I can’t think of many things that make your house smell as amazing as homemade cinnamon rolls. This Copy Cat CinnaBon Recipe is no exception! The house will smell heavenly when you bake these!
These are just beautiful rolls that melt in your mouth and warm you from the inside out!
While homemade rolls take a little time, they are worth every single second. Don’t skimp out on the frosting because… it is amazing! Seriously… it’s the best!
These taste exactly like the cinnamon rolls I love to get at the mall! I’ve made them so many times and they turn out soft and perfectly every time!
Mmmm…. perfect for breakfast or dessert… or snack. Ok, makes a good brunch too, and I’m not saying I’ve never eaten them for dinner… but I’m not saying I have either.
Items you’ll need for this recipe:
* Active Dry Yeast * Cinnamon * Vanilla Extract *
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk
- 2 eggs room temperature
- ⅓ cup butter room temperature
- 4 to 4 ¼ cups bread flour (plus extra for rolling)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 0.25 ounce active dry yeast 1 packet, about 2 ¼ teaspoons
Filling
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon
- ⅓ cup butter softened
Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup butter softened
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine 2 cups of the flour and yeast in a large mixing bowl. In a saucepan, combine milk, butter, sugar, and salt over medium heat until temperature reaches 120 to 130°F (butter will be almost melted). Add milk mixture to flour mixture along with eggs and mix with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds. Stir in as much of the flour as you can. (see note below for bread machine)
- Place dough a floured surface and knead in as much of the remaining flour as possible. Continue to knead the dough until it is very smooth and elastic (this will take about 5-10 minutes). Cover dough with oil or cooking spray and plastic wrap. Let rest covered for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
- Roll the dough into a 18x21-inch rectangle. Spread ⅓ cup butter on the dough and top with the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture.
- Starting with the long side, roll up dough so you have an 21" log. Cut into 12 even rolls. Grease a 9x13 pan and place the rolls in the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel or kitchen towel and let rise until nearly doubled, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°F.
- Bake rolls on the center rack about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
- While the rolls are baking, combine cream cheese, ¼ cup butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract and salt with a mixer until fluffy.
- Allow rolls to cool for about 10-15 minutes and spread frosting on warms rolls.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Here are some more recipes you’ll love
* Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls * Apple Pie Roll Ups * Apple Pie Tacos *
This recipe was slightly adapted from Allrecipes.com
literally taste just like the original. amazing!!!
Hi Holly,
Do you have to use a bread machine for this recipe or can I use my KitchenAid stand mixer?
Thanks in advance.
You can use your KitchenAid stand mixer in this recipe.
Amazing turned out spectacular thank you so much
This has become my go to recipe now, it’s so easy and always perfect
I tried this recipe for the first time and I could not believe how wonderful they turned out my family absolutely couldn’t get enough I will definitely make them again.
Sorry if this was answered in an earlier comment…can the icing be made ahead of time? (For easier prep in the morning)
Hi Erin, you can premake the icing. You will want to let it come to room temperature to soften or heat it slightly to soften the icing. If it is still too thick you can always add a little bit of milk to thin it out.
This recipe was so wonderful, it will be my Father’s Day Gift for my husband.
I’ve never been able to make cinnamon rolls come out, let along taste good! Thank you for this recipe. It was very much like the Cinnabon rolls. They do taste better fresh out of the oven, but tasted great warmed up as well.
And… I cut them into 18 slices and they cooked great for the same amount of time. The secret I found, was the actually let them brown on the top. I always take them out too early, and I didn’t this time.
So happy to hear this recipe was a success for you, Becky! :)
So delicious! Easy to make and every bit as good as the original. Except you get 12 huge rolls for pennies compared to the cinnabon price. I used my bread maker for the dough portion so it was extra easy.
I am an experienced baker and there is a problem with your recipe or I just need to know what brand yeast you use. I have tried this recipe 3 times. The first two times they didn’t raise at all. I finally just doubled the yeast and lowered the temperature of the water to 110. Yeast starts dying at 120 and is half dead at 130 and completely killed off at 140. You must have some super yeast. Other than that the recipe is perfect especially your frosting. It is the best!!!
Hi Jeunesse, so happy that you love this recipe! I cannot get enough of that frosting either. The flour and yeast are combined, then the eggs and warm mixture are added in together. In my experience of making this recipe over the years, the yeast is not affected, as the flour and eggs will keep the temperature in line. Hope that helps.
Can the dough be made ahead of time and refrigerated?
Hi Dianne, others readers have premade the dough and it has turned out great. They have also prepped the cinnamon buns up to baking and then refrigerated them. I would let the cinnamon buns come to room temperature while the oven is preheating before baking though. We would love to hear how it turns out for you!
If I were making 6 rolls instead of 12, would I still use the same amount of yeast, or cut that in half? Also, what size would I make make the rectangle of dough to make the log?
Hi Kathy, If cutting the recipe in half you will want to reduce the yeast in the recipe as well. When you go to print the recipe you can change the serving size and it will auto calculate that information for you. As for the rectangle size, you will want to roll it out to 18″ by roughly 10.5″ and slice it into 6 equal portions.
If I were making only 6 rolls, what would the size of the rectangle be?
Hi Kathy, If making 6 larger rolls then you can roll them out to the same size and then just cut them into 6 equal portions. Please note this will adjust the cooking time.
Phenomenal recipe. Super gooey and delicious!!!!
When do I add the other 2 cups of flour?
At the end of step 1. and the beginning of step 2.
Stir in as much of the flour as you can.
2. Place dough on a floured surface and knead in as much of the remaining flour as possible.
I am planning to make them today, can I store them till Friday?
Hi Hugo, we find they last about a week in the fridge so I would store them there.
Great….but you can buy Makara cinnamon for about 5 dollars st the cinnabon
store in most malls. It a special blend of cinnamon that gives the original bun it’s delicious taste. Not ordinary grocery store cinnamon.
Thanks for the tip, Donna!
making this right now, do you mean to say instant yeast? because shouldnt active dry yeast need much longer than 15 minutes for the first rise? thanks
The recipe is correct as written. Enjoy!
These are probably the best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made. I make these all the time and people absolutely love them!
Unfortunately way too sweet!! Where as Cinnabon is not. Love many other recipes from this site.
Sorry to hear that you didn’t love these as much as we do Tara! Thank you for trying them.