Cinnabons Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnabons Cinnamon Rolls – a cinnabon copycat recipe, about the closest you’ll get to the real thing. Super easy to make.

Cinnabons

Who doesn’t love the cinnabons at the malls? Just walking by their stores and smelling these cinnabons baking, drives me up the walls. It’s very hard to keep on walking and not stop and spend $5 on a cinnabon.

Not to worry my friends! I have found the precious cinnabon recipe. I came across this book, More Top Secret Recipes: More Fabulous Kitchen Clones of America’s Favorite Brand-Name Foods, and inside it I found the copycat recipe for cinnabons. This book is great, it has a lot of copycat recipes of popular food items and this recipe for cinnabons was one of them. You can also check out Todd Wilbur’s website here.

I have to admit I was a bit skeptical at first, but as I was making them they were looking like the real thing. I have to tell you, they are about as close to the real thing as you’re going to get.

Oh My Goodness!! These are the best homemade Cinnamon Buns

Cinnamon Rolls

The cinnamon rolls are out of this world, and they cost a whole lot less. They’re huge, and they taste exactly the same. I felt like I hit the jackpot.

Although they’re not as big as the ones you buy because I wanted to make a dozen with this recipe, so I cut each roll so that’ it’s 1 1/2 inch in height whereas the original ones are 2 1/2 inches.

As these cinnabons were baking, the house smelled amazing, just like it does at the mall when you walk by the cinnabon store. I was so excited. And of course, you cannot have cinnabons without the yummy cream cheese icing.

Amazing recipe!! I’ve made it a couple of times at home, and the buns have been absolutely delicious every time!

Ingredients In Cinnabons

There are 3 parts to this recipe. The dough, the filling the that delicious cream cheese icing. Make sure to scroll down for the complete printable recipe. Here’s what you’ll need:

Dough:

• Active dry yeast – You can use instant yeast if that’s what you have. If you use instant, you won’t need to bloom it first, but it’s a good idea to test if it’s still alive. If your yeast doesn’t foam up your yeast is dead and the bread won’t turn out.
• Milk – make sure the milk is lukewarm. Lukewarm basically means the milk is between 98 and 105 degrees Fahrenheit (36.5 to 40.5 C). I used whole milk (3.25%) but you can use whatever is in your fridge.
• Sugar – granulated sugar is fine, we just need a bit to sweeten the dough.
• Butter – unsalted as always. Unsalted butter gives us control on how much sodium is in our food.
• Salt – we always need to add a bit of salt to our baked goods, to bring out all the flavors. Salt basically makes everything taste better.
• Eggs – Use large eggs for this recipe.
• Flour – I used all-purpose flour for this.

Filling:

• Brown sugar – I prefer to use dark brown sugar. Make sure it’s packed.
• Cinnamon – the key ingredient in cinnamon rolls!
• Butter – unsalted again. You’ll want to make sure this is softened. Margarine can be used as well.

Cream Cheese Icing:

• Butter – unsalted butter is what you’ll want to use.
• Powdered sugar – this is also known as icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar.
• Cream cheese – at room temperature. I always use Philadelphia cream cheese.
• Vanilla extract – just a bit to add a touch of vanilla in the icing.
• Salt – a little bit is all you need to bring out all the flavors.

How To Make Cinnamon Rolls

1. Bloom the yeast: Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk. You can add a tsp of sugar from the sugar needed for the dough to help activate the yeast. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes until it has foamed up nicely. If your yeast doesn’t get foamy, don’t move forward. Buy a new jar and store it in the freezer so it lasts longer.
2. Make the dough: To the bowl of your mixer add the sugar, butter or margarine, salt, eggs, and flour and mix until well incorporated. Pour the milk/yeast mixture over the flour mixture and using the dough hook, mix well until well incorporated. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place about 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
3. Prepare filling: Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.

How To Roll Cinnamon Rolls

1. Assemble cinnamon rolls: Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface, until it is approximately 16 inches long by 12 inches wide. It should be approximately 1/4 inch in thickness. Spread the 1/3 cup of butter evenly over the dough, then sprinkle with the sugar evenly over the surface of the dough. Working carefully, from the long edge, roll the dough down to the bottom edge. Cut the dough into 1 1/2 inch slices, and place in a lightly greased baking pan. You can also use floss to cut into slices, as seen in the video. Place the cut rolls in buttered pan. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let them rise for another 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
2. Bake the cinnamon rolls: Bake them in a preheated 350 F degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
3. Make icing: While the rolls are baking make the icing by mixing all the icing ingredients and beat well with an electric mixer until fluffy and smooth. When the rolls are done, spread generously with icing.

My Best Tips

1. Make sure your yeast has not expired. The number 1 question I get from my readers is “Why didn’t my dough rise?”. The answer always lies with your yeast. Test the yeast first before wasting ingredients. Try and bloom it and if it doesn’t get foamy, your yeast is no good.
2. Don’t overheat your milk! Using milk that is too hot will kill your yeast and this will also prevent your dough from rising. Make sure your  milk is between 98 and 105 degrees Fahrenheit (36.5 to 40.5 C).
3. Use room temperature butter. This is for both the dough and the filling. To do this, take the butter out of the fridge a few hours before you plan to make the dough. Give it enough time to soften.

Make Ahead Cinnamon Rolls

These cinnamon rolls are great because they could be made ahead. Prepare everything as stated in the recipe up until step 10 where you place the rolls in the baking pan. Simply cover them up tightly with plastic wrap and store them in the fridge overnight.

The rolls should continue to rise in the fridge but if by morning they have not doubled in size, turn your oven on to 200 F degrees until it warms up, then turn it off. Place the pan in the oven for about 30 to 45 minutes until the rolls double in size. Then you can bake them as instructed.

Can You Freeze Cinnamon Rolls

Absolutely! Prepare everything as stated in the recipe up until step 10 where you place the rolls in the baking pan. Wrap the pan in two layers of plastic wrap. Freeze for 8 hours up to 6 weeks. The night before you want to bake the rolls, thaw them out in the refrigerator, still wrapped. They will thaw overnight. Finish the rest of the steps to bake them.

Craving More Cinnamon Roll Recipes? Try These

• Apple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls
• Cinnamon Bread
• Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls
• Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
• No Knead 1 Hour Cinnamon Rolls

How to Make No Knead 1 Hour Cinnamon Rolls: