I make these homemade cinnamon rolls every year for the holidays. Soft, gooey, and easy to make, they're always a hit with family and friends!
I make this cinnamon rolls recipe every year for the holidays. And every year, it’s a HUGE hit.
These homemade cinnamon rolls are soft and gooey. They’re packed with a cinnamon brown sugar filling and topped with a sweet vanilla glaze. If you like store-bought cinnamon rolls, get ready—these homemade ones are SO much better!
They’re also easy to make. So many of our readers have made and loved this cinnamon roll recipe over the years. It has over 200 5-star reviews!
If you need a special breakfast for Christmas morning or any weekend brunch, I can’t recommend this cinnamon roll recipe enough. It’s one of my favorites. I hope it becomes one of yours too!
Ingredients in these Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Here’s what you’ll need to make this cinnamon roll recipe:
- Active dry yeast or instant yeast – Even if you’re using instant yeast, you’ll proof it with cane sugar and warm water before mixing it into the dough.
- Coconut oil (or melted butter) and almond milk – Most cinnamon roll recipes call for butter and regular milk, but, as a vegan option, this recipe works perfectly with coconut oil and almond milk.
- Sugar – It makes the cinnamon roll dough lightly sweet.
- Sea salt – Essential for a flavorful dough.
- All-purpose flour – Spoon and level it to avoid packing too much into your measuring cup.
- Dark brown sugar and cinnamon – They create the delicious cinnamon sugar filling.
- Powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and more almond milk – For the glaze! It’s sweet, gooey, and quick and easy to mix together. If you love cream cheese icing on cinnamon rolls, top them with my vegan frosting or cream cheese frosting instead.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Cinnamon Rolls
I love how easy it is to make this recipe. No stand mixer required! Here’s how it goes:
First, make the dough. Start by proofing the yeast. Mix it with warm water and sugar in a small bowl, and set it aside for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy. If it doesn’t foam, discard the mixture and start again with new yeast.
Next, mix together the wet ingredients—the coconut oil, almond milk, sugar, and salt—in a medium bowl. Stir in the yeast mixture.
Place the flour in a large bowl and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir to combine, and then use your hands to knead the mixture until it comes together into a rough dough.
Next, keep kneading! Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and continue to knead until it becomes smooth.
Then, let the dough rise. Form it into a ball and place it in a large bowl greased with coconut oil. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set it aside until the dough has doubled in size.
Next, roll out the dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and use a rolling pin to shape it into a large rectangle. Brush the dough with coconut oil and sprinkle it evenly with brown sugar and cinnamon, leaving a border around the edges.
Then, roll and cut the rolls. Starting at a short end of the rectangle, roll the dough tightly into a log.
Use a sharp knife to slice the log into 12 even rolls. Place them in a large greased baking pan, cut side up. Cover the rolls and set them aside to rise for one more hour.
Finally, bake the cinnamon rolls at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes, until they’re lightly golden brown. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for 10 minutes.
While they cool, make the glaze. Slather it over them and enjoy warm!
Cinnamon Roll Recipe Tips
- Make sure your almond milk is at room temperature. Because I often make these cinnamon rolls with melted coconut oil instead of softened butter, it’s crucial that your milk is at room temperature when you’re stirring together the wet ingredients for the dough. If it’s not, the melted coconut oil will solidify. I like to measure the almond milk and pop it in the microwave for 15 seconds before mixing it with the other ingredients.
- Let the dough rise somewhere warm. Yeast responds to warmth, so, for an extra productive rise, stick the dough somewhere warm. We like to put ours on a sunny windowsill! I’ve also had success putting them in the oven while it’s turned off but the oven light is on.
- Add the glaze when the rolls are still warm, but not hot. If the rolls are too hot when you add the glaze, it will melt. If they’re too cold, it won’t spread and ooze over them. I find that letting them cool for 10 minutes brings them to the perfect temperature. They’ll still be warm when you eat them, and the frosting will soften over them without completely melting.
How to Make Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
Get ahead on this cinnamon roll recipe by assembling the rolls the night before you plan to serve them. That way, you can easily bake them off in the morning!
To make overnight cinnamon rolls, prepare the recipe up to the point of slicing the rolls. Place them in the baking dish and cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap. Instead of letting the rolls rise at room temperature, refrigerate them overnight. The next morning, remove the rolls from the refrigerator. Let them stand at room temperature for 1 hour before uncovering and baking them according to the recipe.
Storage Tips
Store these homemade cinnamon rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, I recommend freezing them.
How to Freeze Cinnamon Rolls
Allow the cinnamon rolls to cool completely after baking. Wrap individual rolls in foil or plastic wrap, or tightly cover the entire baking dish. Store the rolls in the freezer for up to 3 months. Wrapped or covered in foil, they reheat perfectly in a 350°F oven. Add the glaze right before you eat!
More Favorite Brunch Recipes
If you love these soft, fluffy cinnamon rolls, try one of these brunch recipes next:
- How to Make a Frittata
- Spinach Quiche
- French Toast Casserole
- Coffee Cake
- Baked Oatmeal
- French Toast Bake
- Banana Pancakes
- Or any of these 51 Best Brunch Recipes!
Getting ready for Christmas morning? Check out these 45 Christmas Breakfast Ideas!
Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the yeast
- ½ cup warm water, 110°F
- 1 (¼-ounce) package active dry yeast or instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Dough
- ⅓ cup melted butter or coconut oil, plus more for brushing
- ½ cup milk, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
Filling
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- 1½ tablespoons cinnamon
Glaze
- 1½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 3 to 4 tablespoons milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Other Frosting Options (instead of the glaze)
- 1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
- Grease an 8x11 or 9x13-inch baking dish.
- In a small bowl, stir together the water, yeast, and sugar. Set aside for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
- Make the dough: In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, milk, sugar, and salt. Stir in the yeast mixture. Place the flour in a large bowl, then add the wet ingredients and stir until combined. The mixture will be sticky. Use your hands to roughly knead the mixture, then turn it out onto a floured surface. Knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes, or until smooth, sprinkling it with more flour if needed. Form the dough into a ball.
- Brush a large bowl with butter and place the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Make the filling: In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Punch down the dough and roll it out on a floured surface into a 20x14-inch rectangle. Brush with 2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar to within ½ inch of the edges.
- Starting at one of the short 14-inch ends, roll tightly into a log, then use a sharp knife to slice the log into 12 rolls. Place the rolls in the baking dish cut-side up, cover, and let rise for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, and vanilla until smooth. If it’s too thick, add more milk. Alternatively, make this cream cheese frosting recipe instead of the glaze.
- Uncover the rolls and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly golden on top. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes, then drizzle the glaze or frosting on top and serve.
Recipe adapted from Oh She Glows.
Question so I understand the science behind it–
Why does the dough need to be left to rise the second time, after making it into rolls?
This recipe changed my entire outlook on yeast recipes and homemade rolls. I could not believe how PERFECT they turned out. This recipe is possibly my favorite one ever. Thank you so much for sharing!! Question: is this recipe in any of your cookbooks? Xoxo