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What are Cinnamon rolls?
Cinnamon rolls are traditionally yeast-leavened dough over which a cinnamon sugar mixture is sprinkled along with butter. This dough is then rolled, cut into individual portions, and fried or baked. The main ingredients used in cinnamon rolls are flour, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon powder. Cinnamon rolls are also known as cinnamon bun, cinnamon swirl, cinnamon Danish, and cinnamon snail. These rolls are sweet and served for breakfast or as a dessert, commonly in Northern Europe (mainly in Scandinavia) and North America. In Sweden, it is called kanelbulle; in Denmark, it is known as kanelsnegl, in Norway it is known as Kanelbolle, Skillingsboller and Kanelsnurr, and in Finland it is known as korvapuusti. Source for these names : Wikipedia. I was first introduced to Cinnamon rolls at Cinnabon in the United States of America. I totally fell in love with it. People who have already tasted it definitely know what I am talking about. My love for baking made me give these rolls a try at home. I have tried these rolls, both with regular butter and brown butter. Both taste fantastic, but my childhood love of brown butter (homemade ghee) makes me bake the rolls using brown butter frequently. If you love brown butter and are planning to make cinnamon rolls, I would recommend making brown butter in advance. Don’t miss to check out our best Christmas recipes and easy Thanksgiving dinner recipes.
How to make brown butter?
Cut the butter into cubes, add it to the pan, and melt it over medium-low heat. Once the butter has melted, increase the heat a little above medium. Keep scraping and swirling the pan using a spatula or spoon during the process. The butter will foam and sizzle around the edges. Slowly the bubble or foam dissolves, and light brown specs will start forming at the bottom. Be attentive throughout, as there are very few seconds between brown butter and burnt butter. Once you smell the nutty aroma of brown butter, switch off the flame. Transfer it to a heat-proof bowl immediately. Let it cool down completely before using it in any baking recipe.
Ingredients for Cinnamon Buns
To make the cinnamon dough from scratch at home, you will need brown butter, yeast, milk, egg, flour, salt, and sugar. For the cinnamon sugar filling: Butter, cinnamon, and sugar are used. Heavy cream is poured on risen dough which makes your rolls gooey, exactly like Cinnabon rolls. For the cream cheese frosting, you will need softened cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla extract. See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
In a bowl, add yeast and lukewarm milk and allow the yeast to activate. Next, add eggs, brown butter, salt, sugar and mix. Finally, add the flour and knead to get a soft and smooth dough. Add flour in increments. Do not add too much flour. The dough can be sticky or tacky but not too dry. This is the key to getting soft cinnamon rolls.
Best Cinnamon Rolls Filling
Filling for cinnamon rolls uses three basic ingredients. Melted brown butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon powder. My family has loved brown butter or ghee since childhood. The nutty aroma of melted brown butter or ghee makes these cinnamon rolls and the filling incredibly delicious. If you are out of time or want to keep the recipe simple, use regular salted butter.
How to roll cinnamon rolls or cinnamon buns?
Once the dough has doubled in size, transfer the dough to a well-floured surface to avoid it from sticking. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle. Now spread the cinnamon roll filling. Fold it into a log, starting with the long side. Cut the log into 12 or 15 or as many rolls as you want, depending on the desired size and the baking pan you will use. Leave it for a second rise just until it doubled in size.
It’s a secret tip to make cinnabon rich and gooey.
After the second rise, you will have to pour the heavy cream on the risen rolls so that the cinnamon rolls are soaked in heavy cream. This will give you rich and gooey rolls or buns like the one you buy from Cinnabon.
How do you pour the heavy cream on the rolls?
First, slightly warm the heavy cream to remove the chill.
Why should I warm the heavy cream before pouring it?
Your dough generally rises in warmth, and you want to continue the rise even during the baking process. So just warm the cream enough so that you can touch it. Not hot or cold. Even room-temperature heavy cream is fine.
How to make cream cheese frosting for cinnamon buns?
Cream cheese frosting is my favorite when it comes to cinnamon rolls. The ingredients are simple - cream cheese, butter, sugar, and vanilla extract. You can add brown butter and a teaspoon of cinnamon powder to enhance the taste. This is a fail-proof recipe, and I have prepared this several times.
When should I add icing or frosting to Cinnamon rolls?
I generally add it when the rolls are still warm so that it gets soaked in and makes it better. But if you want to make it look prettier for holidays or any special occasions, simply add the frosting to the cinnamon rolls when it comes to room temperature.
Overnight Cinnamon Rolls or Make-ahead Cinnamon Buns
When the cinnamon rolls are ready for a second rise in the baking pan, cover and refrigerate them overnight. Next morning, when you are ready to bake, pull them out of the refrigerator. At this point, they should have doubled in size in the refrigerator. In this case, keep it out of the fridge for 30 minutes to get the chill off and bake. If, for some reason, the rolls did not rise during the second rise in the refrigerator, keep them out at room temperature. Plan at least one hour of additional rise at room temperature in this case. Then, pour the heavy cream on the rolls and bake.
Frozen Cinnamon Rolls
You can freeze the cinnamon roll dough before baking. Once the dough comes to the point of the second rise, roll the dough, spread the filling, cut it into rolls, and place it in the baking pan. Then, keep it in the freezer for one hour. Then, place it in a freezer-proof Ziploc bag. When you are ready to bake the rolls, remove them from the freezer and defrost them. To defrost, place the rolls in the refrigerator overnight. Next morning, when you want to bake it, arrange it in the baking pan and allow it around one hour at room temperature for a second rise. Then, follow the same steps and bake them.
Storage instructions
Baked cinnamon rolls :
Baked cinnamon rolls remain fresh for a few days, say up to 3 days, at room temperature in an airtight container. This will even keep them moist and prevent them from drying out. If you keep them in the pan, cover them tightly with aluminum foil.
Uncooked cinnamon rolls :
The best way to store them is to keep the cinnamon roll dough before the second rise in the refrigerator if you need it the next day. Freeze the rolls if you plan to store them for a long time. Thaw, allow to rise at room temperature, and bake as needed.
Vegan cinnamon rolls
Cinnamon rolls can be made vegan with proper substitutes. The taste and texture will vary slightly. Substitute milk with dairy-free milk, butter with vegan butter or coconut oil, and cream cheese with vegan (cashew) cream cheese.
Air fryer cinnamon rolls
After the cinnamon rolls are done with the second rise, preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees F. Transfer around 4 to 5 rolls, depending on the size, and air fry for 5 minutes. Turn the rolls over and fry again for another 4 minutes. Repeat the steps for the remaining cinnamon rolls.
More holiday breakfast ideas
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Recipe card
