These homemade cinnamon rolls are soft, fluffy and topped with the most amazing cream cheese frosting you’ll ever taste. This easy cinnamon roll recipe is impossible to mess up so they’ll turn out perfectly every time!
Cinnamon rolls are one of my family’s favorite things to eat for breakfast. A few of our other favorite recipes are my grandma’s famous Homemade Pancakes, Omelet Breakfast Casserole and these delicious Chocolate Chip Waffles.
Easy Cinnamon Rolls
My mother-in-law gave me this recipe for homemade cinnamon rolls and it has quickly become a family favorite. I use to think making cinnamon rolls was so complicated and I would spend hours on them, only to find out at the very end that I screwed it up and they’re no longer edible. I promise you, this recipe is so easy, it’s impossible to mess up and they always turn out fluffy and delicious!
For reals.
If you’ve read this blog for a while, you know that I do not claim to be a baker by any means. In fact, any recipe that calls for yeast is not my friend. (So much pressure and exact measurements!) But I’ve been making these homemade cinnamon rolls since 2011 and they turn out perfect every.single.time. Let me assure you that if I can make them, so can you!
Tell me how bad you’d like to bite into one of these?!
Tip For Making Cinnamon Rolls
My mother in-law showed me just how easy these were, but there was one problem – you are supposed to use a bread machine and I didn’t own one. And you know me and breads…. baking them just doesn’t happen, so the thought of spending money on something I would rarely use just didn’t seem worth it. And then I saw her make these again and again and I wanted my cinnamon rolls to be this easy and taste this delicious!
So here is my advice to you-
Even if you only use a bread machine to make these homemade cinnamon rolls a few times a year, you need to get a bread machine. Right now. HERE is one on Amazon that is similar to the one I have. I’ll wait for you to grab it.
More Easy Cinnamon Roll Recipes
How to Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
The dough for these cinnamon rolls is simple. You toss everything into your bread machine and hit “start” for the dough cycle. I put in all the ingredients in whatever order I want and I honestly don’t think the sequence matters. There is no waiting for the yeast to bubble or double in size, there is no kneading… there is really no hassle and no way to mess this up!
Once the cycle finishes (mine takes 90 minutes) you pull it out and let it sit on a lightly floured surface. Cover with a towel and let it sit for 10 minutes before rolling it out. When the dough is ready, roll it out into roughly a 16″ x 21″ rectangle. Then spread the 1/3 cup of melted butter over the dough.
Cinnamon Roll Filling
To make the delicious filling, simply combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small mixing bowl. When the dough is ready and the butter has been spread over the rolled out dough, top the dough with a delicious cinnamon and sugar combination. Then roll up the dough and slice them into 1-inch rolls. You’ll let them rise for 30 minutes before baking them, and the wait is seriously the hardest part of the entire process!
Cinnamon Roll Icing
Can we talk for a minute about this delicious cinnamon roll icing? I can eat this with a spoon. It is the perfect amount of sugar and cream cheese with a taste of vanilla the is literally perfection. I like to put the icing on while the cinnamon rolls are still warm so the frosting seeps down into every piece of the roll. Man, I literally love this stuff!
To make the icing, combine the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt into a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat the ingredients together until you’ve reached the desired consistency. Spread the icing over the warm cinnamon rolls before serving.
Best Cinnamon Roll Recipe
This recipe is seriously so easy! Give it a shot and I promise you will never use another recipe again. Leave us a comment below and let us know how they turned out and if you made any delicious variations.
The BEST Cinnamon Roll Recipe
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 cup warm milk
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1/3 cup margarine, melted
- 4 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast
For the Filling
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
For the Frosting
- 1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place the dough ingredients into the pan of the bread machine. (I usually just put them in the order that they appear on the list above, but if I am waiting for eggs to warm up a bit or if I am still melting butter, I just add them however I feel like it.)
- Select dough cycle & press START.
- When your dough cycle is done (mine takes about 90 minutes) pull the dough out and place it on a lightly floured surface. Cover with a towel and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine brown sugar and cinnamon for the filling in a small bowl.
- Roll the dough into a 16x21-inch rectangle. Spread 1/3 cup butter on top and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture.
- Roll up dough and cut into 1 inch rolls.
- Place the cinnamon rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let them rise for about 30 minutes or until nearly doubled.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Bake the cinnamon rolls in a preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
- While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt.
- Spread frosting onto warm cinnamon rolls before serving.
Nutrition
Other Notes
ENJOY!!!!
I don’t have a bread machine, do you have a recipe for cinnamon rolls that don’t require a bread machine? Thank you!
I do. If you type “cinnamon rolls” into the search bar on the site you’ll find the recipe.
Very very close to the same recipe I have for a copycat cinnabon recipe. I lost the baking temp and time on mine due to a computer glitch 🙁 – but this will help. Thank you!
I’ve made my recipe for years and they turn out fantastic every time. So rich and delicious, no one can keep their hands off them. I make them for Easter, Christmas, and 1st day of school, and I’m always both a bit happy and a bit sad when they are gone! So glad I have 4 kids to share them with!
My recipe’s dough differs in the flour (4 cups) and I use softened butter. My frosting is different in butter/cream cheese measurements (but yours sounds amazing), and I have heard on other websites a lot of ex-cinnabon employees comment w/1 part cream cheese, 1 part butter, 2 parts powdered sugar, a dash of vanilla and a dash of lemon. Haven’t tried it that way, but something to try. I rise my dough for an hour, fill and cut, then rise them overnight in the pan (I also get 15/16 rolls out of a 12 roll recipe) I bake them first thing in the AM, let them cool a bit and frost. Tasha’s tip about rising dough is one I’ve used in drafty kitchen’s in cool temps and it works great. Hardest part of making these rolls is the waiting!
Thanks for your nice comment! That is all very helpful! 🙂
Wondering how many rolls this recipe makes. Seems like a lot of milk and flour for only a dozen…
Hi! I was wondering if it is possible to freeze them after I put and put them in a baking pan?
I’ve never done that, so I’m not sure! But if you try it and it works, I’d love to know! 🙂
I have a tip I use to make my dough rise in my house because it is always cold. I turn my oven on to 200 degrees while the mixer is going. When it is done I cover my bowl with a damp dish towel and put it in the oven and turn off the oven. Gotta remember to turn it off, I’ve forgotten a few times. 🙂
I need to remember the damp towel idea- I’ve never tried that! 🙂
these look delicious and they sound so easy to make. Yummy.
Those cinnamon rolls looks yummy! I just wanted to let you know that there is an award for you over at Mommy-Guru
Love your blog!
mmmmm….I love Cinnabon
Thanks for the inspiration! I made some this afternoon. I just took them out of the oven and can't wait to try one.
YUM.MY! Looking forward to trying these.
Yeah!!!The site looks great Steph! Awesome new images for your buttons! So beautiful!Congratulations! I know it was a ton of work! Love it!
Those look great! Thanks for sharing the recipe. My aunt makes homemade cinnamon rolls for us each year, and I still look forward to them as an adult!
I got the red Kitchenaid this year from my husband and I can't wait to use it!
Oh my those look sooo good!!
Don't know what I would do without my Kitchen Aid! Got it for Christmas two years ago, and I use it so much! Just wait until you make cookies, so much easier 🙂 Now off to make cinnamon rolls…
Oh, how I wish I had a mixer like that! I actually made cinnamon rolls also this year, and mine didn't rise at all. I ended up just putting them in the oven as is.
YUM YUM YUM, way to go Jack, and to Black Friday!;)