnamon rolls is a dough that's rich with dairy: Eggs, butter, and milk will all enrich the dough, leading to a soft and fluffy texture. Each of these provides moisture and fats and proteins to help bind the dough.
• Instant Yeast: Instant yeast is a great choice for when you might have a little less time on your hands. While you can generally use active dry yeast and instant yeast interchangeably, instant yeast doesn’t need to be rehydrated and also has a finer texture which means rising times are quicker.
• All-Purpose Flour & Baking Soda: You’ll find this combination in many classic baked goods. Baking soda needs an acid to help it create the CO₂ that helps dough rise, but since we are using instant yeast here, the baking soda is more for texture and appearance. Baking soda will help the cinnamon rolls achieve that golden brown appearance and help them spread some as well.
• Granulated Sugar & Light Brown Sugar: For these rolls we’re using both granulated and brown sugar. Granulated sugar helps to soften and moisten the dough and brown sugar contains molasses which helps provide a little bit more moisture and texture to the cinnamon spread inside the rolls, helping to give it that sticky, gooey texture.
• Cinnamon & Nutmeg: This is a classic spice combination that really works wonders. Cinnamon rolls obviously are going to call for cinnamon, but without the addition of another spice like nutmeg, the flavor may fall a little flat. Another nice addition would be cocoa powder if you want to go for that cinnamon-chocolate combo.
• Cream Cheese: I think that a cream cheese based frosting is the only way to go for cinnamon rolls. While a sugary sweet, thin icing still works well to complement a warm roll, there is just something unbeatable about a thicker, not as sickly sweet cream cheese frosting that I think puts these rolls over the top.
• Confectioners’ Sugar: Powdered sugar has an incredibly fine texture which makes it perfect for whipping up a smooth, sweet icing.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

To start our cinnamon rolls, we first need to get the dough together. Start by greasing a large bowl with cooking spray and then adding warm, not hot, milk and the instant yeast to the bowl of your stand mixer. Using a dough hook, stir the milk and yeast mixture until the yeast is dissolved.

Then add in the eggs, flour, sugar, butter, salt, and baking soda and mix together on low speed. Once all of the ingredients are combined, knock the speed up to medium-high and beat the dough for 10 to 15 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic, and begins to separate from the sides of the bowl.

Transfer the dough from the stand mixer bowl into the greased large bowl and cover it with a clean kitchen towel. Set this aside until the dough has doubled in size—this should take anywhere from 1 to 2 hours depending on variables like the temperature, moisture level, and barometric pressure of your kitchen.

While the dough rises, give the bowl of your stand mixer a good clean and dry and then switch out the dough hook for a whisk attachment. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, butter, and salt to the bowl and cream the mixture for about 3 to 4 minutes until light and fluffy. As the mixture is being creamed, lightly grease a baking pan with butter for your landing.

By now your dough should have doubled. Lightly flour a clean rolling surface and turn the dough out onto it, sprinkling some extra flour on top of the dough. Using a floured rolling pin, gently roll—you don’t want to press too hard and squeeze out all the air that keeps the finished product light—the dough out into a large square of about 18 inches on each side. Then spread the cinnamon-nutmeg filling evenly from edge to edge, covering the whole surface, and carefully roll the dough into a log. A little trick I like to use here to make sure the spiral holds—and you have that perfect gooey bite in the center—is to spread on a thin coat of butter on the edge of the dough just before I begin to roll it. Once rolled into a log, use a sharp knife or bench scraper to cut the log into 12 individual rolls.

Place the rolls into the prepared baking pan and cover the pan with the clean kitchen towel again to let them rise for another 30 to 40 minutes until they have again almost doubled in size.

Once they have doubled, preheat the oven to 400°, and once it has come up to heat, uncover the rolls and place them into the oven to bake for 20 to 22 minutes until golden brown but still soft.

As they bake, beat together cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and the rest of the salt and butter until the mixture is light and fluffy. Then gradually pour in milk while continuing to beat the mixture until a loose icing is reached.

While the rolls are still hot out of the oven, spread the icing over the tops of them, allowing it to spread and melt on its own, and serve while still warm.

The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.

Recipe Tips

• Don’t cheat the rising times. Make sure the dough is fully doubled on the first rise and nearly doubled in the pan before baking for the best cinnamon rolls.
• Dealing with yeast. This recipe uses instant yeast, so you don't need to let it bloom in the warm milk (just stir to dissolve), but you do want to make sure that your milk is lukewarm (as opposed to hot, which will kill the yeast!).
• Watch out for overbaking. The best way to ensure your cinnamon rolls turn out the best they can be? Don’t overbake them! Overbaking will dry out a dough, no matter how much sugar and dairy it has.
• The cinnamon roll filling. This filling is different than traditional cinnamon roll filling, which usually involves spreading the dough with melted butter, then sprinkling it with the cinnamon sugar. Instead, our recipe involves creaming the butter, sugar, and spice together, resulting in a super-creamy, very even filling. Keep in mind that this filling can be hard to spread evenly if it's too cold. If you're having trouble, warm it up just slightly in the microwave to make it easier.

Storage

These cinnamon rolls will stay good once baked for up to 3 days. You can also bake them and freeze them, unglazed, for about a month. Honestly, though, cinnamon rolls are best eaten fresh, so we’d recommend eating them as soon as possible after they're baked. If you're looking for cinnamon rolls that can be prepped ahead, try Senior Food Editor Makinze Gore's overnight cinnamon roll recipe—they’re a Delish favorite.