Active Time
1¼ hours
Total Time
3½ hours
On first glance these homemade cinnamon rolls may not look like anything out of the ordinary. Buttery, golden brown yeasted dough, check; delicious cinnamon–brown sugar filling, check; decadent cream cheese icing, check. But we’re putting it all on the line to wager that this recipe, thanks to a few choice tactical twists, produces the best, most ooey-gooey, perfectly fluffy from-scratch buns you’ll ever make. (Watch Zaynab describe her process here!)
The secret to the super-soft dough—which also happens to be incredibly easy to work with—is in the tangzhong starter. Tangzhong is the Chinese method of precooking a small portion of a recipe’s starch and liquid (usually flour and milk) to create a thick paste that then gets integrated with the rest of the dough ingredients. This results in a high-hydration cinnamon roll dough that steams more as it cooks, yielding a puffier, pillowy-soft bread with a supple, tender texture. As an added bonus, because of the higher moisture content, these rolls won’t go dry by the next morning (assuming there are any left).
Browning the melted butter ups the ante on the typical cinnamon-brown sugar filling, accentuating its warming spiced toffee flavors, all while adding a nutty, toasty dimension of its own. A tangy cream cheese frosting offsets these deep, rich notes. And while we like it just as it is, feel free to add a few drops of vanilla extract for even more warmth or a touch of lemon zest for extra brightness.
If all that hasn’t convinced you that this just might be the best cinnamon roll recipe, how about this? The recipe uses 1 envelope of instant yeast (different from active dry yeast!), but if you’ve got a big jar at home and are in a hurry, don’t hesitate to increase the amount to 1 Tbsp. for an even quicker rise—about 20 minutes less for the first dough rise and 10 minutes less for the second. (It won’t affect the flavor.)
Or for overnight cinnamon rolls primed for morning baking, spread preparation across multiple days by refrigerating the dough, either after the first rise or after the unbaked rolls have been shaped and nestled in their baking pans, ahead of the second rise. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent the dough from forming a skin, and leave the chilled dough out at room temp for about an hour before proceeding.
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What you’ll need
9" Round Cake Pan
$18 $16 At Amazon
Stand Mixer
$330 $240 At Amazon
Scale
$26 At Amazon
French Rolling Pin
$21 At Amazon
Set of 6 Pastry Rulers
$20 At Kitchen Jukebox
Ingredients
8–12 servings
DOUGH
2¼
5¾
1
1
⅓
1
½
FILLING
½
1
2
2
½
FROSTING AND ASSEMBLY
4
8
1¼
1
1
¼
Preparation
DOUGH
Step 1
Whisk ¾ cup whole milk and ¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose flour in a medium saucepan until smooth. Place saucepan over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thickened and whisk lines are visible on bottom of pan, about 2 minutes. Scrape tangzhong into the bowl of a stand mixer and let cool.
Step 2
Add 1 large egg, one ¼-oz. envelope instant yeast (about 2¼ tsp.), ⅓ cup (67 g) granulated sugar, 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and remaining 1½ cups whole milk to tangzhong and whisk to combine. Add remaining 5½ cups (688 g) all-purpose flour. Fit bowl onto stand mixer; fit mixer with dough hook attachment. Mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium-low and mix, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally, until dough is smooth and elastic, 18–24 minutes. Pinch off a golf-ball-size piece of dough and stretch between your fingers as thin as possible without breaking. If you can see light through the dough, it’s ready. If not, continue mixing a few more minutes, then try again.
Step 3
Add ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces, to dough and mix on medium speed until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Continue mixing until dough pulls away cleanly from sides of bowl and is no longer tacky to the touch, 5–7 minutes longer. Remove bowl from mixer and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Let sit in a warm spot until doubled in volume, 60–90 minutes.
FILLING
Step 4
While the dough is rising, cook ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until butter foams and milk solids turn dark amber, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and let cool slightly. Add 1 cup (packed; 200 g) dark brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. ground cinnamon, 2 Tbsp. heavy cream, and ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt to butter and mix to combine.
FROSTING AND ASSEMBLY
Step 5
Butter two 9"-diameter cake pans. Punch down dough and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Stretch dough into a rough rectangle; if dough feels stiff, let sit 5–10 minutes to allow gluten to relax. Arrange dough with short side facing you and roll out to a 24x13" rectangle. Spread filling over dough in an even layer.
Step 6
Starting at edge closest to you, tightly roll up dough into a log; roll log seam side down. Using a sharp serrated knife and long sawing motions, trim ends of log; discard. Using serrated knife or, preferably, unflavored dental floss, cut log in half crosswise, then cut each half into 6 equal rounds. (If using dental floss, slide floss underneath dough, then cross over top and pull ends through.) Nestle 6 rounds, cut side down, in each prepared cake pan. Cover with damp kitchen towels and let sit in a warm spot until doubled in volume, about 30–50 minutes.
Step 7
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Bake rolls until golden on top and puffed (don’t be alarmed if they rise dramatically in the center), 25–30 minutes.
Step 8
Meanwhile, using an electric mixer on medium speed or a whisk, beat 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature, and 8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature, in a large bowl, scraping down sides of bowl as needed, until combined. Add 1¼ cups (138 g) powdered sugar, 1 Tbsp. heavy cream, 1 tsp. lemon zest (if using), and ¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or Morton kosher salt and beat until mixture is smooth and sugar is incorporated. Taste and beat in more powdered sugar (up to ¾ cup) if desired. Thin with more cream as needed, a teaspoonful at a time, until frosting is thick but spreadable.
Step 9
Let cinnamon rolls cool in pan 5 minutes; spread frosting over.
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Reviews (34)
Back to TopThese are amazing! After reading other comments, I was concerned about over-working my Kitchen Aid, so I did do some of the kneading by hand. The texture is perfect and my first taste test was a roll without the icing and it was very satisfying. I also watched Zaynab's video of her developing the recipe, and that was very helpful and entertaining. Thank you for this awesome recipe - I can't wait to share these rolls with my colleagues at work - definitely 5 stars!
Anonymous
Cleveland, OH
4/8/2024
Second time making this recipe and it came out delicious once again! I see a lot of people having trouble with the dough being too soft and not coming together, and I see the problem possibly arising for several different reasons. One, the tangzhong wasn’t cooked long enough, so there was excess liquid in the dough. I know the instructions say to cook until you can see whisk lines, but if you cook just a tad bit longer than you think you’re supposed to, the measurements came out perfectly for me. It is a little softer than a dough made with bread flour that I am used to for something like Shokupan, but it is definitely workable and will pass the windowpane test. Two, the flour that you are using is different from the recipe developer. This can lead to several problems like different flours can act differently even with the same water content, and the protein content can be completely different even if the labels both say AP flour. I used King Arthur brand, which is always very consistent and gave good results in this recipe. Three, you didn’t weigh your ingredients. I weighed everything in this recipe and this could be the major factor in why your recipes either always come out different or never turn out correctly. One cup can be 150 grams one day, and 250 grams the next. Four, the temperature of your house. I found that the dough was such a soft dough that it ended up being tacky at a higher room temperature. It had been fine before first fermentation, but it got sticky after letting it rise for the first time. If you let it cool down or throw it in the fridge for a bit, it becomes easier to work with. Five, your stand mixer is not doing its job. This dough didn’t blow out my mixer like a lot of other people, but my mixer did get a little warm. However, if you did all the measurements with a scale, followed all the instructions, then it shouldn’t be pushing your mixer that hard. Either your stand mixer needs maintenance, or something else went wrong (see 1-4).
Anonymous
3/7/2024
O did sonething really stupid, I put dry yeast not instant yeast. My doug is flat after 90 minutes... what can I do????
Dumb Jane
2/15/2024
delicious but you will burn out your kitchenaid if you follow the directions.
Anonymous
2/13/2024
Fantastic recipe. The dough shared broad brushstrokes with King Arthur’s Pillowy Cinnamon Rolls dough from recipe developer Charlotte Rutledge. Zaynab’s cream cheese icing is stellar. The dough was supple and very easy to work with. The dough refrigerated nicely after I made it. It let the dough’s gluten fully develop as I didn’t mix it until the dough passed the window pane test. I had planned to make the dough one day and finish it the next. I shaped the dough into a cinnamon star rather than the traditional cinnamon roll shapes. The recipe was a hit with coworkers. The dough is very forgiving and is very mildly flavored. I think it would make nice raised donuts or lovely dinner rolls, too.
Suz
Cincinnati
1/2/2024
This broke my kitchen aid, smoke coming out of the motor and everything! If you have an old one like mine, I’d watch and listen to the motor as it progresses. I hand kneaded it the rest of the way and they turned out so well. I typically mess up anything that is a baked good and didn’t manage to mess this up. I watched the video first. It took much longer than described for the butter to incorporate in the dough. I read that step about 10 times as I was kneading a buttery mess thinking, I must have screwed this up. The proofing times were just right, I placed the doughs over the vents of the oven as it heated.
Anonymous
Seattle
1/1/2024
This is a great version of the tangzhon cinammon rolls developed 3 years ago by King Arthur Flour. Have made that recipe many times. They adapted the recipe for Japanese Milk Bread, a super soft delicious white bread, and the best dinner rolls you'll ever make.
Missy
Virginia
12/30/2023
Can the dough be prepared in a bread machine?
Elizabeth
Detroit, MI
12/30/2023
These were soft, fluffy rolls that taste amazing
Erika
Massachusetts
12/11/2023
I found your cardamom suggestion interesting as this is the star ingredient in Norwegian school bread, which is basically a sweet bread with custard and coconut, and is an Epcot favorite, too. So, with that, I’m going to use your dough recipe with the Tangzhong to make a new version of this Norwegian favorite! Thanks for the inspiration.
Chef David
11/30/2023
Best Cinnamon Rolls recipe ever! you can tell that Zaynab put a lot of effort into developing this recipe.
Anonymous
11/27/2023
I made these today as a pre birthday treat for a cinnamon roll lover and it went down so well : ) I live in the UK so converted everything to grams and also decided to make half the quantity. My mixer wasn't working so I couldn't use it to knead the dough. I cried and then pulled myself together and kneaded it by hand. It turned out great.
SA
London, England
11/18/2023
I would be curious to have a "not-so-family-friendly" version. For example, in the accompanying video for the R&D of this recipe, they were debating A) different flours (bread? cake?) other than AP and B) using 105g of butter as opposed to 115g (a whole stick for ease). This is something readers can surely iterate on our own, but I think as we search for the perfect recipe it's nice to have an ultra fine-tuned staring point from the experts. I didn't have issue with the stand mixer as many others seemed to but I did have to add nearly 40g of AP flour (5g at a time) to get the dough to come together. The frosting is damn near perfect in my opinion- not too sweet, just enough tang.
B. Boyd
San Luis Obispo, CA
10/23/2023
I have made this recipe several times. The first time I followed the recipe and wow! Very delicious. The second time I substituted the 1 1/2 c. whole milk with buttermilk. The flavor was soooo good that I never switched back!
Ray Redmon
Napa California
10/7/2023
ALL HANDS ON DECK! Love this recipe, was a little intimidated at first but went for it. Worked the recipe backwards .(It worked for me). No mixer needed just old fashion kneading. This recipe is a keeper! Please try and enjoy!
Kathleen Gobel
Groveland California
9/25/2023