Soft, fluffy and full of cream cheese, I fell in love with these rolls in my first bite itself and used to have them almost every week.
But after returning to India, I started craving for them and none of the store bought ones could meet the expectation.
So I got all the ingredients required and decided to make them at home.
After a few trials and errors, I came up with this recipe which tastes very similar to the Cinnabon Style Cinnamon Rolls.
So if you also want to experience the taste of these heavenly rolls, follow my recipe and make them at home.
What are Cinnamon Rolls?
It is a drool worthy dessert or a breakfast dish where the rolls are made of all purpose flour and is filled with the delicious filling of cinnamon powder, heavy cream, cornflour and brown sugar.
The cinnamon adds a beautiful flavour in this dessert and since I have tried these rolls, Cinnamon has become my favourite spice to use in the desserts.
These hot and classic rolls are then covered with a delicious frosting of cream cheese, that makes these rolls just irresistible.
These cream cheese frosting is flavoured with vanilla extract, that adds a hint of beautiful vanilla flavour and makes them smell even good.
Believe me, the day you bake them, your home will smell heavenly and the aroma will make you hungry instantly.
You can also add some chocolate sauce or caramel on top instead of cream cheese frosting for an unique flavour or you can add strawberry compote or chocolate in the filling itself.
So that once you take a bite, the filling will just burst into your mouth.
Ingredients
How to keep these from drying out?
To save them from drying out, make sure that you have stored them properly.
You can keep them at room temperature for about 2 days and in fridge for a week in an airtight container.
If you keep them open, they will surely dry out.
Which yeast is best to make Cinnamon Rolls?
Use a strong and dependable yeast!
Instant yeast or active dry yeast works best for these rolls as it cuts down on the rise time and the dough also rises beautifully.
How to make overnight Cinnamon Rolls?
I have shown you the process to make Cinnamon Rolls which can be ready in 5 to 6 hours, but you can also make overnight rolls and bake them fresh in the morning and serve for breakfast.
All you have to do is make the rolls and arrange them in a baking tray as given below.
Now, cover the rolls very tightly with aluminum foil and stick in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.
Make sure that no air can go inside, as it will dry out your cinnamon rolls.
Next morning, remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let rise in a warm place just as you did before with the dough until they are puffy or for about 1 to 2 hours.
Once they have risen beautifully, pour the cream cheese frosting on the top and they are ready to bake.
Storage Suggestions
You can store these at room temperature for about 2 days in an air tight container or covered individually with an aluminum foil or plastic wrap.
After 2 days, you can store them in the fridge in the same way for about a week.
You can also freeze them. I will tell you two ways, you can freeze your Cinnamon Rolls:
Firstly, if you have already baked them full and have leftovers, let them cool down fully and then pop the baking tray in the freeze.
Let them freeze properly.
Once they become solid, take them out, place them in the freezer bags and freeze for about 6 weeks.
Secondly, I would recommend you to bake the cinnamon rolls half, if you are planning to freeze them.
Remove from the oven and let them cool down completely.
Next, wrap the baking tray with two layers of plastic wrap tightly and freeze for about 6 weeks.
The night before you are planning to serve the rolls, take them out of the freezer and place them, still wrapped, in the refrigerator.
They will thaw overnight. Next morning, take them out and bake them till they are nicely browned. It will take about 10 to 15 minutes.
Step By Step Recipe
For the rolls:
Mix warm water, warm milk, active dry yeast and 1 tsp of sugar in a bowl and keep aside for 10 minutes.
Mix egg, melted butter and remaining sugar in another bowl.
Mix all purpose flour in a large bowl. Add the yeast mixture and egg mixture in the bowl and mix to make a sticky dough.
Take out the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 6-8 minutes. If using a stand mixer, knead for 5-6 minutes on medium speed.
Oil a large bowl and transfer the dough in the bowl.
Cover and keep the bowl in a warm place for 2 hours.
For the filling:
Mix cinnamon powder, brown sugar and cornflour in a bowl and keep aside.
For the frosting:
Whisk butter, cream cheese, vanilla extract and confectioner’s sugar in a bowl and whisk for 5 minutes till light and fluffy.
Add milk and mix till combined.
Assembly:
Take out the dough on a counter and slightly punch it. Dust the counter and roll the dough in to a 12×18 inch rectangle with the 12 inch side facing you.
Spread the butter on the dough leaving 1 inch on sides.
Sprinkle the filling on top evenly.
Roll the dough into a tight cylinder. ( roll towards yourself )
Slice the cylinders into 1 inch rolls.
Arrange the rolls in a 9×13 inch rectangular baking tray lined with parchment paper. Cover and keep aside for 2 hours.
Warm heavy cream and brush over the rolls.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degree C). Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes, till slightly browned from top. Remove from oven and let cool for 10-12 minutes.
Spread the frosting over the rolls. Serve warm.
Cinnabon style Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
Ingredients
For the rolls
- 1/4 cup Water (warm)
- 1/4 cup Milk (warm)
- 1 tsp Active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1 Egg
- 1/4 cup Butter (melted)
- 2 and 1/4 cup All purpose flour
For the filling
- 50 gms Unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon powder
- 3/4 cup Brown sugar
- 1 tbsp Cornflour
- 1/4 cup Fresh Cream (warm)
For the frosting
- 1/2 cup Confectioner's sugar
- 50 gms Cream cheese
- 30 gms Unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp Milk (at room temperature)
Instructions
For the rolls
- Mix warm water, warm milk, active dry yeast and 1 tsp of sugar in a bowl and keep aside for 10 minutes.
- Mix egg, melted butter and remaining sugar in another bowl.
- Mix all purpose flour and salt in a large bowl.
- Add the yeast mixture and egg mixture in the bowl with the flour and mix to make a sticky dough.
- Take out the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 6-8 minutes.
- If using a stand mixer, knead for 5-6 minutes on medium speed.
- Oil a large bowl and transfer the dough in the bowl.
- Keep the bowl in a warm place for 2 hours.
For the filling
- Mix cinnamon powder, brown sugar and cornflour in a bowl and keep aside.
For the frosting
- Whisk confectioner's sugar, butter, cream cheese and vanilla extract in a bowl.
- Whisk for 5 minutes till light and fluffy.
- Add milk and mix till combined.
For Assembly
- Take out the dough on a counter and slightly punch it.
- Dust the counter and roll the dough in to a 12×18 inch rectangle with the 12 inch side facing you.
- Spread the unsalted butter ( Filling ) on the dough leaving 1 inch on sides.
- Sprinkle the filling on top evenly.
- Roll the dough into a tight cylinder. ( roll towards yourself )
- Slice the cylinders into 1 inch rolls.
- Arrange the rolls in a 9×13 inch rectangular baking tray lined with parchment paper.
- Cover and keep aside for 2 hours.
- Brush the rolls with warm fresh cream.
- Pre heat the oven to 180 degree C.
- Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes, till slightly browned from top.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 2 minutes.
- Spread the frosting over the rolls.
- Serve warm.
Shema George
Oh I love Cinnabon…these look perfect!!
Shilpi Bajwa Bath
These really look tempting.. but Neha do you buy cream cheese? could i make it at home with paneer and cream as some people do?
Neha
Hey Shilpi. For this particular recipe I bought cream cheese. But we can make it at home as well. I will post the recipe soon to make cream cheese at home. Thnx
Dongnghi N Le
Hey, you list Milk in the ingredients for frosting, but you didn’t mention it in the whisking steps….. So, do we really need milk for the frosting?
Neha
Thnx for noticing Dongnghi. I forgot to mention milk in the process. Have updated it. Thnx 🙂