Early last week, Rick came home talking about cinnamon rolls. They sounded so good, I started craving them myself. I am not much of a baker, but I decided to look for a cinnamon roll recipe that would make something resembling a Cinnabon. I love how gooey Cinnabons are. The recipes I’ve tried in the past always bake somewhat hard, dry rolls.
Well, thanks to google, this is what I came up with. It’s adapted from recipes that I found on this blog and this website.
Rolls:
1 (¼ oz). pkg. yeast
1 c. warm (not hot) milk
½ c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. melted butter
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
4 c. all-purpose flour
Filling:
1 c. packed brown sugar
2½ TBS. cinnamon
1/3 c. butter, softened
Icing:
8 TBS. butter, softened
¼ c. (2 oz.) cream cheese
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
1½ c. confectioners sugar
To make Rolls:
Oven to 400° F
1.) Place yeast and milk in a large bowl about 5 minutes.
2.) Whisk in sugar, butter, salt, and eggs. Add flour; mix well.
3.) Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead into a large ball. Cover; let rise 1 hour.
4.) Roll dough into a 21″ x 16″ wide rectangle, about ¼ inch thick.
5.) Spread the dough with softened butter.
6.) Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon over entire buttered rectangle.
7.) Roll carefully from long-side. Pinch the ends.
8.) Using a sharp knife, cut into 1¾ inch wide rolls, making twelve.
9.) Put rolls into greased 9” x 13” baking pan.
10.) Let the rolls rise in the pan for 30 minutes. While dough is rising, prepare the icing (see below).
11.) Bake the rolls about 20 minutes until the rolls are slightly browned and not doughy. Do not over bake.
12.) Remove rolls from oven and let cool about 15 minutes. Cover with icing and serve warm.
To make Icing:
Cream ingredients together with an electric mixer, beating until fluffy.
Spread on hot rolls.
And after about three and a half hours, and a few angry tears on the phone to my mom (I told you, I am NOT a baker), this is what I got:
And after all that – they were worth it! They DID taste just like a Cinnabon! I think with a little practice, I should be able to shave at least an hour off the prep time, and I know that I can do it without the tears… I thought I had killed my yeast with too-hot milk. But they turned out deliciously!
The Lazy Homesteader 
yummy! rich loves cinnamon rolls, will need to share the recipe with him. it just seems so ‘hot’ to heat up the house with the oven right now, ugh. thanks for sharing!
Tried your cinnamon rolls last night and they turned out great. Thanks for sharing, I really appreciate that I did’nt have to search for such a great recipe.
Hey Dawn – how long did they take you? I need a goal to shoot for next time and I figure most normal people don’t take three hours to make one batch of anything! 🙂
Ohhh, Hmmm. I was ready for the worst , but I think 2 1/2 if I had to guess. I think the majority was the “hury up and wait whyle it rises”:). I was so excited that I actually had everything to do it, I NEVER have everything I need. Thanks again, love your blog. P.S. wish my pullets were producing baby eggs
Just wanted to let you know that I put this recipe in my local fair and got 3rd.
What?!? Wow! Congrats Dawn! 🙂 What a fun idea… I’ll have to see if I can find a place to enter it into a contest too. 🙂 I love this recipe… I did it a second time and it went much better. It’s a keeper for sure!
Wow! These were DELICIOUS! I made the dough and filling last night…took dough out of fridge this morning and let it rise in a cold oven, but with the oven lights on( big sister taught me that one (:). An hour later continued with the rest of your directions….and yummy! Thanks for sharing!
Is the dough supposed to be so sticky?
I made these yesterday! I found the recipe on pinterest. I am not a baker and so they took a while. Making the dough into a rectangle was a bit comical for me. I was chuckling at myself. However, these turned out great! With a little practice I know I can cut down the time. I am wondering if they could be frozen after cutting them but before cooking?
Has anyone tried to make ahead and freeze these? Will that work?
Just one question….what do you mean exactly for the first step? With the milk and yeast..mix it for 5 min or just dump it in and let it sit for 5 mins?
Tried out your recipe today and the cinnamon rolls turned out so soft and yummy. This was my first attempt and everyone at home enjoyed them 😀 I love this recipe, will be making them again for sure. Thank you for sharing!!