Cinnamon Rolls

4.80 from 5 votes

Sweet, sticky, soft and fluffy, and made with a secret ingredient, this Cinnamon Rolls recipe makes the BEST homemade cinnamon rolls!

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword homemade cinnamon buns

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 25

Rising Time 2 20

Total Time 3 10

Servings rolls

Calories 382kcal

Author Chrissie Baker

Equipment

Ingredients

For the dough:

1 1/4 cups milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter melted
1 egg

For the filling:

1/3 cup unsalted butter melted
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 - 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon to taste
1/2 cup maple syrup use the real stuff, not pancake syrup

Also Needed:

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for brushing on before baking, optional
1-2 teaspoons vegetable oil for rolling out dough, or use spray oil
unsalted butter for greasing the pan

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Warm the milk slightly, just until it's slightly above room temperature. Add it to a large liquid measuring cup.
Add the sugar and the yeast and whisk with a fork to combine. Set aside for a few minutes until the yeast is bubbly.
Into the bowl of your stand mixer, measure out the 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour and the salt. Mix these two together for a few seconds, just until they're combined.
Add the egg and the melted butter to the flour and then add the milk mixture with the sugar and yeast.
Make sure your stand mixer is fitted with the dough hook attachment.
Turn your mixer on low and watch the ingredients combine. After about a minute you should see a sticky dough starting to come together. If you need to turn the mixer off and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, now's your chance.
Turn up the mixer speed slightly and allow the mixture to knead the dough for about 3 minutes. The dough should be tacky to the touch, but not so sticky that it's very messy. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl easily and the bowl should appear fairly clean. If the dough appears too sticky, continue kneading and add flour, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough reaches that tacky texture.
If you don't have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough by hand on a lightly floured work surface for 5 minutes after the wet and dry ingredients are combined.
Cover the bowl with some plastic wrap and move it to a warm place in your kitchen to rise for about 1.5 to 2 hours. It should double in size.
Once you notice your dough has risen fully and before you do anything with it, grease a large rectangular baking pan or ceramic baking dish (approximately 9x13 inches in size) with some butter. Pour the maple syrup into the bottom of the pan, tilting the pan if necessary to make sure the syrup coats the bottom completely.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface that's been very lightly greased with oil. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough evenly until you have a rectangle that's approximately 18 inches wide and 8 to 10 inches deep. It's important that the dough is wider than it is deep so the rolls have enough height when they're baked.
Brush the dough rectangle with the melted butter.
In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar and the cinnamon. Spread the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture evenly over the dough.
Roll up the dough from long side to long side until you've got one long roll. Cut the long roll in half, then each half in half again, and then each of those sections into 3 pieces until you have 12 cinnamon rolls. Try to cut the rolls to an even thickness as this promotes even baking. You don't want some rolls to be overdone and others to be raw in the middle because they're different sizes.
Arrange the 12 pieces in the pan you've greased and nestle them into the maple syrup in the bottom. An arrangement of 3 rows of 4 works well in a rectangular pan.
Cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel and set them aside to rise.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius)
Once the rolls have risen for 20 minutes (don't let them rise longer than this), very lightly brush the tops with some egg wash (beat one egg with 1 tablespoon of water) and place them in the oven to bake for about 25-30 minutes or until they're a nice even golden brown. The egg wash is an optional step - it helps the tops of the rolls brown, but it's not a necessary step.
Remove the pan from the oven and let the buns cool in the pan for about 20-30 minutes before cutting into them.

Video

Notes

Storage Instructions

Store in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap at room temperature for 3-5 days.

Make-Ahead Instructions

These cinnamon rolls can be made 1 day ahead of time and re-heated in the oven just until warm.

You can also prepare the rolls, place in the prepared pan, then store in the refrigerator overnight. This allows for a slower rise and can enhance the flavor and texture of the rolls. Be sure to place a cold baking dish into a cold oven (to prevent the dish from cracking), then preheat the oven and bake as directed.

Freezer Instructions

These rolls can be frozen before baking (cover in plastic wrap or freeze in an airtight container), thawed in the fridge overnight and then baked fresh in the morning. (Be sure to always place a cold baking dish into a cold oven to prevent the dish from cracking.)

They can also be frozen after baking (cover in plastic wrap or freeze in an airtight container). Thaw at room temperature and reheat before serving, if desired.

Nutrition