Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Do you want to know how to make the most sweet and tasty homemade cinnamon rolls to satisfy your sweet tooth?! If so, today is YOUR day!!! HoooRAAAYY!! Ever since I learned that we needed to stay at home due to COVID-19, I’ve been craving cinnamon rolls. I do not know, but there is just something about staying home that increases my sweet tooth craving for a tasty, warm, soft, sweet and fluffy homemade cinnamon roll.

…A Batch Of Cinnamon Rolls

The last time I made a batch of cinnamon rolls was a little over ten years ago! YEP, TEN years!! Usually I crave them during the fall months when all the cinnamon and pumpkin spices are floating in the air and the weather is cooler. If my sweet tooth is acting up I will get the ones from the grocery store, which I do not think are that good, but when you do not have much time to make amazing cinnamon rolls, you have to settle right? LOL

…As Fluffy As Possible.

To be honest with you, these only take a couple of hours. Most of that time is just waiting for the dough to rise. This process is called proofing which allows your cinnamon rolls to get as fluffy as possible. A couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon is perfect especially now that we have a lot of time on our hands with staying home. So lets get started on a few things I believe you need to know before creating this recipe.

Activating your yeast

This step is super important and is one of the steps that will result in a fluffy cinnamon roll. Ensure your water is warm, between 105 to 111 degrees Fahrenheit is perfect. If you use cold water, your yeast will not activate and if you use hot water your yeast will die. Adding the sugar to your water then stirring the yeast after will help the yeast to activate faster, as the yeast will feed on the sugar. When the yeast is foamy and has doubled in size, it is ready to be used.

Proofing your dough

As important as it is to activate your yeast, it is just as important to proof your dough. This means allowing your dough to rest so that it can rise. If your home is usually cold, the best thing to do is turn your oven on to about 170 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it’s there, turn it off and leave the oven door open for about 5 minutes then place your covered dough or rolls in the oven with the oven door open. Yeast does it’s best work in warm and dark places.

Kneading Your Dough

Soft hands and gentle kneading will help the overall texture of your cinnamon roll. Your dough will be sticky at first but you will have extra flour on your surface to help you with kneading. As you knead, incorporate some of your extra flour, little by little. The goal is to have a dough that is tacky(slightly sticky feel) but not sticky. Your dough should be smooth and soft.

…Without Further Ado…

The moment you’ve been waiting for is here! The recipe is below, bake and enjoy for breakfast, lunch or dessert…My hubby ate three in four hours and I may or may not have enjoyed 6 of these in less than 24 hours! They are that good! When you bake them, let me know how you like them by dropping a line below or tagging me in your social media post! Happy Baking Lovelies!!

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Prep Time3 hrs

Cook Time30 mins

Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast ( 1 packet)
• 1/2 cup Warm Water (no more than 111 degrees)
• 2 tbsp Shortening
• 4 tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
• 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
• 5 1/2 cups All purpose flour divided
• 1 cup Scald Milk
• 1 large Egg
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 cup Butter, softened
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 3 tbsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream, warm

For the Icing

• 1/2 cup Cream Cheese
• 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
• 3 cups Confectioners Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 tsp Salt

Instructions

• In a small measuring cup add 1/2 cup of warm water, 1/2 tsp of sugar, active dry yeast packet then stir with a spoon. Set to the side allowing yeast to proof 5-10 mins
• Place milk in a saucepan over medium high heat and heat until it is hot. Remove from heat right before boiling point. Do not boil
• In bowl of standing mixer add shortening, butter, granulated sugar, salt and the scalded milk. Mix on medium speed using paddle attachment until fully combined and lukewarm to the touch
• Add 1 cup of flour to your scalded milk mixture and mix on medium speed until combined. Add yeast mixture, mix until fully combined. Then add egg and mix until the yolk is no longer visible.
• Replace paddle attachment with hook attachment then gradually add remaining 3 1/2 cups of flour mixing on low until a soft dough is formed. Lightly flour a clean surface with 1/2 of the remaining flour, place the dough on the floured surface and lightly knead dough until its smooth and not too sticky
• Place dough back in mixer bowl and cover with cling wrap and dish towel, allowing to rise for 45 minutes. Dough should double in size
• Preheat oven to 170 degrees and turn off once it's heated. In a medium sized bowl mix 1 cup of softened unsalted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon to form a paste
• Once dough has doubled in size, place dough on lightly floured surface once more and gently shape as a rectangle. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out to about 1/2 inch in thickness. Spread the paste all over the dough to cover the entire surface then roll dough into a log
• Use a bench scraper, knife, spatula or unflavored dental floss to cut your log in 1 1/2 – 2 inch thick rolls. Grease a 9 x 13 inch glass baking pan and add cinnamon rolls to pan. Leave 1-2 inches between each roll to rise. Cover rolls with cling wrap and dish towel then place in oven, leaving the oven door open. Allow to rise for 2 hours then remove rolls from oven.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Warm heavy cream and pour over cinnamon rolls then bake for 24-30 minutes. Cinnamon rolls should be golden brown on top when they are done and you should be able to smell them! Let rolls cool for 8 minutes.

For The Icing

• Using the paddle attachment of your mixer, beat cream cheese and softened butter until smooth. Add confectioners sugar, salt, vanilla and warm milk then mix on medium speed until smooth and fully combined. Pour over warm cinnamon rolls and ENJOY!!