Simple Cinnamon Roll Dough for Beginners
This simple, fluffy cinnamon roll recipe comes together quickly, and the dough is easy for beginners to work with. They are divine with a cup of coffee or milk and can be devoured as breakfast, brunch or dessert. You can easily add nuts or raisins to dress these up or go simple with the brown sugar and warming spices.
If you feel intimidated by all the different bread or sourdough recipes out there or are a beginner in the world of dough, this is a great place to start. It’s very flexible to learn on and you’ll end up with a delicious treat in no time.
Why You’ll Love These Cinnamon Rolls
- This is easy dough to work with for beginners. It’s very flexible to knead in a stand mixer or by hand. No special tools are required but you can use them if you’ve got them.
- If you have a bread machine, you can mix, knead and 1st rise this recipe on the dough setting of your machine. This makes it very easy and takes very little hands-on time.
- Adjust the filling ingredients to your liking. If you want raisins and nuts, go for it. More cinnamon flavor or less sugar, use what works for you.
- The dough is wonderfully flaky and soft.
Simple Cinnamon Roll Ingredients
These simple, beginner friendly Cinnamon Rolls take very basic pantry ingredients that you probably have on hand.
Milk – I use whole milk because that’s what we have in our house, but I think 2% would work fine.
Eggs- We have loads of chickens so I’m using large fresh eggs. Any large eggs will do.
Butter – Salted butter because that’s what I usually have on hand.
Flour – I’ve used all purpose or fresh milled hard white. I’ve not tried others such as einkorn.
Sugar – Standard white granulated sugar will do here.
Yeast – Active dry yeast is what I use.
Cinnamon – I use whatever I’ve got on hand. Feel free to use fancy cinnamon if you’re so inclined.
Brown Sugar – Light Brown or Dark Brown Sugar are both fine. I’ve used either.
Frosting – This is optional, but my family loves homemade cream cheese frosting.
Easy Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Heat the milk to 100°F. Pour into mixer bowl then stir the yeast into it. Tip – If mixing, kneading and rising in a bread machine start at Step 5.
Step 2: Mix in the 2 large eggs, softened butter, white sugar, salt and 2 cups of the flour. Mix until blended.
Step 3: Add in remaining flour and mix until loosely blended.
Step 4: Switch to dough hook and knead on low 10 minutes or until stretching the dough creates a window pane. If kneading by hand, knead on the counter until windowpane stage.
Step 5: If you’re mixing, kneading and rising in a bread machine, fill the bread pan according to the manufacturer instructions. My bread machine directs me put all wet ingredients in the bottom of the pan, followed by dry ingredients floating on top, then yeast in a pile on top of the dry ingredients. Set the machine to the dough setting and it will mix, knead and rise. Once the cycle is complete move to step 7.
Step 6: Cover the bowl and let the dough rise about 1 hour in a warm place.
Step 7: While dough is rising, mix Cinnamon & Brown Sugar in small dish.
Step 8: Butter a large 9”x12” casserole pan.
Step 9: Dump dough onto a floured surface. Punch down and divide in half. Allow dough to rest 5 minutes then stretch each half into a roughly 8”x12” rectangle. Spread each with 1 Tbsp butter and sprinkle with half of the filling. Starting at the 12” edge, roll each rectangle up into a log and pinch the seams to close.
Step 10: Cut the log into about 1” wide pieces. Place the pieces in the buttered casserole pan and put in a warm place to rise for about 30 minutes. After about 15 minutes of rise, preheat oven to 350°F.
Step 11: Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Step 12: While the cinnamon rolls are baking, mix your frosting. With a mixer, blend the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and mix until fluffy and to your desired consistency.
Step 13: Take the cinnamon rolls out of the oven and frost them while warm in the pan or cut individual rolls and drizzle with frosting as desired. My family loves them covered in gooey frosting, warm out of the oven so I smother the whole pan with frosting to appease the crowd.
How to Serve
Cinnamon Rolls are too delicious warm to let the pan cool completely before digging in. Carefully cut out a roll with a spatula and serve with coffee or milk for a special occasion.
Baking these for a holiday like Christmas morning or Father’s Day is a special treat. But truly they are wonderful for any occasion. They are a great make ahead treat that can be prepared the day before and refrigerated before the last rise. Before you want to bake, take them out of the refrigerator and allow them to warm up and rise about 60-90 minutes before baking.
How to Store
If these soft and flakey cinnamon rolls last more than 24 hours, it’ll be amazing! But if they do last past the cool down, cover in the pan they’re in or wrap individual rolls in saran wrap and eat within 3 days.
Variations
Filling: You can add or reduce the amount of brown sugar and cinnamon to your liking. I’ve also added a dash of nutmeg to mine during the Christmas holidays when we’re drinking eggnog with these for a little extra holiday flavor. You can use ½ cup of raisins and nuts in the filling as well if you’d like. Some in my family like raisins, so I’ll do one roll with raisins and one without.
Frosting: Again, this is where you can go as sweet as you’d like. My family loves lots of gooey frosting on these, so I smother the whole pan when it’s warm. You can use less frosting or just drizzle it on individual rolls. The possibilities are endless. You can also use any frosting or glaze recipe you like. My son likes this one: ½ c butter, 1 tsp almond extract, 1 c powdered sugar. He really likes the almond flavor.
Simple Cinnamon Rolls for Beginners
Ingredients
Method
- Heat the milk to 100°F. Pour into mixer bowl then stir the yeast into it.
- Mix in the 2 large eggs, softened butter, white sugar, salt and 2 cups of the flour. Mix until blended.
- Add in remaining flour and mix until loosely blended.
- If kneading by stand mixer, switch to dough hook and knead on low 10 minutes or until stretching the dough creates a windowpane. If kneading by hand, knead on the counter until windowpane stage.
- If you’re mixing, kneading and rising in a bread machine, fill the bread pan according to the manufacturer instructions. My bread machine directs me put all wet ingredients in the bottom of the pan, followed by dry ingredients floating on top, then yeast in a pile on top of the dry ingredients. Set the machine to the dough setting and it will mix, knead and rise. Once the cycle is complete move to step 7.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rise about 1 hour in a warm place.
- While dough is rising, mix Cinnamon & Brown Sugar in small dish.
- Butter a large 9”x12” casserole pan.
- Dump dough onto a floured surface. Punch down and divide in half. Allow dough to rest 5 minutes then stretch each half into a roughly 8”x12” rectangle. Spread each with 1 Tbsp butter and sprinkle with half of the filling. Starting at the 12” edge, roll each rectangle up into a log and pinch the seams to close.
- Cut the log into about 1” wide pieces. Place the pieces in the buttered casserole pan and put in a warm place to rise for about 30 minutes. After about 15 minutes of rise, preheat oven to 350°F.
- Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
- While the cinnamon rolls are baking, mix your frosting. With a mixer, blend the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and mix until fluffy and to your desired consistency.
- Take the cinnamon rolls out of the oven and frost them while warm in the pan or cut individual rolls and drizzle with frosting as desired. My family loves them covered in gooey frosting, warm out of the oven so I smother the whole pan with frosting to appease the crowd.