Sure you can buy cinnamon rolls, sometimes even very good ones. But the homemade version is an exponential improvement, the spirals of pastry and spice unrolling more than just breakfast. With an easy recipe, you can create the comfort zone of a happy morning, a family breakfast table, a special holiday brunch.
Cinnamon rolls fall into two basic categories: the cinnamon roll as viennoiserie, made with croissant dough, the layers of embedded butter creating a rich, flaky archaeology; and the cinnamon roll as sweet bread, more like a spice-shot spiral of brioche. Making the former is entirely possible, but it helps if you have a patisserie degree.
Making the latter type is not only possible, but downright easy. You mix up the dough, let it rise, then roll it out and then up with a bit of filling. After another rise -- most of which can happen overnight in the refrigerator -- you slide them into the oven. Twenty minutes later, you're done. A drizzle of icing. Your kitchen fragrant with cinnamon.
The key is to start with a basic sweet bread dough. Add a little cinnamon to the dough too. Food scientist Shirley Corriher, in her most recent book, "BakeWise," notes that a small amount of certain spices, including cinnamon, actually enhances yeast activity. A bit of baking soda added to the mix both sweetens the dough and neutralizes the acidity of the buttermilk (thanks to baker Peter Reinhart for that pointer).
Although you can knead the dough by hand, making this recipe in a mixer fitted with a dough hook is a lot easier. After 5 minutes in the machine, turn the dough out into a buttered bowl to rise for an hour. Then you're ready to, um, roll.
Add whole wheat
Admittedly, if you're wanting a highly nutritious breakfast, you'll probably be making granola instead of cinnamon rolls. That said, you can try making whole wheat cinnamon rolls.
By switching out half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour (more than that and the dough becomes too dense), you get the benefit of whole grains without changing the ontological properties of your favorite breakfast indulgence.
With the whole wheat, there's a little more buttermilk, a little more cinnamon. But the major difference is that there's a 15-minute resting time added to the mixing process. (Go away, read the paper.) This resting time, called an autolyse, allows the gluten in the flour to develop, and effectively creates a softer dough than you would have had without it.
The result is much the same as regular rolls, but with the added flavor — which combines beautifully with the spice, as well as with nuts, ginger or blackberries.
Having mastered a basic recipe, making cinnamon rolls becomes not only easy but easily repeatable. No malls, no truck stops, no jelly beans necessary, just the spice route to your kitchen.
Cinnamon rolls
Prep: 40 minutes
Rise: 2 hours
Cook: 20 minutes
Servings: 12 rolls
Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
4 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour, plus extra as needed
1/4 cup sugar
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) softened butter, cut into cubes, plus 6 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 cup milk
1. Whisk together the buttermilk, orange zest and eggs in a small bowl. Set aside. Place 4 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon of the cinnamon, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and the softened butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook. Pour in the buttermilk mixture; mix on low until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium; continue to mix until the dough is soft and smooth, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too wet (up to 1/4 cup).
2. Scrape the dough from the bowl; form into a ball (it should be very soft, like brioche dough). Place the dough in a large, buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; set aside in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, make the filling. Sift the brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons cinnamon, remaining 1 tablespoon of the flour and remaining 1 teaspoon of the salt together in a small bowl.
3. Turn dough onto a well-floured work surface. Roll into a rectangle 1/4 inch thick, and about 17 by 12 inches. Brush the dough with 4 tablespoons of the melted butter; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, keeping 1 inch clear along one of the long edges. Loosely roll the dough into a long tube, pressing the clear edge to seal the tube. Place the tube seam-side down on a cutting board.
4. Cut the tube crosswise into 12 rolls. Place the rolls, 1/2 inch apart and spiral side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; set aside until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the rolls until puffed and golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the tray; cool on the parchment paper.
5. For the icing, whisk the confectioners' sugar, orange juice, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons of the melted butter and a pinch of salt in a bowl. The consistency should be like very thick syrup; add additional milk or sugar as needed. Dip a whisk into the icing; drizzle icing over the rolls.
Nutrition information
Per roll: 446 calories, 26% of calories from fat, 13 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 67 mg cholesterol, 77 g carbohydrates, 7 g protein, 280 mg sodium, 2 g fiber.
Whole wheat cinnamon rolls
Prep: 25 minutes
Rise: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Makes: 12 rolls
Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
Zest of 1 orange
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus extra as needed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons plus 3/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) softened butter, cut into cubes, plus 6 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 cup milk
Whisk together the buttermilk, orange zest and eggs in a small bowl. Set aside. Combine the wheat flour, 2 cups of the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, yeast, baking soda, 3/8 teaspoon of the cinnamon, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt and the softened butter. Add buttermilk mixture; mix over low speed until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute. Place a towel over the top of the mixture; let rest 15 minutes.
Mix on medium speed until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes, adding up to 1/4 cup more flour if the dough is too wet. Scrape the dough from the bowl; form into a ball. Place the dough in a large buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, for the filling, sift together the brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of the all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a small bowl. Transfer risen dough to a well-floured work surface. Roll into a rectangle 1/4-inch thick and about 17-by-12-inches wide.
Brush the dough with 4 tablespoons of the melted butter; sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over, keeping 1 inch clear along one of the long edges.
Loosely roll the dough into a long tube, pressing the clear edge along the length of the dough to seal the tube. Place the tube, seam-side down, on the work surface. Cut the tube crosswise into 12 evenly sized rolls.
Place the rolls, spiral side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1/2-inch apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; let rise until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour. Half an hour into the rise, heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the rolls until puffed and golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove from the tray; cool on the parchment paper.
Meanwhile, for icing, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, orange juice, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl until syrup consistency, adding additional milk or sugar as needed. Dip a whisk into the icing; drizzle icing over the rolls.
Nutrition information:
Per roll: 442 calories, 26% of calories from fat, 13 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 67 mg cholesterol, 76 g carbohydrates, 8 g protein, 284 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.
Making cinnamon rolls ahead
After the rolls have been cut and placed on the baking tray, wrap them tightly with plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, take the rolls out of fridge, loosen the wrap and let them rise on the top of the stove for an hour, the last 20 minutes or more while the oven heats. Bake and frost as directed.
Filling variations
Instead of the cinnamon sugar, spread the rolled out dough with one of these:
Blackberry jam rolls:
1 cup blackberry jam
Walnut-cardamom rolls:
Combine 1 cup finely chopped walnuts, 1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in a small bowl.
Ginger rolls:
Combine 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup minced candied ginger, 1 tablespoon freshly ground ginger, 1 teaspoon dried ginger, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in a small bowl.
Cinnamon rolls fall into two basic categories: the cinnamon roll as viennoiserie, made with croissant dough, the layers of embedded butter creating a rich, flaky archaeology; and the cinnamon roll as sweet bread, more like a spice-shot spiral of brioche. Making the former is entirely possible, but it helps if you have a patisserie degree.
Making the latter type is not only possible, but downright easy. You mix up the dough, let it rise, then roll it out and then up with a bit of filling. After another rise -- most of which can happen overnight in the refrigerator -- you slide them into the oven. Twenty minutes later, you're done. A drizzle of icing. Your kitchen fragrant with cinnamon.
The key is to start with a basic sweet bread dough. Add a little cinnamon to the dough too. Food scientist Shirley Corriher, in her most recent book, "BakeWise," notes that a small amount of certain spices, including cinnamon, actually enhances yeast activity. A bit of baking soda added to the mix both sweetens the dough and neutralizes the acidity of the buttermilk (thanks to baker Peter Reinhart for that pointer).
Although you can knead the dough by hand, making this recipe in a mixer fitted with a dough hook is a lot easier. After 5 minutes in the machine, turn the dough out into a buttered bowl to rise for an hour. Then you're ready to, um, roll.
Add whole wheat
Admittedly, if you're wanting a highly nutritious breakfast, you'll probably be making granola instead of cinnamon rolls. That said, you can try making whole wheat cinnamon rolls.
By switching out half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour (more than that and the dough becomes too dense), you get the benefit of whole grains without changing the ontological properties of your favorite breakfast indulgence.
With the whole wheat, there's a little more buttermilk, a little more cinnamon. But the major difference is that there's a 15-minute resting time added to the mixing process. (Go away, read the paper.) This resting time, called an autolyse, allows the gluten in the flour to develop, and effectively creates a softer dough than you would have had without it.
The result is much the same as regular rolls, but with the added flavor — which combines beautifully with the spice, as well as with nuts, ginger or blackberries.
Having mastered a basic recipe, making cinnamon rolls becomes not only easy but easily repeatable. No malls, no truck stops, no jelly beans necessary, just the spice route to your kitchen.
Cinnamon rolls
Prep: 40 minutes
Rise: 2 hours
Cook: 20 minutes
Servings: 12 rolls
Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
4 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour, plus extra as needed
1/4 cup sugar
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) softened butter, cut into cubes, plus 6 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 cup milk
1. Whisk together the buttermilk, orange zest and eggs in a small bowl. Set aside. Place 4 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon of the cinnamon, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt and the softened butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook. Pour in the buttermilk mixture; mix on low until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium; continue to mix until the dough is soft and smooth, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too wet (up to 1/4 cup).
2. Scrape the dough from the bowl; form into a ball (it should be very soft, like brioche dough). Place the dough in a large, buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; set aside in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, make the filling. Sift the brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons cinnamon, remaining 1 tablespoon of the flour and remaining 1 teaspoon of the salt together in a small bowl.
3. Turn dough onto a well-floured work surface. Roll into a rectangle 1/4 inch thick, and about 17 by 12 inches. Brush the dough with 4 tablespoons of the melted butter; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, keeping 1 inch clear along one of the long edges. Loosely roll the dough into a long tube, pressing the clear edge to seal the tube. Place the tube seam-side down on a cutting board.
4. Cut the tube crosswise into 12 rolls. Place the rolls, 1/2 inch apart and spiral side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; set aside until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the rolls until puffed and golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the tray; cool on the parchment paper.
5. For the icing, whisk the confectioners' sugar, orange juice, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons of the melted butter and a pinch of salt in a bowl. The consistency should be like very thick syrup; add additional milk or sugar as needed. Dip a whisk into the icing; drizzle icing over the rolls.
Nutrition information
Per roll: 446 calories, 26% of calories from fat, 13 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 67 mg cholesterol, 77 g carbohydrates, 7 g protein, 280 mg sodium, 2 g fiber.
Whole wheat cinnamon rolls
Prep: 25 minutes
Rise: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Makes: 12 rolls
Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
Zest of 1 orange
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus extra as needed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons plus 3/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) softened butter, cut into cubes, plus 6 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 cup milk
Whisk together the buttermilk, orange zest and eggs in a small bowl. Set aside. Combine the wheat flour, 2 cups of the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, yeast, baking soda, 3/8 teaspoon of the cinnamon, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt and the softened butter. Add buttermilk mixture; mix over low speed until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute. Place a towel over the top of the mixture; let rest 15 minutes.
Mix on medium speed until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes, adding up to 1/4 cup more flour if the dough is too wet. Scrape the dough from the bowl; form into a ball. Place the dough in a large buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, for the filling, sift together the brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of the all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a small bowl. Transfer risen dough to a well-floured work surface. Roll into a rectangle 1/4-inch thick and about 17-by-12-inches wide.
Brush the dough with 4 tablespoons of the melted butter; sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over, keeping 1 inch clear along one of the long edges.
Loosely roll the dough into a long tube, pressing the clear edge along the length of the dough to seal the tube. Place the tube, seam-side down, on the work surface. Cut the tube crosswise into 12 evenly sized rolls.
Place the rolls, spiral side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1/2-inch apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; let rise until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour. Half an hour into the rise, heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the rolls until puffed and golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove from the tray; cool on the parchment paper.
Meanwhile, for icing, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, orange juice, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl until syrup consistency, adding additional milk or sugar as needed. Dip a whisk into the icing; drizzle icing over the rolls.
Nutrition information:
Per roll: 442 calories, 26% of calories from fat, 13 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 67 mg cholesterol, 76 g carbohydrates, 8 g protein, 284 mg sodium, 4 g fiber.
Making cinnamon rolls ahead
After the rolls have been cut and placed on the baking tray, wrap them tightly with plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, take the rolls out of fridge, loosen the wrap and let them rise on the top of the stove for an hour, the last 20 minutes or more while the oven heats. Bake and frost as directed.
Filling variations
Instead of the cinnamon sugar, spread the rolled out dough with one of these:
Blackberry jam rolls:
1 cup blackberry jam
Walnut-cardamom rolls:
Combine 1 cup finely chopped walnuts, 1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in a small bowl.
Ginger rolls:
Combine 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup minced candied ginger, 1 tablespoon freshly ground ginger, 1 teaspoon dried ginger, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in a small bowl.
