Easy Cinnamon Rolls

These are SO tender! They take about 2 1/2 hours from start to finish - so give yourself time if you're planning to enjoy these for breakfast! These are probably some of my favorite cinnamon rolls I've made, and I've definitely made a few over the years. 

 

 

I didn't see that they "doubled" in size even after 90 minutes of rise time in a lightly warmed oven, but I went ahead and baked them anyway, and they puffed up beautifully! 

Perfectly tender dough filled with just the right amount of buttery sweet cinnamon filling. You can keep the frosting thicker, just use less liquid, or if you want it a little thinner add a little bit of milk until your preferred consitency is reached. I made it pretty thin today, so it dripped over the edges and to me was the right amount of frosting to cinnamon roll!

Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days - you can reheat carefully in the microwave for about 30 second increments if you'd like! 

Easy Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

3 TBS butter

2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (1 standard packet)

1 large egg, at room temperature

Filling

3 TBS butter, softened

1/3 cup packed light or dark brown sugar

1 TBS ground cinnamon

Icing

4 ounces full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

2 TBS butter, softened to room temperature

2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 - 2 TBS milk (if desired, to thin)

Directions

1. Warm the milk to about 110 degrees (warm in 30 second increments in the microwave, don't bring to a boil). Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer, and add in the yeast and 1 tsp of the sugar. Blend and set aside to allow the yeast to proof, about 5 - 8 minutes.
2. Once yeast is proofed, add in the rest of the sugar, egg, salt, and flour. Fit the stand mixer with a dough hook, and put speed to medium / medium-high and allow dough to come together into a ball. It should be a soft, somewhat sticky dough, but you can add a little bit more flour if needed (if it is too tacky and won't form a ball). Allow to knead in the bowl for about 3 minutes.
3. Allow dough to rest in the bowl for 10 minutes. Then scrape dough out onto a lightly floured counter, and roll out into a 14 x 18 rectangle.
4. Smear the softened butter all over the dough and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar (or you can mix the "filling" ingredients together in a bowl, and spread them out with a spatula or butterknife - I like doing it this way because it feels like everything "sticks" a little better and stays in place.)
5. Roll the dough up and cut into 12 rolls. Spray a 9" baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and arrange the rolls in the pan. Cover and set aside in a warm place to rise for 60 - 90 minutes, or until doubled in size.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees when ready to bake. Bake the rolls for 25 - 27 minutes, or until baked through.
7. Allow to cool briefly while you whip the frosting ingredients together. Frost when cinnamon rolls have cooled slightly, but are still warm. 
8. Serve and enjoy! 

Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction