I know you’ve probably heard this before, but this time it’s for real. These are the best Cinnamon Rolls you will ever try. These Jumbo Cinnamon Rolls are light, fluffy, packed with cinnamon and brown sugar, and topped with a creamy cream cheese frosting! Before I begin on my blog post, I just want to put a friendly reminder out there that I only go over the most complicated steps of the recipe in my blog posts. If you’d like to see the full recipe, please use the “Jump to Recipe” button above.
Notes on making the dough:
To begin making the dough, first heat the milk to 110℉. I microwave my milk in a heat proof jug or bowl for 45 to 60 seconds until warm to the touch. We don’t want the milk to be too hot as it will kill the yeast and the dough won’t rise. The best way to make sure the milk is the right temperature is to use a food thermometer.
Once the milk is warm, gently whisk in the yeast and 1/2 tablespoon of sugar. Set aside and allow to bloom (in other words, grow) for 15 minutes until foamy.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, sour cream, melted butter, salt and yeast mixture. Stir in 4 1/2 cups of flour until just combined. Place the bowl back into the stand mixer, connect the dough hook and knead for 6 to 8 minutes until the dough starts to pull away from the sides, but is still slightly sticky. If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough by hand for 8 minutes on a well-floured surface. If the dough is too wet and unmanageable, add in another 1/2 cup flour.
The amount of flour needed can change based on different factors such as room humidity or even the brand of flour used. That’s why when it comes to making breads, it’s important to go off the way the dough feels rather than an exact amount of flour. It’s also important to note, however, that adding too much flour can dry out the dough.
See the photo’s below of how the dough should look when ready to roll into a ball. Use a rubber spatula around the edges of the dough to move it into a greased bowl where it can rise.
Place the dough into a large, well-greased bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for an hour. I like to turn the oven on to preheat and place the bowl on top of the oven. I then turn the oven off once preheated and open the door slightly to allow the warm air to reach the dough.
After an hour, the dough should have doubled in size. Remove the dough from the bowl and place onto a well-floured surface. Punch down the dough one or two times and begin to roll the dough out with a rolling pin.
Notes on rolling out the dough:
Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out on a well-floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle 21 inches in length and 12 inches in width. If you’d like to make smaller cinnamon rolls, increase the length of the dough.
In a clean bowl, stir together the softened butter and sour cream. Spread over the rolled out dough, leaving 1/2 inch around the edge. In another bowl, whisk the brown sugar and spices together and sprinkle over the sour cream mixture.
Roll the dough into a log, jelly-roll style, starting at the long side and pinch the seams shut along the log. Cut into 12 slices and place into a greased baking pan, leaving 1/2 an inch to 1 inch in between rolls. Allow to rise for another 30 minutes in a warm place or until the rolls have expanded and are touching.
If you’d like to freeze the rolls: after slicing, wrap them in plastic wrap and freeze until ready to thaw. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to rise at room temperature for 2 hours before baking.
The final notes on making the Cinnamon Rolls:
While the rolls rise, preheat the oven to 350℉. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. To make the frosting, first make sure the cream cheese and butter are softened. If they’re still cold, place them in the microwave, unwrapped, on a microwave safe plate and cook for 5-7 seconds at a time until soft to the touch. Beat the cream cheese and butter until no lumps remain. Gradually add in the powdered sugar, followed by the vanilla extract and milk and beat until smooth. Spread the frosting over the warm cinnamon rolls and serve.
Storing the Cinnamon Rolls:
Once baked, store the rolls in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat in the microwave by heating for 10 seconds at a time until the desired temperature is reached. Unbaked rolls can be wrapped up and stored in the freezer for up to 6 months. Allow the rolls to thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then allow to rise for 2 hours at room temperature.
Jumbo Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
To make the dough
- 1 1/4 cup Whole or 2% Milk
- 1 1/2 tbsp Active Dry Yeast
- 1/2 tbsp Granulated Sugar
- 4 1/2 – 5 cups (540 – 600g) All-Purpose Flour + 1/2 cup More for sprinkling over surface when rolling out dough
- 1/3 cups (70g) Granulated Sugar
- 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1/4 cup Sour Cream
- 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) Unsalted Butter – melted and cooled slightly
- 3/4 tsp Salt
To make the filling
- 1/3 cup Sour Cream
- 1/2 cup (8 tbsp) Unsalted Butter – softened and slightly melted
- 3/4 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 tbsp Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
For the frosting
- 8 oz Cream Cheese – softened
- 3 tbsp Unsalted Butter – softened
- 1 1/4 cup Powdered Sugar – sifted
- 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 tbsp Milk
Instructions
For the dough
- Heat the milk to 110℉ or until warm to the touch. I do this by microwaving the milk in a large bowl for 45 – 60 seconds.
- Gently whisk in the active dry yeast and set aside for 15 minutes.
- Remove the clean bowl of a stand mixer and in it, stir together the sugar, vanilla, eggs, sour cream, melted butter, salt and yeast mixture. Add in 4 1/2 cups of flour and stir until just combined.
- Connect a dough hook to an electric stand mixer and knead on medium speed for 6 to 8 minutes until dough starts to pull away from the sides slightly. The dough should be soft to the touch and a little sticky. If the dough is still sticky and not pulling away from the sides at all, add 1/2 cup more flour.
- Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and form the dough into a ball.
- Grease a large bowl with butter or a neutral flavored oil. Place the ball of dough in the bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise in a warm place for an hour. The dough should have doubled in size.
- Remove the dough from bowl and place onto a floured surface. Punch down a few times. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a 21 inch x 12 inch rectangle.
To make the filling
- Stir together the sour cream and softened butter. Spread over the dough rectangle, leaving about 1/2 inch around the sides.
- In another bowl, stir together the cinnamon, nutmeg and ground ginger. Sprinkle over the butter-sour cream mixture.
- Roll into log starting at the long side to form a jellyroll style log, pinch the seams along the log shut.
- Use a sharp knife to cut into 12 slices. If you'd like to freeze the rolls, wrap them up tightly in plastic wrap and freeze, if not, continue to the next step.
- To fit all 12 slices, place slices in a greased roasting pan or another large pan with sides. Otherwise you can use any pan for the amount of rolls you want to bake, just make sure to leave 1/2 inch between the rolls. Cover and allow to rise for another 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly (about 15 minutes) before frosting.
For the frosting
- Beat the cream cheese and unsalted butter until smooth and creamy.
- Gradually add in the powdered sugar, then the vanilla extract and milk.
- Continue to beat for 4 – 5 minutes on medium-high.
- Spread over warm cinnamon rolls using a spoon.
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