Recipe: How to Make Cinnamon Rolls From Scratch

There’s nothing like warm cinnamon rolls on a weekend morning that you pull right from the oven and melt some delicious icing on. The benefit of this recipe is that you can do all the work the day before, so in the morning, the only thing you must do is wait patiently for the buns to rise!

Also your, kitchen is going to smell amazing.

Cinnamon Rolls From Scratch

Cinnamon Rolls Ingredients

Dough:

– ¾ cup of milk (2% or 3%)
– 1 package of dry active yeast (about 2 ¼ tsp)
– 3 cups flour (bread or unbleached all purpose)
– ¼ cup white granulated sugar
– 1 egg, 1 egg yolk (room temp)
– ¼ cup butter
– 1 tsp salt

Filling:

– 2/3 cup brown sugar
– 1.5 tablespoons cinnamon
– ¼ cup soft butter

Frosting:

– 2 cup powdered sugar
– 2 tablespoon butter (melted)
– 2 tsp vanilla
– 4 tbsp milk

*Note: You’ll also need a 9×9 inch baking pan

Cinnamon Rolls Instructions

Heat the milk to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit – this will be about lukewarm.

Once heated, add it to a large bowl, and mix in the yeast, and sugar. Let stand for 15 minutes until bubbly. Now add in the room temperature eggs and melted butter (make sure the butter isn’t hot or it might cook the eggs!).

Now add the flour and salt and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough begins to come together.

If you have a stand mixture, transfer in the dough with the dough hook attachment, and run at med speed for 5 minutes, then scrape down the sides, and run for an additional 3-4 minutes until a ball forms. If it’s too sticky, you can add a bit more bread flour.

If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough by hand for 8-10 minutes on a clean and floured surface.

Oil a bowl and place the dough ball inside, and then cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and a tea towel over top. Let this stand for 1 to 1.5 hours, just until it has doubled in size.

While the dough is rising, you can make the filling mixture, by mixing the brown sugar and cinnamon together. If you prefer to add more cinnamon or other spices, like nutmeg, here is your chance.

When the dough has risen, place it on a well-floured surface and gently roll it out until it is approximately 9×14 inches.

Now spread the softened butter on top of the dough, leaving one small edge on the shorter side un-buttered.

Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture evenly across the buttered dough, lightly patting it into place.

Roll the dough, starting on the 9-inch side, tightly across, and finish by pinching the un-buttered seam into place, and finish with the seam side down.

If there is excess on the ends that do not have filling, you can cut these off with a sharp knife.

Now, either using the knife, or using un-flavored wax floss, cut 9 sections out of the log (about 1 inch each).

Grease the 9×9 baking pan and place the rolls evenly into it.

Now is the time, if you want to make the rolls the next morning, to cover the pan with plastic wrap and place them in the fridge overnight.

If you’re making them the same day, cover the pan with plastic wrap and a tea towel and let rise again for about 30 to 40 minutes.

While the rolls are rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and when they’re ready, place the rolls in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. (I like to rotate halfway through.) Check after 20 minutes, and see if they’re beginning to turn golden brown, if not bake for a few more minutes, watching them carefully.

In the meantime, while the rolls are baking, you can make the frosting by placing the icing sugar, butter, vanilla and milk in a bowl, and whisking until smooth. You’ll want it thicker, as it will melt when placed on the warm cinnamon rolls.

Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the pan and placing them on a plate and spreading the icing across.

ENJOY!

*Note: If baking from the fridge after resting overnight, let the rolls come to room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour before baking.

This story was originally published in February 2024.