Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing

Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing are a buttery, gooey, and soft buns that literally melt in your mouth! These homemade cinnamon rolls are made with buttery brioche dough, gooey cinnamon filling, and topped with a velvety homemade cream cheese frosting for the ULTIMATE treat!

For another bakery style cinnamon rolls recipe, try my blueberry cinnamon rolls, banana bread cinnamon rolls and maple bacon cinnamon rolls!

I just love the smell of fresh baked cinnamon rolls on christmas morning. We’ve officially hit that time of year where everyone’s baking cozy treats and I am SO here for it. This homemade cinnamon roll recipe has quickly become a family favorite and for good reason.

These cinnamon buns are better than cinnabon and are completely made from scratch! It’s a delicious buttery brioche dough with a gooey cinnamon sugar filling and a smooth cream cheese icing on top that’s just SO good.

These are easily the best cinnamon rolls you’ll ever make and that’s a promise! They have rich flavor, they’re gooey and soft, and that cream cheese icing on top is *insert chef’s kiss* – delicious!

To make these brioche cinnamon rolls, you’ll need a stand mixer, a lot of butter, cream, and sugar. Let’s put on our apron and get started. Happy Baking!

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

• They’re better than Cinnabon! These gooey buttery cinnamon rolls are the best! The texture of these rolls literally melt in your mouth and buttery cinnamon brown sugar filling with the the cream cheese icing on top seals the deal!
• These buns will melt in your mouth! The buns are soaked in heavy cream prior to baking (the tiktock hack) which makes them so decadent and flavorful. This step takes these cinnamon buns to the next level!
• From scratch! Why use store bought when you can make your own homemade cinnamon rolls?
• Make them now or later! You can make these rolls immediately or you can let the dough sit overnight in the refrigerator and make them the next morning.
• Gooey Center! The cinnamon filling has butter, brown sugar, and loads of cinnamon that really make these rolls so luxurious and velvety.
• Best Cream Cheese Frosting ever. The frosting has cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and the tiniest pinch of salt and it SO good on warm cinnamon rolls.

Ingredients

Cinnamon Roll Dough

We’re making a brioche dough for the perfect cinnamon rolls! Here’s what you’ll need:

• Pastry Flour – ok this is my secret ingredient for decadent cinnabon-style cinnamon rolls. I won’t go too deep into it, but pastry flour has a finer texture and lower protein content – which makes for soft and gooey cinnamon rolls. You can use all purpose flour or bread flour, but pastry flour is the way to go to get the true cinnabon gooeyness.
• Active Dry Yeast – the yeast is what makes these rolls fluffy cinnamon rolls. Be sure to use yeast that’s not expired. If it bubbles up while dissolving, it’s more than likely good (see more on this in the recipe card). You can also use instant yeast here – if using instant yeast, just throw everything into the stand mixer. No need to dissolve the yeast prior to making the dough.
• Sugar – we’re using sugar for the dough for sweetness but also to interact with the yeast and allow these rolls to rise.
• Softened Butter – We are not skimping on butter for these extra-gooey treats. I used salted butter, but feel free to use unsalted butter if you’re watching your salt intake.
• Eggs – eggs are richness to the dough and bind everything together. We’re also using egg yolk here for extra flavor.
• Spices – cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to flavor the dough.
• Milk – you can use whatever kind of milk you’d like! I used whole milk.

For the Filling

Here are the ingredients for the cinnamon sugar filling:

• Brown sugar – light or dark brown sugar work here.
• Sugar – for a little bit of added sweetness.
• Butter – use slightly melted butter. I microwaved the butter for about 30 seconds to melt it just a tiny bit. This makes it easier to spread onto the dough.
• Cinnamon – we’re using a heaping 2 tbsps of ground cinnamon for the filling. Trust me, it’s so worth it.
• Heavy cream – technically, the heavy cream doesn’t go inside of the cinnamon rolls, it gets poured on top of the cinnamon rolls and soaks into the rolls prior to baking. For this good reason alone, I see why this became a viral recipe – it’s genius. I first saw this trick on Taste of Lizzy T and I’ll never make my cinnamon buns without heavy cream again. You’ll only need a 1/2 cup of heavy cream.

Cream Cheese Icing

• Cream Cheese – at room temperature
• Butter – also at room temperature
• Powdered Sugar
• Vanilla Extract
• Pinch of salt

Leave the store-bought cinnamon rolls at the market, get your stand mixer out, a 9×13 baking pan, and gather your ingredients – it’s time to bake!

Tips

• Make sure to measure your flour properly. You’ll want to either scoop the flour into the measuring cup with a spoon or use a kitchen scale to measure it. This prevents adding too much flour to the recipe. It’s the best way to get the most consistent results.
• Use softened butter as opposed to room temperature butter for the brioche dough. This means that when you press the butter, the you should see your fingerprint but the butter holds its shape. If the butter completely loses its shape, it’s too soft.
• When adding the butter to the dough, the dough may break apart – this is OK! Just keep going, the dough will come back together. It helps to increase the speed to high for a minute or two – that usually does the trick.

How to make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls (From Scratch)

Make the Brioche Dough

• Begin by combining warm milk, yeast, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Allow the yeast to sit for become foamy, about 5-10 minutes. (Image 1)

• Then add pastry flour, eggs, egg yolks, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix together on low speed until the dough forms into a ball and continue to mix for about 3 minutes.

• Cut the room temperature butter into tablespoon sized pieces. Increase the speed to medium and begin adding butter to the dough, one tablespoon at a time. Mix the dough for about one minute prior to adding the next tablespoon. Once all of the butter is added, mix on medium speed for another 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. The dough should be tacky and sticky. (Image 2)

• Next step, place the dough in an oiled bowl and and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place for about an hour to an hour and half, until it’s doubled in size. (this is considered the first rise)

Make the Filling and Cream Cheese Glaze

While the rolls are rising, prepare the filling and the icing.

• To make the filling, microwave butter in a medium sized bowl for about 30-45 seconds. Butter should be partially melted and still have a few chunks. Then add brown sugar, sugar, and cinnamon and mix together until all ingredients are incorporated. Set butter mixture aside until you’re ready to use. (Image 3)

• Then make the cream cheese icing for the top of the rolls (my favorite part of this delicious treat). Combine cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream together until smooth, then add vanilla extract and a tiny pinch of salt. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside. (Image 4)

Assemble the Rolls

• Place dough onto a lightly floured surface and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 12×18 large rectangle. Trim any excess pieces. (Image 5)

• Spread the sugar and cinnamon mixture evenly all around the dough. Start with the short end (the 12-inch side) and roll the dough tightly into a log. Some of the filling may leak out, this is OK. (Image 6)

• Cut the rolls into 12 equal pieces with a serrated knife of unflavored dental floss (also known as the dental floss trick). Place rolls into a 9×13 baking dish. (Image 7)
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let the cinnamon rolls rise again for 30 minutes in a warm environment (second rise). Once the rolls have become puffy, pour the heavy cream on top and bake for 28-30 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. (Image 8)

Allow the rolls to cool for at least 30 minutes then add the cinnamon roll icing on top. Best part – enjoy

Overnight Option

To make these rolls the next day, prepare the dough, filling, and assemble the rolls as instructed. Place the cut rolls into a large baking dish and cover with plastic wrap.

Place rolls in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours. When you’re ready to bake, let them sit at room temperature 30 minutes prior to baking and pour the heavy cream on top. Bake for 28-30 minutes as instructed below in the recipe card.

Storing

Store any leftover cinnamon rolls in an airtight container or cover the baking dish with plastic wrap. They can be stored at room temperature for up to two days and in the refrigerator for up to a week.

You can also freeze cinnamon rolls for up to three months if they’ve not been frosted. If they’ve been frosted, they’ll be a bit unpleasant when you defrost them.

More Cinnamon Roll Recipes

• Blueberry Cinnamon Rolls
• Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting
• One Hour Cinnamon Orange Rolls
• Apple Pie filled Cinnamon Rolls
• Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls with Orange Icing
• Cinnamon Roll Cookies