Cinnamon Rolls

🥘 Ingredients

Dough

• bread flour (divided)
  5 cups
• butter (melted or very softened)
  0.333 cup
• eggs (large, at room temperature)
  2
• granulated sugar
  1/2 cup
• instant dry yeast
  2.5 teaspoons
• milk (warm, 115ºF)
  1 cup
• salt
  1 teaspoon

Filling

• butter (soft)
  1/2 cup
• cinnamon
  2 tbsp
• flour
  1 cup
• packed brown sugar
  1 cup

Frosting

• butter (softened)
  0.333 cup
• cream cheese (softened)
  6 ounces
• powdered sugar
  2 cups
• vanilla extract
  1/2 tbsp

🍳 Cookware

• baking pan

Dough

1. 1

   Pour milk in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle instant dry yeast overtop. Allow this to sit for ⏱️ 3-4 minutes . The yeast will get a little frothy to show it is activated.

   milk: 1 cup (warm, 115ºF), instant dry yeast: 2.5 teaspoons
2. 2

   Add eggs , butter , and granulated sugar . Mix until combined.

   eggs: 2 (large, at room temperature), butter: 0.333 cup (melted or very softened), granulated sugar: 1/2 cup
3. 3

   Add in salt and bread flour and mix using the beater blade just until the ingredients are barely combined. Allow the mixture to rest for ⏱️ 5 minutes so the flour has time to soak up the liquids.

   salt: 1 teaspoon, bread flour: 4.5 cups (divided)
4. 4

   Scrape the dough off the beater blade and remove it. Attach the dough hook.
5. 5

   To knead, beat the dough on medium speed for ⏱️ 5-7 minutes , adding in up to bread flour more only if needed to form a dough. The dough should be elastic and smooth.

   bread flour: 1/2 cups
6. 📝

   The dough should be tacky and will pull away from the sides of the bowl but may stick slightly to the bottom. That's ok! Don't be tempted to add more flour at this point. We generally add about 4 1/4 cups, but start with 4 cups.

7. 6

   Spray a large bowl with cooking spray. Use a rubber spatula to remove the dough from the mixer bowl and place it in the greased large bowl. Cover the bowl with a towel or wax paper.
8. 7

   Set the bowl in a warm place and allow the dough to rise until double. I like to turn on the oven to the lowest setting for ⏱️ 1-2 minutes . Then turn off the oven and place the dough to rise in there. It normally takes ⏱️ 30 minutes for the dough to rise. Do not allow the dough to rise too much or your cinnamon rolls will be airy.

Filling

1. 1

   While the dough is rising, prepare the cinnamon filling. In a medium bowl, combine butter , packed brown sugar , and cinnamon , mixing until well combined. Set aside.

   butter: 1/2 cup (soft), packed brown sugar: 1 cup, cinnamon: 2 tbsp
2. 2

   Sprinkle a pastry mat or work surface generously with flour . Turn out the dough onto the surface and sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour.

   flour: 1 cup
3. 📝

   If the filling consistently melts out, consider adding @flour{1-2%tbsp} to thicken it, or consider not rolling it so tightly. Tight rolls means the dough expanding will squeeze out the filling!

4. 3

   Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough to about a 24x15" rectangle. (the size of the rectangle can vary...it does not have to be exact!)
5. 4

   Use a rubber spatula to smooth the cinnamon filling over the whole dough rectangle.
6. 5

   Starting on the long side, roll the dough up tightly jelly roll style.
7. 6

   Cut into 12 slices and place in a greased baking pan . Cover the pan and allow the rolls to rise for ⏱️ 20 minutes while the oven is preheating.

Baking

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
2. 2

   Bake in a preheated oven for ⏱️ 25 minutes , until the rolls are lightly golden brown and the center rolls are cooked through. If using foil, I find they take ⏱️ 30-35 minutes at least.
3. 📝

   Note...the time will vary based on how big the rolls are, what type of pan, how close the rolls are packed, etc. They could take up to 30 minutes. Check the rolls at 20 minutes. If they are getting too browned, cover loosely with foil for the remaining baking time.

Frosting

1. 1

   While the rolls are cooling, prepare the cream cheese frosting.
2. 2

   In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and butter using a hand mixer. Blend well.

   cream cheese: 6 ounces (softened), butter: 0.333 cup (softened)
3. 3

   Add in vanilla extract and powdered sugar . Beat until combined. Spread the frosting over the cooled rolls.

   vanilla extract: 1/2 tbsp, powdered sugar: 2 cups