Growing up in my family it wasn’t Christmas morning unless there were cinnamon rolls baking in the oven. The only thing better than opening presents was the sweet aroma of cinnamon rolls baking in the oven. It felt like such a treat to basically have dessert for breakfast!
For most families, including mine, Christmas morning isn’t about baking and cleaning. It’s about relaxing and spending time with family, so who wants to be stuck in the kitchen all morning and then all day to make dinner? We always used those refrigerated tubes of premade cinnamon rolls, the ones that are terrifying to open because it feels sort of like holding a live bomb that might explode in your face.
Although those strange tubes will always have a special place in my heart there’s nothing better than homemade cinnamon rolls made with love.
They do take some time and effort, but the good news is you can make them ahead of time. I’ve included a bunch of tips just below. These would be perfect to bake for Christmas morning, Easter, or a Mother’s Day brunch, or when you’re hosting company and want something special. Or just when the craving strikes!
How to Make the BEST Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Can I Knead by Hand?
Yes! You can definitely knead this dough by hand without a stand mixer + dough hook. It may take some more time and definitely more elbow grease! Check out my full video tutorial on how to knead dough by hand here.
Shaping Perfect Cinnamon Rolls
As you roll up the cinnamon roll dough after filling, be sure to keep the roll nice and tight. This will help maintain beautiful spirals. Finish off the spiral with the seam side down to seal in the filling. Push the ends into each other slightly with your palms to create an even log shape.
How to Slice Cinnamon Roll Dough
To get beautiful rolls, it’s important to slice the log of dough without squashing it down. The best tool for that is a very sharp knife that you use sweeping motions with to slice the dough. If you don’t have a super sharp knife you can also use a serrated knife. Or you can use dental floss to slice the dough, but be sure it’s unflavored.
To get evenly sized pieces I like to slice off any weird end pieces and discard. Then cut the log directly in half so you have two logs. Repeat by cutting each log in half. Cut each remaining piece into 3 pieces for a total of 12. I know this sounds confusing to read but as you slice it’ll make sense and you’ll end up with cinnamon rolls that are the same size and height. If any filling falls out as you place the rolls onto the baking pan you can always kind of sprinkle it back into the seams of the spirals.
Cream Cheese Icing
Arguably the best part of cinnamon rolls right behind the most gooey center piece!! This icing recipe has a little bit of corn syrup to make it smooth, creamy, and shiny. Feel free to replace with golden syrup or omit entirely if you need to.
If your family prefers regular icing, here’s the simple recipe: beat together 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted room temperature butter with about 4 cups (500 grams) powdered sugar and about 1/4 cup cream. Adjust the cream to sugar ratio until you have your desired consistency. This makes enough icing for a generous amount on each roll.
How to Make Cinnamon Rolls Ahead of Time
Cinnamon rolls are definitely best served fresh and still warm from the oven. You can get away with storing them for a day, covered at room temperature, then re-warming them before serving. But they become stale quickly. That’s why making them ahead of time is a great option!
Refrigerate the shaped but unbaked cinnamon rolls in the pans you plan to bake them in. I like to let them rise at room temperature for about 30 minutes before refrigerating to give them a jump start on rising, especially in the winter when it takes longer. Cover the rolls tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. The dough should continue to rise slowly in the fridge. You can also freeze for up to 1 month. Defrost overnight.
When getting ready to bake, loosen the plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size. This will depend entirely on how much they rose in the fridge and how warm / humid your kitchen is. It may take just 20 to 30 minutes or it may take over an hour. Proceed with baking as the recipe is written.
More Cinnamon Roll Recipes
For the dough:
-
1/2
cup
milk
-
1/2
cup
warm water
-
1
stick (113 grams) unsalted butter
-
1/2
teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
1
envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant yeast
-
1/4
cup
(50 grams) sugar
-
1
large egg, at room temperature
-
2
egg yolks, at room temperature
-
1 1/2
teaspoons
fine salt
-
4
cups
(508 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
For the filling:
-
3
tablespoons
(53 grams) butter, melted
-
3/4
cup
(150 grams) packed light brown sugar
-
2 to 3
tablespoons
ground cinnamon
-
1/8
teaspoon
salt
For the cream cheese icing:
-
8
ounces
(227 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature
-
2
tablespoons
corn syrup or golden syrup,
omit if you'd prefer
-
2
tablespoons
heavy cream
-
1
cup
(125 grams) powdered sugar, sifted
-
1
teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
Pinch
salt
Make the dough:
-
In a small saucepan, heat the milk, water, and butter until the butter melts. Remove from heat and let cool until lukewarm (about 110°F).
-
In the bowl of an electric mixer, use a spatula to mix together the milk mixture, yeast, sugar, egg, and egg yolks until well combined. Add in the salt, vanilla, and half of the flour and stir with the spatula until combined. Fit the mixer with the dough hook and gradually add the remaining flour until a dough begins to form. Only add as much flour as you need to form the dough. Knead at medium speed until the dough is smooth and doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl, about 8 to 10 minutes. If the dough is unbearably sticky add more flour 1 tablespoon at a time.
-
Lightly grease a large bowl. Shape the dough into a ball and place in the greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, 1 1/2 to 2 hours or allow to rise in the fridge overnight.
Shape the dough:
-
Press down the risen dough and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Use a rolling pin, shape the dough into a 16x12-inch rectangle, long side facing you. Brush all over with melted butter.
-
Combine remaining filling ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the far edge. Roll the dough up, pinching with your fingers to keep it tightly rolled. Lightly flour the roll.
-
Grease a 13x9-inch baking dish or two 9-inch cake pans. Cut the roll into 12 equal pieces using a sharp serrated knife or unflavored dental floss. Place the rolls cut side up in the prepared baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place until doubled, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
-
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the rolls until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Invert the rolls on a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes.
Make the icing:
-
While the rolls cool slightly, place the cream cheese, corn syrup, cream, sugar, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on low speed until combined. Increase speed to high and beat until the icing is smooth, about 2 minutes.
-
If making the plain icing, beat together the butter, sugar, cream, and vanilla until smooth.
-
Turn the rolls out onto a serving plate and spread the icing all over. Serve warm.
This post was originally published in 2013 and recently updated with recipe improvements and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
hey can i use salted butter and omit the extra salt in the dough?
That should be fine!
Yay!! I am so excited you posted these! I will be making them over the weekend for Christmas Day 🙂
Yay!!! I love to hear when people use my recipes for holidays. Makes me feel like I’m celebrating with your family 🙂
You’re so great on video Tessa..Food Network needs to give you a call!
Thank you so much! What a wonderful compliment.
These look perfect Tessa! Cinnamon rolls basically make for the best breakfast ever!
Thank you!! I agree – best breakfast ever 🙂
Hey sorry one quick question. Can I use a food processor to make the dough?
No, you cannot make this dough in the food processor. You can make it by hand though.
I love being able to watch your videos! Takes the recipes to a whole new level. Definitely making these for Christmas morning 🙂
Just made 3 batches of these. Great 🙂
Made these for Christmas morning as well. Turned out great, never had such a fluffy yeast dough before. My fmily already wants more!
So happy to hear that!!
I made these, & they turned out AWESOME !! An exact recipe, great instructions. Definitely a KEEPER! Thank you Tessa.
Woohoo!!
I made these in the weekend and they were so good!! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Once they are baked, how long can i store them in the freezer for?
The measurement for the rolled out dough is missing a 1. It says 16 X 2 inch–it should be corrected to 16 X 12 inch. Thought you may want to correct that. I look forward to making them this week! Have you tried making them with whole wheat flour?
I ended up using your hawaiian roll recipe in my bread machine for thanksgiving-HUGE hit. I’m now the bread maker for the family! Ha! Since I knew that recipe so well, I ended up using that recipe for the dough to make my Christmas morning cinnamon rolls. I used the filling and icing from this recipe! Thank you so much for making me feel like a chef for our holidays!
Made these yesterday for a get together, they absolutely loved them!
Wonderful!!
Oh my goodness!
Cinnamon Rolls and I have not gotten along so well in the past few years. For whatever reason they just don’t quite turn out. And Even though everyone else who eats them likes them I have been less than satisfied.
This recipe though… Perfect! I may end up tweaking a few things but this is my new go-to recipe for cinnamon rolls. The dough was perfectly cooked, the filling had the perfect amount of cinnamon. I Can’t wait to make these for Christmas morning!
Isn’t that supposed to be a 16×12″ rectangle? Not a ’16×2″ rectangle”, as written? Looks like a keeper!
These were delicious
I just finished cutting my cinnamon rolls and I’m in love with this dough! The rise time is double from my old recipe but this dough is worth the wait. This will definitely be my new go to recipe. I’ve uaed many of your recipes and have had nothing but success! Love your chewy brownie recipe! I promised my super picky daughter that I would make a batch. Thanks so much for sharing your recipes and knowledge! Your hard work is very much appreciated.
Recipe a 10+ as the Orange Rolls…
How long can I store these after they are baked? Should they be kept in the refrigerator?
Hi Anne, your question is answered in the blog post in the pink box. “Cinnamon rolls are definitely best served fresh and still warm from the oven. You can get away with storing them for a day, covered at room temperature, then re-warming them before serving. But they become stale quickly.”