About This Recipe
LORD! I do love me a cinnamon roll. In fact, there is nothing better in my opinion. A warm gooey cinnamon roll ESPECIALLY with a creamy brown butter frosting, might just be my “last meal (or baked good?) request.
This is a classic cinnamon roll recipe, but because Im a tinkerer, we are elevating them a bit. These rolls are made with a rich, soft dough and loaded with a generous filling of warm cinnamon and dark brown sugar. Instead of skimping on the good stuff, we spread plenty of that buttery cinnamon-sugar mixture across the bottom of each roll right, creating a gooey, caramelized layer underneath as they bake. Then, just before they go into the oven, we pour heavy whipping cream over the rolls, which sinks into the dough as they bake and helps create an incredibly soft, tender, almost melt-in-your-mouth texture.
And then there’s the frosting- ohhh mama! Insanely delicious brown butter cream cheese frosting gets spread over the warm rolls, melting into every swirl and little crevice. The nutty richness of the brown butter, tangy cream cheese, and sweet cinnamon filling make these so much more than your average cinnamon roll. They’re soft, gooey, buttery, caramelized, and completely addictive. Consider yourself warned!
Key Ingredients
Bread Flour — I have played around with both all purpose and bread flour in this recipe and I keep coming back to bread. I love it because it provides structure and chew. Something is missing with just all purpose flour.
Unsalted Butter — I always use unsalted butter when baking. If you only have salted- that is totally fine- I would jut reduce the salt in the rolls to only 1/2 tsp.
Dark Brown Sugar — Another ingredient Ive played around with when making cinnamon rolls. Dark brown sugar in the cinnamon roll filling just adds depth! And when it caramelizes with the butter and heavy whipping cream- it is rich and gooey and absolutely to die for!
Egg & Egg Yolk — I recently switched to one egg and one egg yolk- I have found that a single yolk yields a richer dough which I prefer.
Ground Cinnamon — I use regular store bought ground cinnamon and I like to use a lot of it. Without cinnamon, you don’t have the roll!
Heavy Whipping Cream — A lil ole trick I learned from Lizzy T long ago- douse your cinnamon rolls in room temperature heavy whipping cream! DO not skip this! Pouring this cream over the rolls helps create a caramelized bottom to your cinnamon rolls- just like we remember and love from Cinnabon!
Brown Butter — The flavor hero of this baked good. I have yet to try brown butter in my actual cinnamon roll dough. Even just the brown butter in the cream cheese frosting makes a crazy difference in complexity and taste.
Nutmeg — This is optional but I love adding a fresh grate of nutmeg to the cinnamon roll dough. Along with the other ingredients, it just helps build flavor and provides warmth in these rolls.
Cream Cheese — I always come back to good ole cream cheese for my frosting. I prefer a cream cheese icing to any other when it comes to cinnamon rolls!
FAQ’s
Helpful Tips
- Use full-fat cream cheese: For the best brown butter cream cheese frosting, I highly recommend using full-fat, brick-style cream cheese. It creates a thicker, creamier frosting that holds up beautifully on warm cinnamon rolls.
- Don’t let the brown butter frosting get too runny:
Make sure your brown butter has cooled before mixing with the cream cheese. If it’s still warm, it can melt the cream cheese and leave you with a thin frosting. If your frosting is too runny, pop it into the refrigerator for 15–30 minutes to firm it up, then give it a quick mix before spreading. - Measure your flour correctly: Too much flour can quickly turn soft cinnamon rolls into dense, dry rolls. I recommend using a kitchen scale whenever possible. If you’re measuring with cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off—don’t scoop directly from the flour bag.
- Don’t add hot butter to your dough: If you’re melting butter for the dough, let it cool until it’s warm or close to room temperature before adding it. Butter that’s too hot can begin cooking the eggs and can interfere with your yeast.
- Keep your milk warm, not hot: Your milk should feel warm but not hot. Around 105–110°F (40–43°C) is perfect. Milk that’s too hot can kill the yeast, leaving you with cinnamon rolls that don’t rise properly. If you’re unsure, use a kitchen thermometer- you can buy for cheap off of amazon (i have one linked above)!
- Don’t rush the rise: The dough needs time to become light and puffy. Your kitchen temperature will affect how quickly it rises, so use the dough’s appearance as your guide rather than relying solely on the clock.
- Don’t be afraid of the heavy cream: Pouring heavy whipping cream over the risen rolls right before baking can look super weird and counterintuitive, but it is intentional! It sinks into the dough as the rolls bake, helping create that incredibly soft, gooey texture. It may seem like a lot at first, but TRUST- you wont go back!
More Recipes!
Here are some more recipes you might enjoy!
Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Upside Down Toasted Coconut Banana Bread
Tropical Banana Bread with Coconut Frosting
Nutella Swirl Espresso Banana Bread
If you try this recipe, I would love your feedback! Please leave a star rating, a comment below or on the reel in Instagram! Also please share what you made and tag @eatatmaudes !! Thank you so much for stopping by and making yumminess with me!
Brown Butter Cinnamon Rolls
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Equipment
- 9 x13 inch baking dish (i prefer a ceramic pan)
- Sharp knife or pastry cutter
Ingredients
Cinnamon Rolls
- 1 cup (240 mL) warm whole milk (about 105 degrees F)
- 2 1/4 tsp (7 g) instant dry yeast (1 packet)
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, room temp
- 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled (not hot)
- 1/3 cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp (5 mL) pure vanilla paste or extract
- 1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (optional, buts to the flavor of the rolls!)
- 1 1/4 tsp (7 g) fine sea salt
- 3 1/2 – 4 cups (430 – 480 g) bread flour
- 1/2 cup (120 mL) heavy whipping cream, room temp (save for right before baking rolls)
- 2 additional tbsp unsalted butter, for greasing the baking dish
Cinnamon Roll Filling
- 12 tbsp (170 g) unsalted butter, VERY soft, to room temp
- 1 + 1/3 cup (290 g) brown sugar, packed (note I used dark brown sugar, light also works)
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp (21 g) ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp fine sea salt
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Icing
- 10 oz (283 g) cream cheese (full fat), softened to room temp
- 8 tbsp (113 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temp
- 1 – 1 1/4 cup (120 -150 g) powdered sugar
- 1/2 tbsp (7 mL) milk
- 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract
Instructions
Enable Step-by-Step Mode- For the rolls, pour milk into a saucepan and stir over medium heat. Once milk reaches 105 degrees Fahrenheit, remove from heat and pour into a stand mixer. Sprinkle in yeast. Let the mix sit for about 2 minutes without stirring. (Note: you dont want your milk too warm, aim for 100 -105)
- Add the egg, egg yolk, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg and butter. Mix everything gently with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add 3 1/2 cups (430 g) bread flour and salt and mix gently again. Let that mix sit for another minute or two.
- Using a hook attachment begin kneading on medium speed for about 6-8 minutes. (note: you can use your hands if you don’t have a stand mixer. The dough will be messy at first, but will become more elastic as you knead) The dough will stick to the sides of your mixer at- that is expected. And then the dough should starting clicking against the sides of the bowl as it kneads. If the dough looks to be sticking too much, add one tsp of flour at a time until the dough becomes more elastic. After 6-8 minutes, place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a towel and let the dough double in size. About 45-50 min.
- While dough is rising, make your filling. In a large bowl, simply mix softened butter, cinnamon, brown sugar and salt until well incorporated and like a smooth paste.
- Using 2 tbsps of softened butter, grease the bottom of an 9 x13 baking dish.
- After the dough has a well floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll dough into the shape of a (rough) rectangle (about 24 x 15). Evenly spread the filling from edge to edge (reserve about 1 1/2 tbsp of the filling, we will use that to spread on the bottom of each roll). Then using a pastry cutter or knife, on the 24 inch side, slice/cut 12 even strips of the dough. Like rolling a rug, roll up one strip of dough. Place in the pan and then repeat with the other 11 strips. Once all rolls have been placed in the pan, lift each roll and spread the leftover filling on the bottom of all 12 rolls. This creates a sticky delicious coating on the bottom of the rolls as they bake!
- Cover the rolls and let them rest/rise for another 25-30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
- For the frosting, to brown the butter, add butter to a small saucepan and cook over low/medium heat. Cook until butter foams and starts to emit a warm, nutty fragrance (this could take several minutes). Once butter is browned, immediately remove from the heat and pour into a large heatproof bowl.
- Once your rolls have rested for about 25 minutes, pour whipping cream over the rolls. We want the top and sides to be covered in cream Bake for about 25 minutes. Ovens vary (it could take up to 30 minutes), your rolls should be puffed up and oozing with delicious creamy juices! And nice and brown on top! Remove from the oven to cool.
- After browned butter has cooled, add softened cream cheese to the bowl and mix with a hand mixer (*Note: the mix will lumpy and liquid-like at first, but keep mixing, it will become smooth). Add the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Frost the rolls after about 10 minutes out of the oven. Enjoy!