There is nothing better than the smell of fresh baked cinnamon rolls in the morning! If you’re the lucky one still sleeping, that smell alone will be more than enough to get ya out of bed…no alarm clock necessary!
I want to share with you the most amazing homemade cinnamon roll recipe I have had! This super easy recipe will have you whipping up a batch of these on the weekends from now on, and the best part about them is that you can do the hard part the night before! So no worries for those of you that have to get up to bake these beauties.
I found this recipe from my favorite Instagram food blogger, Jamielyn Nye, so go follow her and then head over to her food blog, https://www.iheartnaptime.net/, for more amazing recipes!!
Easy Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
Materials
For the Dough
- 1 1/4 cups warm milk (105-110 degrees)
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar divided (1 tbsp set aside)
- 1/2 cup butter melted
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
For the Filling
- 6 tbsp butter barely softened (NOT melted)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon
For the Frosting
- 6 tbsp salted butter softened
- 2 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- milk for consistency
Instructions
To Make the Dough:
- In a small bowl, add the warm milk, yeast, and 1 tbsp. of sugar. Let sit for about 5 minutes, until bubbly.
- In a large bowl, whisk the egg. Then whisk in the remaining sugar and salt. Add in the melted butter and yeast mixture.
- Add 2 cups of flour and stir until smooth. Add the remaining flour a 1/2 cup at a time. Knead for 5 minutes. If the dough is too sticky, you can add 1-2 tbsp. of additional flour, but the dough should remain soft.
- Once dough is nice and soft, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot. Tip: Turn the oven on to 175 degrees and then turn it off. Place a small bowl of hot water and the covered dough in the oven to rise faster.
To Make the Filling:
- Mix together brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
- Once your dough has doubled in size, punch it down and roll out a floured surface. You want to form a rectangle approximately 15×20 inches, but it doesn't have to be perfect. Spread softened butter onto the dough with a brush and then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mix on top. Gently press the sugar down into the butter. Roll the dough up tightly starting at the shorter side. Pinch the sides together at the end.
- Cut the dough in half and then in half again. From this point, cut the dough into 1 inch pieces with floss or a large serrated knife. You can make 12 big cinnamon rolls or 16 medium size. Place dough rolls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 1 inch apart. At this point if you wanted to bake, you can let the rolls sit for another hour or until rolls have doubled in size.
Refrigerate Overnight:
- Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and then place in the refrigerator for up to 16 hours. Then the next morning, pull them out onto the counter and let them rise until doubled, about 1-2 hours. You can use the oven tip again here to help them rise faster.
Bake:
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown on top. Remove from oven and allow to cool about 10 minutes before frosting.
Make the Frosting:
- Beat together the frosting ingredients in a large bowl with an electric beater. You can add more milk or powdered sugar to reach your desired consistency. Spread over the cinnamon rolls with a spatula.
- Enjoy!
Notes:
- You can freeze the rolls after they have been baked and cooled. Simply place them in a freezer container or zip top bag, then set out to thaw overnight. Warm individual rolls in microwave for 10-20 seconds or in the oven at 200 degrees for 5-10 minutes.
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If you want more of Jamielyn’s amazing recipes, you can find her cookbook, I Heart Naptime, on Amazon.