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Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Updated Oct. 5, 2023
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- Total Time
- 2 ½ hours, plus about 10 hours’ chilling and resting
- Prep Time
- 20 minutes
- Cook Time
- 2 hours, plus about 10 hours' chilling and resting
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 1cup/240 grams whole milk
- ¼cup/34 grams plus 4 cups/540 grams all-purpose flour
- ¼cup/58 grams ice-cold water
- 3large eggs (150 grams), cold from the refrigerator
- 1teaspoon active dry yeast
- ¼cup/50 grams granulated sugar
- 1½teaspoons kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) or ¾ teaspoons coarse kosher salt (such as Morton)
- 8tablespoons/116 grams unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, at cool room temperature, plus more for the bowl
- 4ounces/116 grams speculoos cookies, such as Lotus brand (about 15), lightly crushed
- ½cup/100 grams Demerara sugar
- 1tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt or ½ teaspoon Morton kosher salt
- 12tablespoons/170 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Room-temperature unsalted butter, for the pan
- All-purpose flour, for rolling
- 4ounces/113 grams cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1cup/110 grams confectioners’ sugar
- 1tablespoon vanilla extract
- 6tablespoons/85 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
For the Dough
For the Filling
For the Icing and Assembly
Preparation
- Step 1
Scald the milk: Warm the milk in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, swirling once or twice, until it’s steaming, small bubbles appear along the sides, a skin has formed on the surface and you see light rippling, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue to heat the milk for 1 minute, making sure not to let it boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Measure ⅓ cup/80 grams of the hot milk and transfer it to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
- Step 2
Make the tangzhong: To the saucepan with the remaining milk, add ¼ cup/34 grams of the flour, and whisk vigorously to combine and eliminate any lumps. Return the saucepan to medium heat and cook, whisking constantly and making sure to scrape along the sides, until the mixture has thickened and looks like smooth mashed potatoes, about 1 minute. Remove the saucepan from the heat and scrape the mixture into the stand mixer bowl.
- Step 3
Mix the dough: Add the cold water to the stand mixer bowl and whisk to combine, then add the eggs and whisk to break up the whites and yolks. Touch the sides of the bowl — if it’s still warm, pop the bowl in the refrigerator and chill until the mixture is room temperature. Add the yeast and remaining 4 cups/540 grams flour to the bowl and turn the mixer on low speed. Mix until you have a coarsely textured dough, about 5 minutes, then turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Cover the dough and let it rest at room temperature for 5 minutes. Add the sugar and salt, and mix on medium-low speed until incorporated and the dough is very smooth and elastic and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, another 15 to 20 minutes. (This dough requires a long, slow mix so be patient with this step.)
- Step 4
Add the butter: Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the butter one piece at a time, waiting for the dough to absorb each piece before adding more, until you have a soft, supple dough, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Step 5
Let the dough rise and chill overnight: Lightly butter the inside of a clean, large bowl. Scrape the dough out of the mixer bowl onto the work surface and work it into a ball. Place the dough inside the buttered bowl, seam side down. Cover and let sit at room temperature until it has expanded in size by about 50 percent, 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes. Transfer the bowl to the refrigerator and chill for at least 8 hours and up to 24 (the dough will continue to rise in the refrigerator).
- Step 6
The next day, make the cinnamon filling: In the bowl of a food processor, combine the cookies, Demerara sugar, cinnamon and salt, and pulse until you have very fine, dry crumbs, about 1 minute. (Make sure not to process so much that the mixture starts to look wet.) Transfer the crumbs to a medium bowl and add the butter, then use a flexible spatula to work the crumbs into the butter until you have a smooth paste. Set the filling aside.
- Step 7
Prepare the pan: Lightly coat the bottom and sides of a metal 9-by-13-inch pan with room temperature butter, then line the bottom and two longer sides with a piece of parchment paper. Smooth the parchment to eliminate air bubbles, then butter the parchment. Set the pan aside. Lightly butter one side of a piece of aluminum foil large enough to cover the pan and set aside.
- Step 8
Roll out the dough: Lightly flour the work surface, then remove the dough from the refrigerator and scrape it out onto the surface. Flatten the dough with the heel of your hand, pressing out some of the built-up gas and working it into a rectangular shape, then use a rolling pin to roll it out, dusting over top and underneath with more flour as needed to prevent sticking, until you have a ⅜-inch-thick rectangle measuring about 20 inches long and 12 inches wide.
- Step 9
Fill and roll: Dollop the filling across the surface of the dough, then use a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon to spread it in an even layer all the way to the edge closest to you, leaving a clean ½-inch border on the two shorter sides and the longer side that’s farthest away from you. Try to work reasonably quickly so the dough doesn’t soften too much at room temperature. Starting at the long end closest to you, roll the dough into a snug spiral and rest it on the seam. Starting in the middle, squeeze along the length of the dough to even out the thickness and lengthen it so it’s about 22 inches long. If the dough feels soft and slack (which may happen if your kitchen is warm), slide it onto a piece of parchment paper and then slide the parchment onto a large baking sheet. Refrigerate it until the dough is firm, 10 to 15 minutes, then return to the work surface.
- Step 10
Cut the buns, fill the pan and proof: Slide a piece of unflavored dental floss, fishing line or baker’s twine underneath the dough on either end and cut through the spiral, removing a 1-inch-long piece of dough from the ends. Use the floss to cut the dough crosswise into thirds, then cut each third into 5 equal pieces. Arrange the pieces cut sides up in the prepared pan in a 3-by-5 grid. Cover the pan with the foil, buttered side down, and let the buns sit at room temperature until they’re not quite doubled in size, 30 to 60 minutes (peek beneath the foil to check).
- Step 11
Meanwhile, heat the oven: Arrange an oven rack in the center position and heat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Step 12
Bake and cool: Make sure the pan is tightly covered with the foil, then transfer to the oven and bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Pull out the pan from the oven slightly and use tongs to remove the foil, then continue to bake until the buns are golden brown all over, another 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Use a paring knife to cut down between the pan and the buns along the shorter sides to loosen them, then use the parchment paper to lift the buns out of the pan and set them on the wire rack to cool completely.
- Step 13
Make the icing and ice the buns: In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, and work with a flexible spatula until the mixture is completely smooth. Add the butter and mix with the spatula, working it against the side of the bowl, until you have a smooth mixture, then switch to a whisk and beat until the icing is light and thick. Dollop the icing over top of the cooled buns and spread with the back of a spoon to cover the surfaces.
- The buns will keep, covered at room temperature, for several days but will begin to stale after a day or two. Revive stale buns in the microwave.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
FYI, you can absolutely do step two in the microwave. Nuke it for twenty seconds, stir, nuke it again, stir, go for a third round if necessary to achieve a thick paste. I make challah this way, and it is an absolute miracle. Produces an amazing, light, professional bakery texture.
The Speculoos spread filling from Claire’s Dessert Person Babka recipe would work here: mix 1 cup (280g) of Speculoos spread with 2 tbsp melted butter, 1tbsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Can you just use the Speculoos Spread (peanutbutter section of market) instead?
These are great! It's a rich overnight brioche dough with tanzhong added to keep it moist/fluffy. I dislike speculoos so subbed the filling with cinnamon/sugar and blueberry filling (2c blueberries lightly cooked down with lemon juice and cornstarch to thicken). The dough handled beautifully while rolling out, and was very easy to come together. I only have glass pans and opted for a taller sided 8x10 dish so i could only fit 6 plus a baby end piece. Remaining rolls i froze. Came out beautiful!
That’s a lot of steps but well worth it, I gave my husband a choice of homemade cinnamon buns or cake for our anniversary, no hesitation he picked the buns. He kept asking what step I was on and very excited but a bit guilty that they needed 14 steps. I used what I had at home and Trader Joe’s almond butter thins seemed like a reasonable substitution and turned out great. What I love is neither the buns or frosting are overly sweet. I’ll make again for another special occasion.
I made these successfully with a hand mixer that had a dough hook attachment. It was exhausting to hold it for 30 mins so I don’t necessarily recommend this route but wanted to post that it could be done. This is a less sweet almost brioche like cinnamon roll. Very good, but I found myself missing the standard more liquid icing. If I make them again, I will swap the cream cheese icing for a more liquid glaze type icing like the one in Alison Romans cinnamon roll recipe.
Delicious. FYI, timing adjustment I’ve done with success at sea level and 7,000 feet: make dough in morning, slow rise in fridge all day, assemble in evening, slow rise in fridge all night, bake in morning (after a pretty much the same assembled rise as in recipe to bring to room temp )
Delicious rolls and so easy to make. To freeze, complete to step 10. Once cut, place extra rolls on a parchment-lined sheet, cover with cling, and freeze. Once frozen, portion in freezer bags. Divide icing and freeze in containers. 8 To 12 hours before serving, place frozen rolls in prepared pan (step 7), cover with buttered foil, and place in frig. Thaw icing. In the AM, remove from the frig and rise for 2 hours before baking. Follow the remaining directions for baking, cooling, and icing.
I made these and they were wonderful. My pan was not large enough to hold all 15, though--so I ended up proofing three in a bread pan. I also think that next time I'll experiment with spreading softened butter on the dough and then sprinkling the Biscoff mixture on top, as I think that may be easier than trying to spread the mixed in version.
Make these before you review them, please!! So perfect, I was kneading by hand which took a little longer but was definitely doable. Also made a little extra filling and they were absolutely delicious.
I made this recipe up to step 10 having cut them into 16 rolls and arranging them into two 9” square pans of 9 (I stuck the end cuts in the center.) One pan I covered in buttered foil and froze. A week later I moved it to the fridge the night before and then let come to room temperature for about 3 hours the next morning. Then baked per the remaining steps. The second round came out as tasty and fluffy as the first.
When I make cinnamon rolls and want to freeze unbaked rolls for later, I prepare as directed up to the point of chilling, then rolling and cutting them into individual rolls, then wrap each roll in cling film and bag them in a zip-top bag for storage and pop into freezer immediately. I take out however many I want to bake off, defrost overnight in the fridge and chill until risen, then bake in a small loaf or other type pan that holds however many I want to bake.
This was a great recipe. They are delicious as well. It was a lot of work, but worth it. I'd say read the recipe once or twice before you dig into it
Omygosh, these are fantastic. The dough was a dream to work with and came out so tender and delicious. Plan your schedule if you want to have them at a particular time: it took about 4 hours on the second day.
This recipe is quite forgiving! I had tickets to a play, so I rushed making the dough, including the “slow mix step”. I think I mixed maybe 15 min total (including butter step) with speed 4 on my kitchen aid. The dough looked kind of sad, but the next day it looked so much better, more yellow and pliable. I had no issues rolling them up. Using the string to cut the rolls (which I thought was extra) actually made it super fast and easy. Turned out delicious!
This recipe was worth the time it took! The dough is soft soft & fluffy had the bakery quality feel. I made mine individually in a large muffin tin & they baked up perfectly. I tried the filling as it was written & I’m not a fan of it. This is personal preference - it didn’t have the nostalgic cinnamon roll/gooey cinnamon filling I personally prefer. It was drier & had more flavor from the cookies than cinnamon in my opinion. Only leaving that part in case someone prefers the oozy cinnamon!
Just made these and they were delicious! Agreed with the comments on not being overly sweet which we loved. I had to stop at step 10 on the second day of making these and let them rise/bake on the third day and they still turned out amazing. Would recommend it for a holiday or larger family/friend gatherings.
Made as described, had 4 rolls that didn’t fit in pan. Claire might be rolling buns tighter than me? Added the glaze from Allison Roman’s cinnamon bun recipe in addition to the frosting. For the frosting used vanilla extract with specs to add visual interest. Overall was a hit, people loved them. Will have to make again.
What attachment should be used with the standing mixer when kneading/mixing the dough?
I love biscoff but for me personally I don’t think it works in this. The filling is on the salty side and takes away from the whole experience. I’ve made cinnamon rolls a few times and I can’t say this is a favorite :(
These are the softest, fluffiest cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made! For some reason, the icing came out a lot runnier than hers seemed to be (could be my confectioners sugar), so I found that putting too much icing made the rolls a bit soggy since they’re already so soft. I made this using an electric hand mixer and, although it was exhausting to hold, worked just fine. Will be making again soon!
My new favorite cinnamon roll recipe! I made it with two small changes to the instructions: 1. Instead of individual rolls, I assembled it into one giant cinnamon roll cake and baked it in a 9" springform. 2. I did the overnight in the fridge on the second rise instead of the first (step 10). I baked it for a breakfast event and would have had to get up way too early to do steps 6 - 13 in the morning.
I just finished making these. Love Claire’s desserts. This was definitely a project, but so much fun. i haven’t baked at altitude for 40 years [5000 ft.]— so I was unsure of the rise and bake. The texture is pillowy and melt in your mouth delicious. I will say, they adding-in of the butter to the dough was really frustrating and time consuming. One must do it properly though. I added the sugar and salt to the dry ingredients early, to no discernable effect, thank goodness. Great!
I love Claire, and I'd never made cinnamon rolls from scratch, so I gave this a whirl Christmas Eve 2023. I DO NOT recommend trying to make cinnamon rolls from scratch for the 1st time the night before a major holiday, you will be EXHAUSTED the next day. As for the recipe, Claire made some pretty big claims with "the best cinnamon rolls you'll ever have." Did the recipe produce a product like pictured/featured? Absolutely yes. Was it a pretty mid cinnamon roll? Also yes. 4 Stars for Claire.
Dutch ‘speculaas’ cookies are also great to use, or the ‘speculaas’ spice mix if you prefer less sweetness.
Delicious! Very good recipe and I like the slow cooking vibes! The only change I made is to substitute filling from Claire Romans cinnamon rolls recipe. My children really like the way the butter and cinnamon sugar mix sticky caramelised bottom to the rolls. and no topping we don’t think it needs it.
I cooked this in Denver, Colorado. I did not make any altitude adjustments and they came out beautifully.
I made these this past weekend, and I echo the other comments when I say that this is it. This is THE recipe. I will never look for another. They are sweet and light and *enormous*. The only thing I would do differently would be to double the amount of filling, since it seems to absorb into the bread more than I expected. Otherwise, though, they are perfection.
Followed the recipe closely, and they turned out to be the best rolls I’ve made: moist, great texture.
Turned out fantastic! Made a couple changes based on my timeline and what I had in the house: used pecans instead of Biscoff cookies (didn't want to go to the store) & upped the sugar in the filling a little to compensate. Used a bit of buttermilk to make a full cup of milk for the dough. It separated and looked crazy in the pot but all came together once the flour was added. Didn't have time for a counter-then-fridge rise, so just did a long, cold fermentation in the fridge and it worked great!
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