Huge fluffy cinnamon rolls with maple cream cheese frosting that stay soft for days. They really are the best ever!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
I try not to exaggerate about the recipes I share on this blog, because I know the way a recipe turns out in my kitchen is not exactly the way it will turn out in your kitchen. And opinions on food are really a matter of…..well, opinion.
But these really are the Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls! Of course, just because I think something is the “best ever” doesn’t mean you will.
Thank you for the fantastic recipe! I made them this Christmas and last year also. I do wrap the rolls tightly in foil at the rising stage and put them overnight in the fridge, then remove from fridge and let rise, covered, for 2 hours before baking. They came out perfectly. My family loves them!!
Brooke
Having said that, I will tell you that I have tried MANY cinnamon roll recipes over the years (many of those also claiming to be the best ever) and I’ve never found one that I thought was special enough to share here.
Until now. Everyone in the family agreed. They were the best cinnamon rolls they’d ever had!
Of course, they do require a few hours of your time. But the best things in life take time.
They’re pretty big (yes, you really do bake 12 on a rimmed cookie sheet) but none of us has had trouble eating them.
The dough is just about perfect, and the rolls still taste soft and fresh the next day. The secret is not to add too much flour.
The rolls were big, fluffy and delicious. I doubled the icing–because who doesn’t love more icing–and they were gone in 24 hours. Thank you for sharing. They are going to be a family favorite for sure!
Julie
Your dough should be soft and slightly sticky without leaving too much residue on your fingers. And did I mention the maple cream cheese frosting?
I highly recommend covering cooled rolls with a paper towel and putting them in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. They taste like they just came out of the oven!
Be sure to save this recipe to your favorite Pinterest board for later.
Ingredients
- Milk
- Butter
- Sugar
- Salt
- Yeast
- Eggs
- Flour
- Brown sugar
- Cinnamon
- Cream cheese
- Vanilla
- Maple syrup
- Powdered sugar
Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the rolls
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 2 eggs
- 5 1/2 to 6 cups flour
- 1/2 cup butter very soft
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
For the frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- Pinch of salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk or as needed for consistency
Instructions
- To make the dough, heat the milk in a medium saucepan until it is just simmering and bubbles being to form around the edge of the pan. Pour the milk into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
- Add the butter, sugar and salt. Mix on low speed until the butter is melted. Let the mixture cool until warm but not hot. Add the yeast and eggs and mix until combined.
- Gradually add the flour until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky. Knead for 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a large, lightly greased bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or lightly greased plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about one hour.
- Roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 18×12 inches. Spread 1/2 cup softened butter over the dough.
- Stir together the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the dough. Pat it in slightly with the palms of your hands.
- Starting with a long end, roll up the dough as tightly as possible, pinching the seam lightly to seal.
- Using a serrated knife, cut the roll in half. Then cut each half in half again (forming four equal portions). Cut each of the four portions into three rolls – twelve cinnamon rolls total.
- Place the rolls evenly spaced on a large, parchment-lined, rimmed baking sheet. If the ends have come free, carefully tuck them under the cinnamon roll. Cover and let rise until double.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 18-22 minutes until light golden brown. Let the rolls cool for about 10 minutes before frosting.
- For the frosting, in a large bowl, whip together the cream cheese and butter. Add the vanilla, maple syrup and salt and mix until combined.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar (if you add it all at once, be prepared for a huge snowstorm in your kitchen) and mix until thick and creamy. Add cream or milk a tablespoon at a time until the frosting is smooth and spreadable to your liking. Spread the cinnamon rolls with frosting.
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Nutrition
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56 comments
Becky
I’ve been making these for Christmas morning for the past 5 years. They have turned out perfect every time.
Detverah Donaldson
They are great , made them for a birthday party, and to make more for the family .
Gina
Can you double the recipe?
Betsa Anderson
Hi! How do you recommend storing after cooking these rolls? Can you freeze?
Darlene Carter
What kind of flour do I use for cinnamon rolls?
Nanci
I’ve made these three times now, and every time they came out perfectly! I’m finally successful at cinnamon rolls!
Pheobe
Seriously, don’t make these if you have an addictive personality. Absolutely delicious!
Danielle
I couldn’t find instant yeast, instead I have active dry. Do i mix that with warm water first and let activate, or do I just throw it in with the milk? Thanks!
Danelle
You can put it in with the milk. The only difference is the rolls make need an extra 15-20 minutes to rise.
Carolina
It is a Great recipe!! they came out incredible soft and delicious. Everyone loved them and I loved baking them.
Haley
Hi! I see that 1/2 cup of bitter is mentioned twice for just the cinnamon rolls, not the frosting. Is that correct or is it just one 1/2 cup I would use?
Danelle
That is correct. 1/2 cup butter in the dough, and then 1/2 cup of very soft butter spread over the dough after you roll it out (before you sprinkle on the cinnamon and sugar). The frosting uses 1/4 cup butter.
Robin
Christmas Eve is Tuesday night. We all get together then. I want to give my family and friends these to have Christmas morning. I have a full day scheduled to bake on Sunday. What do you suggest to make this specially good?
Danelle
Yes, you would need to keep them in the refrigerator, and then pull them out in the morning to finish rising. You could also just bake them the day before and they should taste fine the following morning too.
Alicia
Can these be made up the night before and baked the following morning?
AJ
Made these on a chilly November weekend. OMG they turned out perfect and it was my 1st time ever making homemade cinnamon rolls. The frosting is unbelievable! So light and not too sweet but sweet enough. Woke up the next morning to have one (heated in the microwave about 15 seconds) and it was like I had just pulled them out of the oven! 5 stars!
Danelle
Thank you! So glad you liked them!
Nickole
I can’t tell how much butter goes where. The dough and frosting ingredients are all listed together. I’ve put 1/2 cup butter into the dough. I hope this still turns out. The serrated knife didn’t work for me either. Cutting them the knife has mangled almost each one.
Nickole
This is an update to my post….I must have read the recipe wrong. Doing these for the 2nd time, I get where the butter goes. These really are the best cinnamon rolls! Maybe I need to sharpen my serrated knife. This time I used dental floss and it’s much better. Thank you for the recipe, definitely my go to now!
Olivia
Do you think this would turn out if I made them with vegan substitutes? I made this recipe years ago before I switched diets and LOVED them!!
Danelle
I honestly don’t know as I’ve never tried it. If you do try it, I’d love to hear how it goes.
Porky
Do they need to be put in the fridge after they are baked
Danelle
No, I store them covered at room temperature.
Scott
Great recipe for delicious buns. I froze a batch after they were cool. Reheated in microwave for about 20 seconds, taste just as good as the day they were baked.
Danelle
Thanks Scott!
Phumzile
Out of this world
Cris
HELP! I’m still learning how to use the Kitchen Aid mixer for yeast dough – and I’m still learning how to work with Yeast recipes. I’ve been baking for years, but I’m sliding in late on yeast/dough recipes! : ) In step 3, it says to let the dough clear the bowl and then it says to kneed the dough for 2 minutes. I’m assuming I continue mixing it in the bowl with the dough hook for an additional 2 minutes – am I correct, or do you take the dough out to hand knead the dough for 2 minutes? Any tips or suggestions for knowing when your dough is ready to remove from the bowl is helpful. Thank you so much! I am DETERMINED to try and try again until I master the perfect dough recipes! : )
Danelle
I take the dough out of the mixer and kneed it just a few minutes longer by hand. Mostly because I think it’s easiest to tell if you have the dough right by feeling it. I always aim for a dough that is quite soft, but not sticky. Too much flour will always make yeast dough tough and dense, so when my dough has just enough flour that it doesn’t stick to my hands, but is still soft, that’s when it’s ready. You may or may not need to add additional flour as you kneed, but I find it’s better to remove it from the bowl while it’s still on the sticky side and add any additional flour by hand. Even if I add all the necessary flour in the mixer, I always take it out and kneed it for a minute or two to make sure it feels right to me.
Cris
Thank you SO much for the tips and clarification! I really appreciate the time that you took to get back to me! Learning is SO much more fun when you have other women who are encouraging and willing to help one another, isn’t it? : ) I have baked for many years, and I’ve even baked several cinnamon roll recipes, but I’ll take all the tips and pointers I can get when it comes to learning techniques with yeast dough. Thank you again. Have a blessed week! Cris
Jennifer
My yeast didn’t double in size after an hour. It barely
Rose at all. Help?!
Danelle
Most likely your liquid was either too cold, or too hot. You want it to be somewhere between 95°F and 115°F, so if you’re not sure, I’d suggest using a kitchen thermometer to check. Or your yeast was expired.
Katryna Dubnansky
I do not have a stand mixer, just my hand mixer. Is this ok to use ?
Danelle
It’s a large recipe (with 5-6 cups flour), so it may work if you have a sturdy hand mixer. Eventually you may just have to knead in the flour with your hands.
Julie
I know you posted this recipe some years ago but I tried it yesterday after finding it on Pinterest. The rolls were big, fluffy and delicious. I doubled the icing because who doesn’t love more icing and they were gone in 24 hours. Thank you for sharing. They are going to be a Gorman family favorite for sure!
Danelle
Thanks so much Julie!
Marcy vonMaucher
This recipe does sound yummy. Just a couple of questions though. What type of flour do you use?
AP, Bread, Pastry? Also, what is you flour measuring technique? Scoop and level, spoon in and level?
I look forward to trying these out.
Thanks Marcy
Danelle
I use all purpose flour unless otherwise stated, and I spoon in and level.
Brooke
Thank you for the fantastic recipe! I made them this Christmas and last year also. I do wrap the rolls tightly in foil at the rising stage and put them overnight in the fridge, then remove from fridge and let rise, covered, for 2 hours before baking. They came out perfectly. My family loves them!!
Danelle
Great idea! Thank you!
Jen
I plan on trying these for Christmas, but I don’t have a stand mixer. Any suggestions?
Danelle
Your best option would probably be to mix them by hand. But honestly it is going to be tough without some kind of mixer that can handle a large batch of dough.
Jenna
Could I make these and refrigerate overnight?
Danelle
I haven’t tried it Jenna, but I think it would work. I’d say put them in the fridge before the second rise. Then you might have to let them sit at room temp for a short time to finish rising in the morning. Let me know how it goes!
Sonya B
What kind of flour?
Danelle
All-purpose
Lynn
I used bread flour and the dough was wonderful, light and fluffy
Connie
what do you mean by instant yeast?
Danelle
It’s the same thing as bread machine yeast. 🙂
Naseem
These turned out amazing.. Very fluffy and soft.. But I needed to add more flour, around 2 cups more..
For the frosting I didn’t put maple syrup, and I added half a cup cream with the milk, it was very silky.. These are really the best rolls I tried
Tracy
I had to add more flour too also about two cups. I figured it’s rainy here so more moisture in the air.
Sarah @ Bonjour Sucre
Cinnamon rolls are delicious – I have tried many recipes too and have yet to find a favourite. Yours look great, I will definetly be trying your recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Shannon @ Bake.Frost.Repeat.
I love cinnamon rolls. I’ve tried to a couple of times to make them, but was never happy with my results. I’m going to give these a try. They look amazing!
Betty
Cinnamon rolls are a special occasion treat here. I’ll have to think of a special occasion pretty quick now, because these really look good! 🙂
Catherine
Beautiful cinnamon rolls!! Perfect for a cup of coffee on these cold days ahead.
Happy New Year. xo Catherine
Jessica @ Sweet Menu
I’m pretty excited about these! They look incredible!
Gina
Mmm- I’m always looking for a GREAT recipe like this one. MUST MAKE.