Bake a batch of yeasted cinnamon rolls finished with brown butter cream cheese frosting. They're soft, chewy, and best enjoyed while still warm.
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When it comes to baking bread at home, cinnamon rolls are a must master recipe to add to your baking bucket list.
They’re made with an enriched dough, meaning sugar and fat are worked into the dough to create a soft, tender crumb and rich flavor.
I’ll walk you through not only how to make super delicious homemade cinnamon rolls, but also the why behind the process, so you understand what’s happening to the dough throughout the whole process.
And if you love baking with sourdough, be sure to try my sourdough cinnamon roll recipe as well.
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What You'll Learn In This Recipe
- Tips for using yeast to ensure your dough properly rises.
- How to knead dough by hand for proper gluten development.
- The visual cues that tell you when the dough is fully proofed.
Keep practicing your baking skills with the help of my guide to becoming a better baker!
Ingredients You Need
- Bread flour: For chewy cinnamon rolls, use bread flour, which has a higher protein content (12.7%) compared to all purpose flour (11.7% protein).
- Granulated sugar: Sugar helps to tenderize the dough and gives the cinnamon rolls a nice browned color after baking, thanks to the Maillard reaction.
- Instant dry yeast: Always double check the expiration date on your yeast before baking.
- Fine sea salt: My preferred salt for baking since it easily distributes throughout the dough. This helps to strengthen the gluten development in the dough.
- Whole milk: Never heat the milk higher than 130°F (54°C) or you risk killing the yeast.
- Unsalted butter: I always use unsalted butter for baking so I can control the salt level. The amount of salt added to salted butter isn't standardized, so one brand might be saltier than the other.
- Eggs: Allow the eggs to come to room temperature so they better incorporate into the dough.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
How To Make This Recipe
Step 1: First, whisk all of the dry ingredients together. This ensures everything is equally distributed.
Step 2: Warm the milk until it reaches 115°F (46°C) on the stove or in the microwave.
Step 3: Add the butter to the warm milk and whisk until it's melted.
Step 4: Next, whisk in the eggs. The eggs should be at room temperature so they don't scramble in the warm milk.
Step 5: Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix everything together with your hands or a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms. As you continue to knead the dough, the flour will absorb more of the liquid.
Step 6: Pull the dough out of the bowl and knead it by hand on a generously floured surface for about 10 minutes, until it's flexible and bouncy to the touch. It's best to knead the dough with the heel of your hand for maximum gluten formation.
Step 7: Next, allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place until it's doubled in size. This step is called bulk fermentation.
Step 8: While this usually takes about 60 - 90 minutes, it's always best to go by visual cues to know your dough is done rising. It will have doubled in size once bulk fermentation is complete.
Step 9: While the dough is rising, prepare the cinnamon sugar filling by mixing the brown sugar and cinnamon.
Step 10: Once doubled in size, it's time to roll the dough out into a 12 inch x 24 inch (30 x 60 cm) rectangle about ¼ inch (½ cm) thick on a lightly floured counter.
Step 11: It's important to have really soft, room temperature butter for this step. Spread it evenly across the dough.
Step 12: Evenly spread the cinnamon sugar filling on top.
Step 13: I've found the easiest way to cut and roll cinnamon rolls is with a pizza cutter, knife, or bench scraper. Cut into 12 pieces, about 2 inches (5 cm) wide.
Step 14: Individually roll each cinnamon roll (not too tightly) and place them in a greased 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) light colored baking pan.
Step 15: Next, the cinnamon rolls need another rest, called the proofing stage. Cover the rolls and allow them to double in size until they fill the pan. To know they're done proofing, poke the dough with your finger. It should slowly spring back.
Step 16: Finally, bake at 350°F (175°C) for 37 - 42 minutes until the tops are golden brown. If you are using a dark colored pan, the baking time will need to be reduced slightly.
Expert Tips
- Sometimes you need to add additional flour to the cinnamon roll dough. If you notice it's too sticky after fully kneading in all the flour, add in 1 tablespoon (8 grams) of flour at a time, until the dough is no longer sticky.
- To prep cinnamon rolls ahead of time, freeze them after shaping, before the second rise. Then, thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then let them rise in a warm spot until doubled in size before baking as directed in the recipe card.
- To check if your dough is properly kneaded, perform the windowpane test. Stretch a small piece of dough. If it pulls thin enough to see light through without tearing, the gluten is ready. If it rips, keep kneading.
Recipe FAQs
This is a common problem if you freeze the cinnamon rolls and don't allow them to fully thaw, then properly proof until doubled in size before baking.
There are a few reasons this could happen:
1. You added too much additional flour to the cinnamon roll dough. Only add just enough flour so the dough isn't super sticky.
2. You overbaked the cinnamon rolls in the oven. They should be golden brown, not too dark.
3. You overkneaded the dough. However, this is difficult to do if you're hand kneading the dough.
A small amount of filling leaking out is nothing to worry about. If a lot of the filling escapes during baking, it’s usually because you used melted butter instead of softened.
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Brown Butter Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- saucepan
- 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) light colored baking pan
- offset or silicone spatula
- knife or pizza cutter
- electric or stand mixer
Ingredients
Cinnamon Roll Dough
- 6 ½ cups bread flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons instant dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 cups whole milk
- ½ cup room temperature unsalted butter cut into 1 tablespoon or 14 gram pieces
- 2 large room temperature eggs
Cinnamon Sugar Filling
- 2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- nonstick cooking spray
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 6 ounces cream cheese softened to room temperature
- 1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar measured then sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
For Cinnamon Roll Dough
- Whisk bread flour, granulated sugar, yeast, and fine sea salt in a mixing bowl.
- Add milk to a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the milk reaches 115°F (46°C) on an instant read thermometer. Add room temperature butter to a mixing bowl and pour warmed milk on top. Allow to sit, stirring occasionally, until the butter has completely melted. Whisk in eggs.
- Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and knead until a sticky dough forms. Place dough on a generously floured surface and knead by hand for 10 minutes, until flexible and bouncy to the touch. To check that the dough is ready, grab a piece of dough between your fingers, stretch it, and see if web fibers have developed. You should be able to pull the dough thin enough that light shines through. If your dough rips as soon as you start pulling, you need to continue kneading the dough. You want the dough to be able to stretch rather than tear.
- Cover with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm (around 75°F - 80°F (24°C - 27°C)), draft-free place until doubled in size, about 60–90 minutes. Rise time will vary depending on the temperature of your environment.
For Cinnamon Sugar Filling
- In a small bowl combine brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Spray a 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) light colored baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, roll it into a 12 inch x 24 inch (30 x 60 cm) rectangle about ¼ inch (½ cm) thick on a lightly floured work surface.
- Spread the softened butter across the dough with an offset or silicone spatula. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture on top. Evenly cut 12 strips of dough (about 2 inches or 5 cm wide) with a knife or pizza cutter. Roll each piece of dough into an individual cinnamon roll then place in prepared pan.
- Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size and they fill the pan, about 60 minutes.
- While the cinnamon rolls are proofing, heat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Bake for 37 - 42 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly for about 15 minutes on a wire rack.
For Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- Heat butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring continuously until there are golden brown flecks at the bottom of the saucepan and you smell a nutty aroma, about 5 minutes. Be sure to watch the butter throughout the entire browning process to ensure the butter does not burn. As the butter melts down, foam will begin to form. As soon as you can see golden brown flecks, remove the butter from the heat and transfer to a bowl to cool.
- Beat cooled butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the mixer as needed.
- Add confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and fine sea; mix on medium-low speed until combined.
- Top warm cinnamon rolls with frosting.
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