Bread Machine Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting are a classic breakfast recipe. Learn how to make the cinnamon roll dough in your bread machine and you’ll want to make a batch every weekend.

Bread Machine Cinnamon Rolls are my family’s favorite weekend treat. Soft cinnamon rolls topped with a decadent frosting are easy to make and even easier to devour. They will not last long!

This recipe for homemade cinnamon rolls is a classic, partly because it is one of my family’s favorite recipes. Whether its the sweet, creamy frosting or the mouth-watering rolls, it’s bound to be a family favorite of yours too.

Using a bread machine makes this recipe a breeze. The machine does all the hard work in mixing and kneading the bread freeing you up to do other things. When it’s ready it’s as simple as rolling out the dough, adding the filling, and slicing it. Bread machine cinnamon rolls are the easiest way to make this favorite breakfast treat.

Life is good when you eat cinnamon rolls (yes ….plural not singular)! Here in Fort Collins, CO there are plenty of places to get a good cinnamon roll. BUT there is nothing like homemade one, especially when you use this bread machine recipe. Baker beware: this pan will disappear as soon as it is frosted.

How to Make Bread Machine Cinnamon Roll Dough

For the dough, it’s as easy as placing all of the ingredients in the machine. Be sure to add the ingredients in the order listed for best results.

• Melted butter
• Water
• Instant vanilla pudding
• Milk
• Beaten egg
• Sugar 
• Salt
• Bread flour
• Active dry yeast

Are you surprised to see instant pudding? This is my special ingredient – it adds a wonderful vanilla flavor to the dough but it also gives the rolls a perfectly soft and tender texture. 

I recommend using bread flour for this recipe – it makes the best cinnamon rolls because your rolls will be softer and fluffier. If you only have all-purpose flour it will work, but the texture will be a little different.

For the yeast, be sure to check the expiration date on the package. If it’s expired you don’t want to use it because it might not work properly. You want the dough to rise and puff up so double check before you make the rolls.

Once you have all of the ingredients in the machine, just follow the instructions for your model. The machine will mix, knead and proof the bread with no work required from you.

•  Turn the dough onto a work surface and roll it out into a rectangle approximately 17×10 inches.
• Spread melted butter on the dough. Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon over the top of the butter.
• Roll the dough tightly starting with one long end. Pinch the edges closed after it’s rolled up.

Slice dough into 1/2 inch thick slices (I do a little thicker as I like my rolls bigger). Place into a greased 9×13 baking dish.

 Let them rise until they have doubled in size. Then bake them at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

 

Don’t Forget the Cream Cheese Frosting

I can’t imagine a cinnamon roll without a generous slather of cream cheese frosting on top. Here’s what you need to make it:

• Softened cream cheese
• Softened butter
• Powdered sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Milk

Mix all of the ingredients together until smooth and then spread it over the hot rolls.

Serve them warm from the oven with all that decadent frosting on top. They truly are one of our favorite ways to celebrate the weekend whether it’s for a holiday or just an average Saturday. My kids give it five enthusiastic stars – they just love all the drippy frosting. I know you will love this recipe, too.

Enjoy! XOXO San

P.S. Have a question about making homemade cinnamon rolls? Here are some common questions I get:

Why didn’t my dough rise?

Oh no! Well, there could be a few reasons your dough didn’t rise. If it didn’t puff up and proof in the machine it might be because your yeast is old. Yeast is a living thing and does “die” after a certain amount of time. Be sure to use yeast that is not expired.

If your dough rose in the machine but did not after you rolled out the dough and made the rolls (second rise) it could be the temperature of the room. The dough rises best in warm, draft-free space so if your room is cold it will take longer for the rolls to double in size. If your room is really warm it will take less time.

Can I make the dough in advance?

I love this recipe so much I will get up at 3:30 in the morning to make it, but you don’t have to. You have a few options if you want to make the dough or unbaked rolls in advance:

• Once the dough has finished the cycle in the bread machine you can refrigerate it until you are ready to use it. It will continue to proof in the refrigerator but at a much slower rate. Plan to use the dough within a few days. When you are ready, proceed with rolling out the dough, add the filling, and slice the rolls. They may take longer to rise in the pan since the dough will be cold, so just account for that extra time.
• You can also assemble the rolls and then pop them in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake them. Because the filling may start to leak out, only keep the unbaked rolls in the refrigerator for one to two days and then bake them as instructed.
• If you want to make and assemble the rolls the night before you can do that, too. Just pop them in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, let them rise until they have double in size and then bake as instructed.

How long do they keep?

Any leftover cinnamon rolls will keep for up to two days at room temperature. Beyond that and they will start to dry out. Properly store them in an airtight container.

More Breakfast Recipes to Try

We love to make a big breakfast on the weekend so here are a few more recipes you might like to try, too.

• Bacon Chive Crustless Quiche
• Best Ever Coffee Cake
• Simple No-Bake Fruit Tart

Don’t forget to pin this to your favorite Pinterest board to save for later!