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Quick and Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

Quick and Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting! -Super Soft And Delicious Cinnamon Rolls Slathered With An Amazing Melt-In-Your-Mouth Cream Cheese Frosting. Just As Yummy As The Classic Cinnamon Roll Recipe, But Done In A Quick Way!

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Why You will love this Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

This Cinnamon rolls recipe will help you to make the best cinnamon rolls in a faster one rise method.

The cinnamon rolls made with recipe are

  • Soft,featherlight,airy and fluffy with that gooey filling
  • Comfortingly flavored with cinnamon
  • Slathered with a cream cheese frosting which is not overly sweet
  • Beautiful with those amazing swirls
  • and the bottom of the rolls are wonderfully caramelized with that golden brown color.

Why this recipe is a “Quick” Cinnamon Rolls Recipe (with cream cheese frosting)

For making cinnamon rolls, it require a long time for the proofing and preparation.

This is a cinnamon rolls recipe, which does not require double proofing as many other recipes.

In this quick cinnamon rolls recipe we skip the first proofing, which is about two hours.And thus we can save a lot of our time.

We don’t need to knead the dough for a very long time..we just need to knead the dough(3-4 minutes by hand or 1-2 minutes if you are using a stand mixer) until it form a smooth dough.

This Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with cream cheese frosting is actually adapted from the Quick Dinner Rolls Recipe. The technique is the same and the difference is in shaping and frosting.

Step by step Video: Quick and Easy cinnamon rolls recipe with cream cheese frosting

Quick and Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with cream cheese frosting: Ingredients

To make the bread dough

  1. All purpose flour/Bread flour: 3 cups (130g x 3=390g)
  2. Milk 3/4 Cup (180 g)If you don’t want to add milk, you can use plain water instead.
  3. Unsalted Butter (softened)1/4 Cup /57g
  4. 1 Egg(at Room Temperature)
  5. Sugar 2 and 1/2 tbsp /32g
  6. Salt 1and 1/4 tsp
  7. Yeast (instant /active dried yeast) 1tsp

For the filling

  1. Soft Brown sugar (packed cup)1/2 cup /90g
  2. Unsalted Butter(softened) 1/4 cup /57g
  3. Cinnamon powder 2 tsp

Cream Cheese Frosting for Cinnamon Rolls

  1. Cream cheese 3 ounce /80g/ 2/3 cup
  2. Unsalted butter 3 tbsp/ 43 g
  3. Powdered Sugar 1 cup / 125g
  4. Vanilla powder 1/2 tsp or vanilla extract 1 tsp
  5. A pinch of salt to balance the sweetness
  6. If you want more thinner frosting, you can add 1-2 tbsp milk into it

How to Make Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting

Making homemade quick cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting is so easy.

We can make them in FOUR SIMPLE STEPS

1.Prepare the bread dough

Into a bowl add the milk,softened butter, sugar,salt,yeast and egg and combine everything together.

Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature and the milk should be preferably warm(not hot).

Then add in the flour into this mixture and combine them together to form a shaggy mass of dough.

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

If you are kneading the dough in a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment to knead the dough.

If you are kneading the dough by hands, transfer the dough on to a clean work surface and knead the dough for a few minutes(3-4 minutes)until it form a smooth dough.

The dough may feel sticky in the beginning, thats ok,(that’s the way it should be); you may be tempted to add more flour but don’t do that.The dough will come together in about 4 minutes of kneading.

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Shape it into a ball ; then flatten it a little and then cover it with a bowl or kitchen towel and let the dough rest on the counter for five minutes.This is not for proofing the dough, but this is to let the dough sit for a few minutes so that the gluten stands will relax.

This resting will prevent our dough from enormous rebounding back of the dough while rolling it into a thin rectangular sheet.

2.Shape the Cinnamon rolls

So for the next step of shaping the rolls, first we need to roll the dough into thin sheet (1/ 4th inch thickness).

Pat, stretch and roll out the dough to form 18X15-inch rectangle with long edge nearest you.

Then spread very soft butter all over the surface.

Then sprinkle on the filling mixture as evenly as possible.

Starting with long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a cylinder. 

While rolling, keep in your mind not to roll them tightly as they need some room for them to expand while proofing and while baking.

If they are rolled tightly, the rolls will have pointed center as the center will rise up as it doesn’t have enough space to expand side ways.

Mark gently with a knife/scraper to create 12 equal portions. For the cleanest cut, slice by holding a thread or strand of dental floss underneath the cylinder, and cross ends of the floss over each other and pull. Slice cylinder into 12 portions (about 4-5 cm each).

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Transfer to a baking pan (I have used 11.5X7.5-inch baking pan), that’s been greased with butter or cooking spray. Slight variation in size of baking pan is not an issue.

3.Proof the Cinnamon Rolls

Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and allow the rolls to rise until puffy and the rolls are touching one another; 50 to 60 minutes. 

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

We can also bake them in a larger baking rimmed baking tray (15 x 10 inch). As the tray is big, it will yield wider cinnamon rolls with more browning around edges. The cinnamon rolls will still be soft and fluffy!

As there is a chance that the cinnamon rolls may unwind while rising in the oven during baking; I simply tucked the end of each roll underneath the rolls itself ,when I baked the cinnamon rolls in the large baking tray.

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

4.Bake the Cinnamon Rolls

Then bake them @ 350 F or 175 C for 19-20 minutes.

Let the cinnamon rolls cool down for 2-3 minutes. Slather on that cream cheese frosting while the rolls are still warm.

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Making cream cheese frosting for cinnamon rolls

Cinnamon rolls are not the same without that cream cheese frosting on top.

It is so easy to make this cream cheese frosting for cinnamon rolls.

If you don’t want to use cream cheese, you can still make amazing cinnamon roll icing without cream cheese with just four ingredients (in 3 minutes!)

How to make cream cheese frosting for cinnamon rolls

Keep the butter and sugar at room temperature as it will help us to combine them easily.

Into a bowl add the Softened butter, cream cheese, vanilla sugar/vanilla extract and a pinch of salt to balance the sweetness.

Thoroughly beat until they are light in texture and pale yellow in color.

Then add the powdered sugar little by little beat everything together until you get a silky smooth, light cream cheese frosting.

You can add some milk/heavy cream if you want your cream cheese frosting a little more thin.

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

More Easy Bread Recipes

Quick soft and fluffy Dinner Rolls Recipe

Easy No Knead Dinner Rolls

Homemade Cinnamon Swirl bread

How to make Soft and fluffy Star bread

You may also like this Estonian Kringle Recipe. This will help you make the most delicious cinnamon braid bread with toasted almonds on top and cream cheese frosting in less than two hours!

How to store homemade cinnamon rolls

These homemade cinnamon rolls can be kept at room temperature for upto 3 days.Cover the tray with foil or store them in an airtight container.

Will the cinnamon rolls stay soft and fluffy when kept at room temperature

These cinnamon rolls remain soft the next 2-3 days when kept at room temperature in an airtight container.
I recommend you to rewarm the rolls for a few seconds in the microwave or for 7-10 minutes in a 350 F preheated oven (just before serving) to get that “fresh out of the oven” taste and softness to rolls.

Do this quick cinnamon rolls have to be refrigerated?

If you plan to keep the cinnamon rolls for more than three days, then it is better to store them in an airtight container and keep in refrigerator.

Can I make the cinnamon rolls ahead of time and bake on the day morning

Yes you can make them ahead.

How to refrigerate the dough and bake the cinnamon rolls in the morning

Prepare the dough as in step 1; Cover and place in the fridge to rise overnight (slow cold rise). On the next day, take the dough out, bring it to room temperature(let the dough sit for 20-25 minutes at room temperature) and then roll out the dough, fill, shape, rise and bake the rolls.

Can I shape the Cinnamon rolls and then refrigerate them

Yes, You can shape the rolls and then store it in refrigerator and then bake them the next day morning.
In this way, If you are making them ahead of time, don’t let them rise at room temperature immediately, like you normally would for the recipe!
Instead, cover the pan with lightly greased plastic film and immediately pop them in the refrigerator. They can stay in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
The longer we keep them in fridge, the more are chances that the filling may liquify and seep out of the rolls. Minor leaking happened to me every time i tried this method.But don’t get panic, the rolls will be baked properly.
The next day morning or when you want to bake the rolls , remove the tray from fridge ONE HOUR prior to baking.
Let them rest in a warm, draft free location for 40 minutes, then start preheating oven to 350 F. Once oven is heated, bake rolls for approximately 20 minutes (or until lightly browned).

How to freeze baked cinnamon rolls

Wrap the rolls tightly in plastic freezer wrap or aluminum foil and store in the freezer. If you prefer, place the cinnamon buns inside of a heavy-duty freezer bag and squeeze out the excess air before sealing.
The freezer will preserve the cinnamon rolls indefinitely if kept at 0 degrees Fahrenheit. For best quality, however, keep the cinnamon rolls in the freezer for no longer than 2 to 3 months.
This is the most convenient and easiest method of freezing cinnamon rolls. Everything is taken care of already and you just rewarm the rolls in the microwave or the oven as you are ready to eat them.

How to reheat cinnamon rolls

We can reheat the cinnamon rolls using oven which takes more time than reheating the cinnamon rolls microwave oven which is faster.

How to reheat cinnamon rolls in a convection oven

Rewarming the cinnamon rolls in an oven, takes more time. But this is the ideal way to reheat your cinnamon rolls and have them all ready for consumption in minutes.
1.Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees
2.Place cinnamon rolls on a baking sheet.
3.Place in oven and have them reheat for 7-10 minutes (depending on the size of the rolls and also how cold they are)
4.If you are taking them out of the freezer, you might have to keep them in the oven a bit longer.
Take out, allow to cool and then enjoy.

How to reheat cinnamon rolls in a microwave oven

The microwave is another good option to reheat the cinnamon rolls. In under a minute, you can enjoy your sweet treat, all nice and warm.
Note: While the microwave is still a recommended option;We need to keep in our mind that reheating the rolls in microwave oven, can make the rolls soggy, so don’t over do them.
1.Place rolls on a microwave safe plate.
2.Zap the rolls for about 15-20 seconds or until fully warmed up.
3.Make sure you do not microwave them too long as they can get soggy.
4.Take out and enjoy.

What type of yeast can be used for making cinnamon rolls? 

You can use both active dried yeast or instant yeast to make this quick homemade cinnamon rolls.
1 teaspoon instant (bread machine) yeast = 1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast.
If you are using active dried yeast, add the active dried yeast into the liquid mixture, just as we added instant yeast in the video.Then wait for the yeast to get dissolved into the liquid mixture and to get activated, before adding the flour.
The liquid mixture will become slightly foamy in about 10 minutes of adding yeast; then proceed with the recipe by adding flour.

Can I skip adding egg in this cinnamon rolls recipe

Yes ,you can skip egg in this quick cinnamon roll recipe.

How can I substitute egg in this quick cinnamon rolls recipe with cream cheese frosting

I have made cinnamon rolls using this same recipe skipping egg.I added the same volume of liquid (milk/water) for 1 egg.You can add 45-50 ml milk/water instead of 1 egg in this cinnamon roll recipe if you are not using egg. The cinnamon rolls turned out soft and delicious, when i tried this way.

Why the cinnamon rolls turned dry and or dense

The 3 main reasons that may cause the rolls to come out dry and/or dense, is
1. Adding too much flour,
2. Over-baking or
3. Under-proofing the dough.  
So make sure the consistency of the final dough is very soft and smooth, be sure to check the expiry date of your yeast ,bake until the rolls are perfectly baked and make sure the dough got doubled in size during proofing, before proceeding further.

Cinnamon Rolls Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting :Printable Recipe

Quick Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Quick and Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe With Cream Cheese Frosting

This quick Homemade cinnamon rolls recipe with cream cheese frosting will help you make soft and fluffy homemade cinnamon rolls in less than two hours.This homemade cinnamon rolls recipe is so easy to make, not overly sweet and they tastes delicious with that luscious cream cheese frosting.
5 from 18 votes
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Proofing time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Servings 12 Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients
  

For the BREAD

  • 3 cups Flour 390 g
  • 3/4 cup Warm milk 180 g
  • 1/4 cup Unsalted butter(softened) 57 g
  • 1 Egg Room temperature
  • 2 1/2 tbsp Sugar 32 g
  • 1 1/4 Salt
  • 1 tsp Instant Yeast or Active dry yeast(1 1/4 tsp)

For the FILLING

  • 1/2 cup Soft Brown Sugar(tightly packed cup) 90 g
  • 1/4 cup Unsalted Butter (softened) 57 g
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon Powder

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING FOR CINNAMON ROLLS

  • 2/3 cup Cream Cheese(room temperature) 3 ounce or 80 g
  • 3 tbsp Unsalted Butter(softened) 43 g
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extact 1/2 tsp vanilla sugar
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1 cup Powdered Sugar 125 g

Instructions
 

PREPARE THE BREAD DOUGH

  • To make the bread dough,we need to add our ingredients(Add the milk,egg,sugar,salt,butter,yeast and flour ) into a bowl and mix everything together until you get a shaggy mass of dough.
    For the proper blending of all the ingredients,we need to keep all our ingredients at room temperature.
    Yeast always love a sweet and warm environment to bloom up.So it will be good if we use slightly warm milk.
  • Knead the dough for 4-5 minutes or until you get a soft and hydrated dough.
    If you follow the measurements in grams then your dough will be of right consistency..but if you are using cup measurements the texture of the dough may differ slightly as cup measurements are not accurate.So we should know the consistency of our dough.It should be soft and well hydrated dough.The final dough will not be sticky but still tacky to the touch.
  • Flatten the surface of dough a bit and Let the dough sit on the counter for 5 minutes.
    Dont forget to cover it with a bowl to make sure the dough will not get dry.
    This is not for proofing the dough.But this will prevent the tendancy of the dough to rebound back while rolling.

DIVIDE AND SHAPE THE DOUGH

  • Roll the dough into a rectangle of approximately 17-18 inches in lenth and 14-15 inches in breadth and 1/4 th of an inch thickness.
    Smear the butter evenly on the sheet of dough.And then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar and spread it evenly.
    Roll the dough into a long cylinder if 17-18 inches in lenth.
    Divide the rolls into 12 equal pieces.
    Place the rolls on a well greased baking dish or a baking dish lined witha parchment paper.
    Cover the tray with a plastic film.

PROOF THE ROLLS

  • Let the rolls proof for 60 minutes or until they puff up nicely.

BAKE THE ROLLS

  • Bake the cinnamon rolls at 350F for 18-20 minutes.
    If you find the rolls getting browned on top too quickly,cover the top with an aluminum foil to prevent over browning.
  • After baking you will get Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls which are golden brown on top with that sticky caramelized sugar on the bottom adorned by that beautiful swirls of cinnamon sugar.The cinnamon rolls are feather light and soft and fluffy and they tastes delicious.

HOW TO MAKE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING FOR CINNAMON ROLLS

  • In a bowl add the softened cheese butter,vanila extract and salt.Thoroughly beat until they become light and plale yellow in color.Add the powdered sugar little by little and beat until you get silky smooth cream cheese frosting.
  • Cinnamon rolls are not the same without that cream cheese frosting.
    Apply the cream cheese frosting while the rolls are still warm.This will make the frosting to melt into the cracks of rolls making everybite full of gooey frosted deliciousness.
  • ENJOY!

VIDEO

  • Watch the VIDEO to see how easy you can make Homemade Cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting.

Video

Keyword cinnamon rolls recipe with cream cheese frosting, cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting, Homemade cinnamon rolls, Quick Cinnamon rolls, Quick homemade cinnamon rolls, Soft and fluffy Cinnamon rolls
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!


Recipe Rating




Heidi

Wednesday 18th of May 2022

My kitchen smelled so good! My family kept asking when will it be ready🤗 We all loved LOVED it🎉🎶Saving this recipe it’s a keeper for sure! Thank you, Now to decide what I will make next😘

Umi

Saturday 17th of July 2021

Hi Bincy. May I know if I can also use low-fat milk? Would it make a difference in texture or taste? Thank you!

Sheethal

Saturday 19th of June 2021

Hi. This recipe is awesome. In a span of 10days I am baking this for the third time. I made a batch adding Nutella as filling . Love this recipe and it's very easy n tasty. Thank you for sharing :)

Bincy Chris

Wednesday 23rd of June 2021

Awesome!Hi Sheethal,I am so happy to hear you found the recipe easy and that you enjoyed the cinnamon rolls.Thank you so much for taking your time to write back me and for rating this recipe.

Smita

Sunday 16th of May 2021

Excellent recipe. Enjoyed making them. They turned out great. Will proofing after kneading the dough make them even softer?

Barbara

Monday 21st of December 2020

This is the best cinnamon rolls that I have ever tasted. Soft and the frosting is light and not overpowering in sweetness.

Bincy Chris

Tuesday 22nd of December 2020

Hi Barbara,I so delighted to hear you made this cinnamon rolls and you enjoyed them. Thank you so much for taking your time to write back me and for rating this recipe. Wish you and your family a very blessed and happy Christmas.