Hi everyone! Happy Sunday, and I hope everyone had beautiful Thanksgiving holidays.
Today we’re making cinnamon rolls. I’m not going to deny that cinnamon rolls from the grocery store or even from a can are tasty, and I’ve been known to eat large quantities on a fairly regular basis actually.
But there’s nothing like homemade cinnamon rolls. It’s a weekend task, to be sure, but it’s well worth it. I’ve actually tried probably dozens of cinnamon roll recipes over the last few years, with little success in finding something that really had everything a great cinnamon roll should. The right filling is crucial really, and getting a dough that is light and fluffy is quite difficult in higher altitudes.
This time, I used a variation of a basic white bread dough for the rolls, and it turned out perfectly. For the filling, there’s a couple of different methods. The most common is to spread butter on the dough, and then use some combo of cinnamon and sugars to sprinkle on top before rolling it all up. The second is to create a sort of paste with butter, cinnamon, and sugar, and spreading it all together onto your dough. This second option is the method I went with for these.
If you’re in a high altitude, be sure to watch your dough rises very carefully. Over-proofing your dough is one of the main issues that people run into for high altitudes.
Basically, if you’re looking for that ooey-gooey cinnamon roll, this is your final stop. Slather a ton of the cream cheese icing on top, and enjoy yourself. I myself tend to lose my ability to share around cinnamon rolls, but the recipe makes plenty to share if you’d like!
Ingredients
- Dough:
- 2 packages active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water (100-110 degrees)
- 2 tbs. sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup water
- 2 tbs. canola oil
- 2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 5 cups (to 5 1/2 cups) bread flour
- Filling:
- 2 sticks softened butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 1/2 tbs. cinnamon
- Icing:
- 1 8oz block of cream cheese, softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 3 tbs. heavy cream
Instructions
- Mix together the yeast, warm water, and sugar. Let this sit for 5 minutes until the yeast has bloomed.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat together the whole milk, 1 cup of water, canola oil, and salt until about 120 degrees.
- Pour the milk mixture into a stand mixture, or a large bowl. Add in 4 cups of flour to start, and beat together until combined.
- Add in the yeast mixture, and beat together for several minutes. You will have a lumpy, very wet mixture at this point.
- Add in another 1/2 cup of flour, and beat together. Continue slowly adding flour until dough leaves the sides of the bowl, and is no longer sticky.
- Then, pull the dough out onto a floured surface and gently knead in a little more flour until it's smooth.
- Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for 50-55 minutes for the first round.
- After the first rise, punch down the dough, and knead on a floured surface once or twice. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover, and let it rise again for about 40-45 minutes this time.
- Meanwhile, mix all the ingredients for the filling until fully incorporated.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
- Roll out the dough into a large rectangle, and spread the filling mixture evenly across the entire thing.
- Roll up the dough tightly, and slice into 15-18 rolls.
- Place your rolls in a greased 13x9 pan, and let rise for another 15 minutes or so.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until rolls are golden brown.
- For the icing:
- Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Then beat in the heavy cream.
- Slather it all over your warm cinnamon rolls and enjoy!
Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!
Oh boy, there's not much better than homemade cinnamon rolls. I always make a batch for Christmas morning!
Can you use all purpose flour instead of bread flour?
Hi there- I would not recommend swapping out the two flours- bread flour has a stronger protein structure which is a big deal with bread doughs!
Which attachment should be used when beating the mixture??. I have a kitchen aid so I have a whisk, paddle, and dough hook attachments.
Hi Taylor! I use the paddle attachment until the dough starts coming together, then switch to the dough hook!
Hiya!
I love these cinnamon rolls!
Ive used this recipe 4 times now (following the recipe exactly). We made an orange glaze, blueberry glaze, and bannana glaze. They all turned out great!
Each time the filling has boiled out and ended up caramelizing on the bottom or the top of the cinnamon rolls. Is this because there is too much butter in the mixture? How can I avoid this? I really want the brown sugar/cinnamon to stay where it is (even though it still tastes amazing after boiling out).
Also, would I be able to freeze the dough roll to make for easier cutting? will everything still rise properly in the oven? any suggestions for how to do this successfully?
Hi Kevin! So glad to hear you're loving this recipe, I am too!! So one thing I've done at times to help with the filling seeping out is actually to make fewer buns, and cook them in a cake pan. So basically, roll the dough a little less large, fill and roll it the same, and then slice it into 12 rolls instead of 16-20. They will be bigger overall. Then, use a 13×9 pan to bake them in. It creates a smaller space and holds everything together differently. I hope that helps!!
Hi there
I want to try these today !
Where does the 2 tsp of vanilla come In .?
Cannot find it in your instructions .
Ooh, I also have this question!!
Op- sorry about that! The vanilla goes in at the same time as the oil!
Oh also for freezing, I've never tried that, but i have tried to chill this dough and it usually just rises so fast that it will keep puffing in the freezer! Worth a shot though- you'd just want to let it thaw a bit- maybe 20 minutes depending on how frozen it is.
We were thinking of making these for Christmas morning but won’t have time in the morning. Can we make these the night before, refrigerate, then let rise in AM before baking? If so what would you suggest?
Hi there! You can do one of two things here- you can either shape the rolls and place them in your baking pan, covered, overnight. This does run a chance of over-proofing depending on a few factors, but it typically works well. Or, you can make the rolls the day before and bake them until they have about 10 minutes left- they should be pale but mostly dry looking (no more wet dough spots) and then in the morning, pop them back in the oven to finish baking. You can leave them partially baked on the counter overnight. Both options should work well!
Just bought your book! I really hope this recipe is in it. I use this recipe every time I make these (about once every few months) and make it exactly as the directions state. So far every attempt has been successful.
There is another cinnamon roll recipe in the book, both are great options! Glad to hear that you love this recipe, and thank you for buying the book!
I LOVE your cinnamon rolls! I frequently make the ones from your Sugar High Cookbook, which are similar to these. My question is – would it be ok to prep these the night before and then bake them in the morning? Is there a specific step that would be best to “stop” at to wait overnight? Hoping to save some sanity before we host a big group for brunch!