Soft Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
February 21, 2018 by Ginger Hultin MS RDN
I simply have to share this famous family recipe of mine with you because everyone needs a little cinnamon roll in their life. If you’ve got yeast, brown sugar, butter, flour, eggs and cinnamon, you’re ready to make some of the best soft fluffy cinnamon rolls you’ve ever had! Whip these up then let them rise (twice) for a hands-off recipe that makes a beautiful baking dish full of warm, gooey, comforting and delicious cinnamon rolls. I love making these any time of year – especially for Mother’s Day, back to school, the winter holidays, or a snow day at home.Â
This is my Mom’s cinnamon roll recipe, adapted a little to make a smaller batch. When I was a kid, she reserved these for snow days when we were all at home. Waiting for them to rise was agony. I remember watching her roll them out on the counter, let them rise over the warm oven, cut them precisely with string, stuff them tightly together in the pan and then wait in intense anticipation as the house filled with the fragrance of winter baking. They also bring to mind family ski vacations! We made them recently when we were in Sun Valley at a big ski house, and it brought back all the feels. I even taught my husband to make them, and making them together was such a fun date-night activity.
While these warm and gooey treats are a great way to get you out of bed when it’s cold, these are not just for winter, they’re delicious any time of year! They’re lovely in the spring for family get-togethers or those cooler days stuck at home. They’re a perfect grab-and-go summer treat and they’re so warm and comforting in the fall and winter. Whatever season it is, you really can’t go wrong.
Cinnamon roll add-ins
I’m a cinnamon roll purist. I don’t like nuts or raisins in them and this recipe delivers that. Just pure, doughy, chewy goodness with a light cinnamon-vanilla flavor. However, YOU could put anything you want in these, adding it to the simple filling. Chopped dried fruit, chopped nuts or even extra spices like cardamom or even almond extract would be incredible in these. But I like to keep them simple. Think about starting off with just the basics and working up from there.
Making the best soft fluffy cinnamon rolls
These actually are simple but they take some time. Here are some tips for you as you work through them:
- Â Start off by melting the butter in the warm water, the water should be about 100-110 degrees-if it’s any hotter, you risk scorching the yeast. If you’ve got a mixer, you want to do all this in the mixer bowl because otherwise it will be a lot of work to add in all the flour.Â
- Then you add the yeast and sugar. The warm water will activate the yeast, so it’s ready to go and the sugar gives the yeast something to eat which is what allows the dough to rise.Â
- The dough should be light and fluffy and easy to handle at this point. You want to make the dough into a ball and coat with the olive oil, put it in the bowl and cover it. Try setting it over a warm oven or somewhere without drafts so it has the perfect environment to help it rise.
Once the dough has risen for about an hour you will roll it out into a big rectangle on a floured surface. This is where you get to cover it with butter and whatever toppings you have decided to use. As I mentioned I usually stick with spices and sugar, but you can be creative if you like more variety in your cinnamon rolls.
Now that the fillings are spread over the dough, you want to carefully roll up the dough lengthwise into a long roll.
Once you have the long roll you cut it into equal size slices. I like to cut them with dental floss, which is an easy, non-stick way to do it. You then put the slices cut side up in the pan, then let them rise again until they have about doubled in size, usually an hour to an hour and a half.
Then you stick them in the preheated oven and wait! I usually lean towards the shorter end of baking because I actually love them a little gooey and underbaked, but if you don’t then let them bake a little longer. They are amazing either way, so how long you bake them is up to you!
I hope you absolutely love these!
If you need any other comforting recipes to bake, try my vegan thumbprint cookies with a yummy jam center, Coconut oat chocolate chip cookies a fun twist on the classic or black bean brownies featuring peanut butter and jelly, for a high fiber, but still delicious, dessert option.
Soft Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter divided or vegan butter alternative
- 1 1/4 cups hot water 100-110 degrees
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 package yeast
- 2 whole eggs at room temperature, beat
- 4 cups bread flour plus more for rolling out the dough. Consider making them gluten free by using a Bob's Red Mill gluten-free flour blend instead
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Simple Topping
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy or oat milk
- 1 tablespoon softened butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Melt 1/4 cup of butter in the hot water. Add the sugar and package of yeast. Whisk it and let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Whisk in the eggs then mix in the flour with a wooden spoon, 1 cup at a time. Dough should be soft but not sticky.
- Form the dough into a ball and set it in a bowl greased with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, cover it and let it rise for an hour, until it has doubled in size.
- Next prepare the pan: Use the other 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to grease a large 12x9 glass baking dish.
- After the dough has about doubled in size remove it from the bowl, punch down the dough then lay it on a floured surface and roll it out to a large rectangle (12x28).
- Spread the additional 1/2 cup butter onto the surface, brushing it with a brush or spreading it with your hands.
- In a separate bowl, blend the brown sugar and cinnamon then spread it on top of the butter until the whole surface is covered evenly.
- Roll the dough up loosely lengthwise, then use dental floss to cut it into pieces, about 2 inches wide each.
- Set each piece in the prepared pan, 3 wide, until there's 9-12 pieces in the pan.
- Cover it loosely, set it in a warm place and let it rise for another 60-90 minutes, until the dough has doubled in size.
- Once the dough has about doubled, preheat the oven to 375F.
- Uncover the rolls and bake them for 30 minutes. If they're starting to brown on top, cover them with foil and bake them for another 5-10 minutes.
- Set them aside to cool and after 20-30 minutes, make the topping and drizzle it on top of the cooling cinnamon rolls.
Nutrition
Ginger Hultin,MS, RD, CSO
Thanks for visiting! If you're struggling with a cancer diagnosis, autoimmune condition, gut health problems, or even a medical mystery, nutrition can make a HUGE difference in your day-to-day life. I run a virtual, concierge private practice where I partner with my clients over time to help them improve their health through nutrition. Be sure to visit the blog for easy, plant-based, anti-inflammatory recipes and our "Resources" page for a variety of self-paced programs, books, e-books, and nutrition podcast episodes.