Cinnamon Bread Rolls – fluffy, soft, doughy oozing with buttery sweet cinnamon flavor that’s going to take you head over heels. Better than store-bought cinnamon rolls and rolls in general. Perfect for breakfast, brunch and holidays!
Aaaah, cinnamon rolls! Every time I pass by along any Cinnabons at the malls, I couldn’t help but stop and spend some bucks on their tasty heavenly cinnabon rolls. I’m a sucker for anything with yeast, and cinnamon rolls are definitely on top of the game.
That aromatic, buttery sweet heavenly cinnamon wafting through the air simply lingers in your mind. Add that cream cheese glaze on top AND it is perfection! Now tell me that it is just normal to splurge on some store-bought cinnamon rolls. Right??? I’ve been doing that for a while until I decided I got to have my own homemade cinnamon bread rolls recipe.
If you’re new into baking, don’t fear the yeast. If I can bake with it, and so can you. And what’s even great about these rolls here is that it uses simple ingredients that you can easily find at the grocery stores. Aannnd there is little to no-kneading involved. How cool is that?
Now let’s talk about that cream cheese glaze! Cinnamon wouldn’t be complete without it. After all, it’s one of those combos that is destined by heavens to go together. But just a caveat though, don’t overglazed the cinnamon rolls.
A great cinnamon bread roll for me would satisfy your palette with that perfect balance of sugar and cinnamon filling and the right amount of glaze to coat the top of the rolls. It shouldn’t be too soggy and not too bready.
If you’re ready to face your yeasty fear (that does even sound right?, : D), then please look on the brighter side and imagine yourself heartily enjoying every bite of this classic favorite Cinnamon Rolls. It’s perfect for breakfast, brunch and on holidays.
Want to celebrate Mother’s Day with a breakfast buffet? You can check out my wonderful choices of breakfast recipes HERE. Brunch date sounds even cool, too.
Watch How To Make It
Cinnamon Bread Rolls
Ingredients
- ¼ cup water
- 3 teaspoon dry yeast
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons powdered milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 ounce butter (113.4 gram) (melted) , plus more for brushing
- 2 large eggs
- 3 1/4 – 3 ½ cups All-purpose flour
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- 2 oz melted butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
Cream Cheese Glaze
- 4 oz cream cheese , softened
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-4 tablespoons milk (may need more or less)
- ¼ cup butter , soft
- pinch of salt (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine water and yeast. Let it sit until dissolve for about 3-5 minutes.
- In another microwave bowl add sugar, whole milk, salt and powdered milk with sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and butter. Microwave for about 1-1 1/12 minutes. Stir until butter has completely dissolved.
- Pour into the yeast mixture, add eggs and thoroughly mix.
- Gently add flour, a cup at a time. Mix well using hands or stand mixer; the dough is going to be sticky. If too sticky add the remaining flour a little at a time. Less flour is preferable.
- Knead the dough for about 1 minute or two.
- Cover loosely with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until doubled.
- Make cinnamon sugar by combining sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside until ready to use.
- Punch dough down.
- Lightly flour board surface, roll out to 1 -inch thick rectangle. Generously brush with melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the cinnamon dough, sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. And pat cinnamon mixture gently into the surface.
- Starting with the end nearest you, roll the dough up snugly like a jelly-roll around the filling, finishing the roll with the seam side down. Do not forget to pinch the seal so they don’t come apart when making the dough.
- Slice the roll into 4 equal pieces, then slice each piece into 3 equal pieces- a total of 12 pieces.
- Oil the bottom of baking pan with butter or use a cooking spray. Place cinnamon roll slices close together in the pan and let rise until dough is doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 350 Degrees F Â for about 25 -30 minutes or until golden browned. Remove and let it cool for about 5 minutes.
Cream Cheese Glaze
- Whip together cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and 2-3 tablespoons of milk until very creamy. Add more milk to get the desired consistency for drizzling. Pour on the cinnamon bun; serve warm.
Tips & Notes:
- Before you even start baking, make sure to always check the expiration date of the yeast. Bad yeast wouldn't yield to a beautiful rise. Unopened yeast packages should be stored in a cupboard or in a cool and dry place. Once the package or jar has opened you need to refrigerate and store the yeast in an airtight container.
- If the yeast didn't start to froth up after dissolving it in warm milk, do not continue with the process as your dough will not rise at all.
- Make sure that your milk is not too hot or it will kill the yeast. It should be warm to the touch.
- For the milk, you can use either the following: full fat, 2% or skim milk.
- To double check if the dough has risen, gently press it with two fingers. If the indentation mark remains, the dough has clearly not risen yet.
- Make sure to evenly coat the dough from edges to edges with the sugar cinnamon mixture.
- Rolls are best enjoyed the same day you make them. Or you can store them in a covered container at a room temperature for 3-5 days. Glaze the rolls immediately before serving them.
- To freeze UNBAKED ROLLS, wrap them completely after you let it rise in the pan in two layers of plastic wrap. You can freeze it for 8 hours and up to 5-6 weeks. Thaw them out in the fridge the night before you want to bake them (still wrapped). Then finish baking the next morning.
- You can also make the DOUGH AHEAD. Let it rest first after kneading and then cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise in the fridge overnight. Let it continue to rise the next morning at a room temperature for about an hour.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Nutrition Information:
 How to Make Cinnamon Rolls
In a large bowl combine water and yeast. Let it sit until dissolve for about 3-5 minutes. In another microwave bowl add sugar , whole milk , salt and powdered milk with sugar, salt , vanilla extract and butter. Microwave for about 1-1 1/12 minutes. Stir until butter is has completely dissolved.
Pour into the yeast mixture, add eggs and thoroughly mix.
Gently add flour, a cup at a time . Mix well using hands or stand mixer ,dough is going to be sticky. If too sticky add the remaining flour a little at a time. Less flour is preferable.
Knead dough for about 1 minute or two. Cover loosely with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until doubled.
Make cinnamon sugar by combining sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside until ready to use. Punch dough down.
Lightly flour board surface, roll out to 1 -inch thick rectangle. Generously brush with melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on cinnamon dough, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. And pat cinnamon mixture gently into the surface.
Starting with the end nearest you, roll the dough up snugly like a jelly-roll around the filling, finishing the roll with the seam side down. Do not forget to pinch the seal so they don’t come apart when making the dough.
Slice the roll into 4 equal pieces, then slice each piece into 3 equal pieces- a total of 12 pieces. Oil the bottom of baking pan with butter or use a cooking spray. Place cinnamon roll slices close together in the pan and let rise until dough is doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake for about 25 -30 minutes or until golden browned. Remove and let it cool for about 5 minutes.
CREAM CHEESE GLAZE:Â Whip together cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and 2-3 tablespoons of milk until very creamy. Add more milk to get desired consistency for drizzling. Pour on cinnamon bun; serve warm.
Sharon says
I would like to try this recipe but I only have instant yeast, can I use it and only let it rise once?
Amina says
Hi Sharon, yes you can use instant yeast and let it rise once after kneading. You can check tips and tricks for more instructions about the dough. Thanks
Shanel Banton says
I tried it it turned out great…thank you…blessings all the way from Jamaica
Imma Adamu says
Thank you so much, Shanel!
Barbara Montgomery says
Is it necessary to use powered milk? I don’t have it available.
Thank you.
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Barbara! Powdered milk heightens the flavor. But you can absolutely leave it out if you do not have it on hand. 🙂
Kristen says
These were a lot easier to make than I expected! Using yeast and taking (hardly any) time to proof the dough twice is sooooo worth it. The buns came out so fluffy—I couldn’t believe it was something I made! However, I didn’t make the cream cheese topping and just swapped it for powdered sugar I had in my pantry instead. Still pretty good I think because the bottom of the rolls get that caramelized gooodness 🙂
ImmaculateBites says
That sounds absolutely delicious, Kristen. Thank you so much for sharing!
Abbie says
What can substitute cream cheese and nutmeg?
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Abbie! You may leave out the nutmeg if you do not have it handy. You can substitute cream cheese with either pureed cottage cheese or plain yogurt, strained overnight in a cheesecloth. Hope this helps 🙂 !
Kadiri THERESA says
Good evening imma.howd the family and hope u are keeping safe.plz can u explain your measurement(2oz,4oz and so in kg)so I can.get proper measurement thanks
Imma Adamu says
Hi Theresa, so 2oz is about 57grams, small quantities. so 4oz is about 114grams (11% of 1kg). I hope this helps
cherise says
Hello love this recipe! just wondering is it necessary to brush butter on the top of the buns? if so then?
cherise says
also i want to make 16 buns but your recipe indicates that i need 0.33 cups of water. im not sure how to measure that
ImmaculateBites says
It’s about 1/3 cup of water .
ImmaculateBites says
Hello Cherise,
No it’s not necessary to brush the cinnamon rolls.
Gladys says
I tried your receipe . It came out nice but got burnt under.
ImmaculateBites says
Sorry to hear about his .Your cookie sheet maybe too thin. You might want to use a thicker aluminum pan or baking sheets.
Dunori says
I’ve made them before but never thought to freeze the dough for later use. Great idea; thanks!
Jenny says
Hi very nice gonna try this but when you put the buns in the dish before you put them in the oven are you suppose to brush them with softened butter just asking thank you for sharing
imma africanbites says
Hi, Jenny! Yes, you may brush them with butter.
gregory anderson says
Just when I was going to be taking my losing weight seriously, you publish a recipe like this.
Thanks yet again. We love your recipes.
Vivi says
Hi! Looks amazing! On what temp. is oven set?
Thank you!
imma africanbites says
Hi, Vivi! Bake it at 350 degrees F for about 25-30 minutes or until its golden brown. Happy baking!