Hello hello! Thank goodness it’s the weekend! I’m off to California tomorrow for a few weeks, but I thought I would drop in today and give you the *best* cinnamon roll recipe! They taste just like those gigantic Cinnabon cinnamon rolls…only better. š I mean who doesn’t love cinnabon?! But maybe your waistline doesn’t…so while these taste like cinnabon, they are much more waistline friendly. š
This recipe actually stems from a recipe from my mom for a Christmas stollen, which is a sweet fruit and nut roll that is slightly sweet and usually shaped like a wreath. Now, as with all sweet breadĀ doughs, you could make a gigantic cinnamon roll – circle and that would be pretty cool, or you could bake them in a 9×13 inch baking pan like a normal cinnamon roll recipe, but I made individual cinnamon rolls by baking them in jumbo muffin pans.Ā This gives every cinnamon roll a crunch exterior and a soft center. Plus, they are self contained and easy to get out of the panĀ to serve.
This recipe makes 24 cinnamon rolls, or 1 cinnamonĀ roll wreath — that up to you. But what’s not up to you is the filling! What gives this cinnamon roll its cinnabon like flavor is the brown sugar in theĀ cinnamon sugar filling. Typically, cinnamon rolls are filled with a white sugar-cinnamon mixture, but adding the brown sugar gives them a depth of flavor and slight sweetness without being overwhelming.
As this recipe makes 24 cinnamon rolls, feel free to mix up the fillings! I added walnuts to half of the cinnamon rolls and kept the other plain, but you could add any nuts you like, additional spices to the cinnamon (nutmeg, allspice, Chinese five spice powder?!) or dried fruits. They’re your cinnamon rolls, so make them how you want them! Just don’t forget to share.
Now go forth and bake! Like the old baking proverb says….prep these tonight and have cinnamon rolls tomorrow. (ok, there’s no such proverb, but it’s true!)
See ya next time!
XO,
Danielle

Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls at Home
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup Milk
- 1/2 Cup Water
- 1 Cup 2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
- 5 1/4 Cups All Purpose Flour plus more for rolling
- 1/4 Cup Sugar
- 1 tsp Salt
- 2 Packages Active Dry Yeast
- 2 Eggs
For the Filling:
- 1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter melted
- 1/2 Cup White Sugar
- 1 Cup Brown Sugar
- 3-4 Tbsp Cinnamon Ground
- 1/2 Cup Nuts as desired.
For the Cream-Cheese Frosting:
- 1 8 oz Block of Cream Cheese
- 3-4 Cups Powdered Sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp. Milk
Instructions
Instructions:
- In a small sauce pan, combine water, milk, and butter. Heat on low heat until butter is melted and mixture is luke warm. If liquid is too hot, set aside to cool.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine flour, sugar, yeast, and salt. Using your dough hook attachment, mix to combine.
- Add cooled water/butter/milk mixture and mix on low speed to combine. Once combined, add eggs one at a time, mixing to combine.
- Turn speed up to medium and knead dough for 5-10 minutes or until the dough is soft but not sticky. You may need to add more flour as you go, depending on how humid your weather is. Add flour 1/4 cup at a time, allowing the dough to mix well in between.
- Once your dough is smooth, place in a large greased bowl, cover and set in a warm location to allow dough to rise & almost double in size (about 1 hour).
- Remove risen dough from the bowl and knead lightly on a floured surface. Halve the dough and place one half off to the side.
- Roll out dough to a 12x9 Inch rectangle and brush with melted butter. Combine Sugars and Cinnamon for filling and spread half, evenly over the surface of the dough. Roll into a log, starting with the log edge. Cut into 12 Cinnamon Rolls and place in a greased jumbo muffin pan. Repeat with other half of dough.
- Cover cinnamon rolls with plastic and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or over night.
- In the morning, remove cinnamon rolls from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature for at least 1 hour. The Rolls should rise slightly.
- Preheat your oven to 350 Degrees F. Bake Cinnamon Rolls for 25-30 Minutes or until the rolls are puffed and golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Turn out from Muffin Pan and cool completely. Frost with Cream Cheese frosting and serve immediately.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk or beat to combine. Slather all over cinnamon rolls & devour.
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