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
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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
Made these for Christmas morning and these babies did not rise. I read it’s fine not to dissolve the dry active yeast into water, but man oh man… I could still see those little undissolved granules of yeast in the dough once it came time to rise. They came out of the oven dense, crunchy, and not doughy or soft. I’ll play it safe and dissolve it first next time.
Do you know why it is this recipe calls for putting the yeast straight into the flour?
How disappointing that this didn’t work out for you. I’ve made them countless times and have never had that problem.
Hey Courtney! I was having the same problem with my dough, it was not rising. I figured that the environment I was trying to get them to rise and was not warm enough, so I preheated my oven at 200° for about three minutes, then I turned the oven off and I put my buns in the oven to rise. It took them about double the time that this recipe calls for to rise (About 2 hours) but they did in fact rise after all! At first I was so disappointed because they weren’t rising and I figured they were ruined. But putting them in a very very warm environment help them to rise.
Thank you for the tip Amy!
i bought a cinnabon before starting to make the recipe to have something to compare to. 200 C 15 was way to much , it nearly took 7-8 cups for the dough to not be liquid,the filing was not enough compared to the original, the icing was not even near with the taste, the sweetness the amount of cinnamon nothing was same. its just some cinnamon roll (not even that good) but not a cinnabon
Did you use bread flour in this recipe? I’ve made these countless times and I never use the full 4½ cups of flour. Are you certain of the measurements for your liquid?
Love this recipe. I was hesitant at first but is amazing! Thanks for sharing!!
I have made this recipe a half dozen times or so and they are a family favourite for sure! They are a bit stubborn to get to rise but I find that if I preheat my oven for just maybe 3 minutes at it’s lowest setting then turn off and put a pan of boiling water in the bottom of the oven, they rise beautifully in about an hour or so. My family prefer these to ANY cinnamon bun you can buy! Thanks for the great recipe!
So glad to hear your family loves them Bonnie! Thank you for sharing your tips.
I usually never post comments but I just had to after trying this recipe! I have used other cinnamon roll recipes with good results, but those cannot compare to these soft, gooey, cinnamony goodness. My search for the ultimate cinnamon roll recipe ends here. These are undeniably better than the original Cinnabon. Thank you!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your kind words!
At what point do you mix in the remaining 2 1/4 cups of flour? Once you’ve mixed the initial 2 cups/yeast with the warmed egg/milk/butter mixture? Or as you’re kneading it?
Since I have to activate the yeast do I put the water in too
Exactly the same
Omg I’m an 11 year old baker and this is my favvvvvv recipe!!!! Sooo goooooooooooooooooooooood
Way to go Rebecca!! :)
Hi..should the milk be cold? Room temperture? And how many grams are in a package of yiest?? Thanks
Room temperature milk is best. A packet of yeast is about 7g.
I’m about to make them..but i live in Chile and i can’t find any replacement for the breadflour .. i want to make this recipe exactly how it’s written..but i can’t!!! :(
Does anyone knows how can i replace the breadflour?
help pleaseee
someone else said they used all purpose flour and they still came out very good.
Hi!! Can i use regular flour??
I have always prepared this recipe as written. If you use regular flour you may notice a slightly different texture but it should turn out. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Thanks so much for the recipe. My daughter loves cinnamon rolls but is extemely allergic to dairy. I made this recipe with non-dairy butter spread and rice milk and it turned out perfectly. Instead of the cream cheese frosting, I made a frosting out of buttery spread, powdered sugar, vanilla and a little lemon juice and it was delicious!
Great idea, and so glad it turned out for you.
Made these today and so disappointed. Followed the recipe exactly and used digital thermometer for milk butter mixture. They did not rise at all. I will try the suggestion of putting them in an oven that was preheated to 200 and see if that helps.
I’m sorry this didn’t work out for you, I can’t say for sure why as I’ve made these several times and they always work well for me.
Hi I’d love to try this recipe but I have a question: why do you let the dough proof for only 10 min? A lot of other cinnamon roll recipes let the dough proof for usually an hour or so? WIll it affect its texture/softness? Thanks!
I can’t say for sure how this compares to other recipes as this is the recipe I usually make.
Hi! I just found this recipe and hope to make it very soon! Thanks for sharing it. I have some questions about the butter, can it be unsalted butter? Or no problem with it being salted? Or can I use margarine?
Unsalted butter should work just fine.
I’ve made these once and they were delicious. They didn’t rise well, sadly but after six hours of being inside and then outside on a warm day, they rose enough. Going to make them again soon. Just a comment on your instructions. You say roll “starting from long side” ending with an18″ roll. If starting on “long” side, the roll should be 21″ long. At least that’s the way I did it. Great recipe!
My granddaughter and I made these today. The smell was heavenly and the just melted in our mouths. We had 12 huge buns. We will DEFINITELY be making these again and again!!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I need to make these for 25 people. Can I make a head and freeze them? If so, freeze them uncooked or cooked.
I have not tried freezing this recipe. I would suggest you make a test batch to be sure it freezes well.
hi there, this one had such impressive reviews. i wanna try this. i know this is not for beginners but i might have a Luck :) question. i package active dry yeast is one tablespoon? thank you.
I believe one packet equals 2¼ teaspoon.