The best homemade cinnamon rolls ever! If you love gooey cinnamon buns, THIS is the recipe with the secret ingredient that makes all the difference.
Prep time: PT30M
Cook time: PT22M
Total time: PT102M
Rating
4.81 stars (5849 reviews)
Keywords
brunch, christmas morning, weekend
Ingredients
1 cup warm milk ((115 degrees F))
2 1/2 teaspoons instant dry yeast* ((I like Red Star Platinum Baking Yeast) )
2 large eggs (at room temperature)
1/3 cup salted butter** ((Melted or very softened, but make sure it isn't over 110º Fahrenheit.) )
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour ((divided))
1/2 cup salted butter ((almost melted))
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup heavy cream*** ((for pouring over the risen rolls))
6 ounces cream cheese ((softened))
1/3 cup salted butter ((softened) )
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tablespoon maple extract ((or vanilla) )
Categories
Breakfast
Cuisine
American
Steps
Pour the warm milk (115ºF) in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast overtop. Allow this to sit for 3-4 minutes. The yeast will get a little frothy to show it is activated. 1 cup warm milk, 2 1/2 teaspoons instant dry yeast*-
Add the room temperature eggs, butter and sugar. Mix until combined. 2 large eggs, 1/3 cup salted butter**, 1/2 cup granulated sugar
Add in salt and 4 cups (save the other 1/2 cup and add only if you need it) of flour and mix using the beater blade just until the ingredients are barely combined. Allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes so the flour has time to soak up the liquids. 1 teaspoon salt, 4 1/2 cups bread flour
Scrape the dough off the beater blade and remove it. Attach the dough hook.
To knead, beat the dough on medium speed for 5-7 minutes, adding in up to 1/2 cup more flour only if needed to form a dough. The dough should be elastic and smooth. **The dough should be tacky and will pull away from the sides of the bowl but may stick slightly to the bottom. That's ok! Don't be tempted to add more flour at this point. We generally add about 4 1/4 cups, but start with 4 cups.
Spray a large bowl with cooking spray. Use a rubber spatula to remove the dough from the mixer bowl and place it in the greased large bowl. Cover the bowl with a towel or wax paper.
Set the bowl in a warm place and allow the dough to rise until double. I like to turn on the oven to the lowest setting for 1-2 minutes. Then turn off the oven and place the dough to rise in there. It normally takes about 30 minutes for the dough to rise. Do not allow the dough to rise too much or your cinnamon rolls will be airy.
While the dough is rising, prepare the cinnamon filling. In a medium bowl, combine the soft butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, mixing until well combined. Set aside. 1/2 cup salted butter, 1 cup packed brown sugar, 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Sprinkle a pastry mat or work surface generously with flour. Turn out the dough onto the surface and sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour.
Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough to about a 24x15" rectangle. (the size of the rectangle can vary...it does not have to be exact!)
Use a rubber spatula to smooth the cinnamon filling over the whole dough rectangle.
Starting on the long side, roll the dough up tightly jelly roll style.
Cut into 12 slices and place in a greased 9x13 baking pan.**** Cover the pan and allow the rolls to rise for 20 minutes while the oven is preheating.
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
Warm the heavy cream until the chill is off. Don't make it hot...you just don't want it cold. It should be warm to the touch. Once the rolls have risen, pour the heavy cream over the top of the rolls, allowing it to soak down in and around the rolls. 1/2 cup heavy cream***
Bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes, until the rolls are lightly golden brown and the center rolls are cooked through. Note...the time will vary based on how big the rolls are, what type of pan, how close the rolls are packed, etc. They could take up to 30 minutes. Check the rolls at 20 minutes. If they are getting too browned, cover loosely with foil for the remaining baking time.
While the rolls are cooling, prepare the cream cheese frosting.
In a large bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and butter using a hand mixer. Blend well. 6 ounces cream cheese, 1/3 cup salted butter
Add in your favorite extract and the powdered sugar. Beat until combined. Spread the frosting over the cooled rolls. 1/2 tablespoon maple extract, 2 cups powdered sugar
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 618 kcal
Carbohydrates: 85 g
Protein: 7 g
Fat: 28 g
Saturated Fat: 17 g
Cholesterol: 109 mg
Sodium: 427 mg
Sugar: 47 g
Reviews
Charlie Fairbanks on 2026-08-16 (5 stars): best thing i’ve ever eaten, every bite was a religious experience. make it right now i couldn’t stop eating
Camille on 2026-08-15 (5 stars): These cinnamon rolls are amazing and not hard to make. My family asks for them now. Highly recommend.
Hailey on 2026-08-15 (5 stars): This is the best cinnamon roll recipe I have ever tried. I also love that the instructions have the exact amounts so I dont have to keep scrolling up and down while I'm making it! That is so thoughtful. Love this page!!
Lisa on 2026-08-09 (5 stars): I put the rack on the bottom of the oven as I read that on another recipe and they were cooked not burned but nice and brown on top, they had enough space around each one and filled up and did well but next time I will want a little more space I think ,otherwise all is great with them
Lisa on 2026-08-09 (5 stars): I used potato starch powder I had and mixed with some milk and butter warmed it in the microwave and put it into the dough, also added Diastatic Malt Powder 1/2 teaspoon which helps with browning and rising and flavor in the dough, I used milk and butter warmed to pour over the rolls as I didn't have heavy cream and my milk was low fat and these rolls came out super fantastic. Really good baking for 27 minutes . My husband loved them and could tell he was very much enjoying the rolls.
Lisa on 2026-08-09 (5 stars): I used milk and butter heated a little and poured it all over the rolls and they were great
Lisa on 2026-08-08 (5 stars): This is exactly what I wanted, I added a couple things, diastatic malt 1/2 tsp, I added a tablespoon of potato starch powder mixed in some milk and butter heated in microwave just to warm it, also added ground walnuts as I had those, and added ground walnuts and vanilla to the frosting, I also sprinkle mixed together ground sunflower, hemp, flax, pumpkin seed, and small amt ground chia after it's frosted to counterbalance all the sugar and it really helps reduce any sugar load, I didn't have cream so I mixed milk and butter melted and poured it all over it made a beautiful gooey caramel this was like upside down sticky buns, really great all the way around, my husband was like put one of those on a plate and in the microwave for me to have in the morning before you get up !! ☺️☺️☺️☺️☺️👏👏👏👏👏 He LOVED them, and I must say that they will beat any recipe and adding the diastatic and the ground nuts etc as well as potato starch pushed it right over the top, they didn't stick the the large round stainless pan I put them on to cook, and I placed them in the oven 375 preheated on lowest rack uncovered, the diastatic malt helps them brown as well as all that milk and butter they sat in, they came out perfectly cooked after 25.minites very flaky, tender and with a nice bit of crunch on top just PERFECT !!!
Ramona Anderson on 2026-08-06 (5 stars): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ First time making this recipe, followed it as written and added 1/2 cup chopped pecans on bottom. Also used half & half. The most delicious cinnamon rolls EVER! Thanks for the recipe.
Lori Brenckman on 2026-08-04 (5 stars): For your Homemade Cinnamon Rolls, the recipe says Bread Flour, but your video says All Purpose Flour. Which is best?
Susan Agerholm on 2026-08-03 (5 stars): Best and only recipes I use! They turn out perfect every single time! My coworkers love when I bring them into the office for breakfast.
T K Koogler on 2026-07-30 (5 stars): Your recipe is phenomenal.
Here is why.
I tried to bake these in my outdoor convection oven and it was a fail- 100% my fault. I had the toasting function too high. So, I finished them in the microwave because I realized I had frosted —with organic cream cheese, butter , sugar and organic vanilla paste and maple extract!— dough that was not finished. Still raw in some places.
I microwaved the buns with the icing on because I was frantic to save them. They rose up so beautifully. The icing became thicker in the microwave.... like those Little Debbie Honey Buns from wayback. It did not run much at all. In fact, some people might like the effect of the harder icing.
And after all my stupidity, and mistakes- these buns still taste amazing. I love to bake, but I usually make catastrophic mistakes. That is how vetted your recipe is. I can't wait to make it again in my indoor oven.
You are an aspirational baker!
Karen on 2026-07-29 (5 stars): I made these cinnamon rolls several times. There's just no going back on any other recipe. These are moist and delicious and fluffy. The dough is perfect for this application and then I lost the recipe. I have searched high and low through my cookbooks and my notebooks and I haven't wasn't able to find it. So I started a search online again and I found it. I am so happy! Guess what I'm making this afternoon. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe! We really love it!
Tara on 2026-07-28 (5 stars): I used this recipe for my first time making cinnamon rolls. This will be my one and only cinnamon roll recipe. I can’t imagine any other recipe better than this. We all loved it!!!! Great idea on using the heavy whipping cream.
