Soft and Easy Cinnamon Scrolls
These Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Scrolls are perfectly sweet, filled with a rich cinnamon-sugar swirl, and topped with creamy cream cheese frosting—a must-try for any cinnamon roll lover!
Ingredients
Cinnamon Scrolls
- 375 g whole milk warmed to 43C / 110F
- 45 g granulated sugar
- 7 g active dry yeast or instant dry yeast, see notes
- 525 g all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg lightly beaten (55g)
- 7 g vanilla extract
- 85 g unsalted butter cubed and softened
Cinnamon Filling
- 125 g unsalted butter softened (see notes)
- 200 g brown sugar
- 18 g cinnamon powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 15 g flour
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 125 g cream cheese softened
- 30 g unsalted butter softened
- 75 g powdered sugar sifted
- 7 g vanilla extract
Instructions
Cinnamon Scrolls
- Activating the yeast - Add the warm milk (warmed to 43C / 110F), sugar and yeast into a large jug and stir to combine. Let it sit for 5 minutes in a warm spot. It will froth slightly.
- Making the dough - Add the flour, salt, milk mixture, egg, vanilla extract and softened butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and fit the machine with the dough hook attachment. Mix on low speed for 15 minutes or until the dough is very smooth.
- First rise - Lightly grease a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in the fridge for 1 hour or overnight. It will double in size. Allowing it to rise in the fridge overnight helps develop a better tasing dough which is what I like to do.
Cinnamon Filling
- Add all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix using a spatula until a paste like texture is formed.
To Form The Scrolls
- Prepare the baking tin - Grease a 33cm x 22cm / 13 x 9-inch baking dish which is 7cm / 2.5-inches in height with butter or oil spray. Set aside.
- Rolling out the dough - Turn the risen dough out onto a floured surface and roll out into a 60 x 40cm / 24 x 16-inch rectangle. The neater you get the shape, the neater your scrolls will look.
- Spreading filling and rolling - Evenly spread the butter mixture on top using a spatula or spoon. Carefully roll up from one end, making your way to the other. Going slow is the best way to get things looking neat. Carefully use a sharp knife to slice the log into two pieces and place on a baking tray. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes or freezer for 10 minutes to firm up. This step helps firm the dough for easier slicing.
- Slicing up - Use a large sharp knife to slice each log into 6 even sized pieces (using a ruler to do this will give you even sized scrolls). You’ll get 12 all up. If you need to trim off the edges to get nice even shapes, do that. When slicing them up, go slow.
- Second rise - Place the scrolls into the baking dish, spacing them out as neatly as you (keeping in mind they will double in size in the next rise) and cover loosely with plastic wrap that’s been sprayed with a little oil. Set aside in a warm spot to rise for 1 hour. They will double in size and will puff up.
- Bake - 15 minutes before you’re ready to bake, preheat a fan-forced oven to 170C / 340F (190C / 375F for no fan). Bake rolls in the middle rack of your oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until rolls are golden brown in color. The cinnamon filling will bubble and caramelize.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- While the rolls are baking, make the cream cheese frosting by adding the softened cream cheese and butter to a medium sized mixing bowl. Use an electric hand mixer to beat until creamy and well combined. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until no dry ingredients are showing, then up to high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. If you want a thinner frosting add a couple tbsp of milk. This type of frosting will soak into the scrolls if applied when warm, but keep it's shape if spread when the scrolls have completely cooled down.
To Finish
- Add the frosting on top of the baked and warmed scrolls and spread. If the scrolls are warm, it will melt and soak into the scrolls. If you don’t want it to melt wait for the scrolls to cool completely before frosting.
Notes
Active dry yeast - is a dry yeast that needs to be activated before using. In this case we add it to warm milk with sugar to activate it, but instant dry yeast will also work and can just be added to the dough ingredients along with the warm milk and sugar without needing to wait for it to activate and froth.
Butter - for the filling, it’s important that the butter is at a spreading consistency. Not melted, but very soft.
Storage - Scrolls can be stored in an airtight container for up to three days. You can also freeze these by wrapping in plastic wrap.
To freeze - To freeze baked scrolls, let them cool completely, then wrap them individually in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container. Reheat them in the oven or microwave for fresh, soft scrolls.
To maker a thinner frosting glaze - For a thicker frosting, skip adding milk. For a lighter glaze-like texture, add more milk until the desired consistency is reached.
Nutrition - is based on per scroll. This recipe makes 12 scrolls.
A note on measurements – this recipe is offered in weight measurements. This is in an effort to offer the most accurate way to get the best results. Cup measurements simply aren’t accurate enough for a recipe that needs precise measurements and cup sizes differ depending on where you are in the world. Here is where you can learn more about how to measure ingredients using digital kitchen scales
Nutrition
Calories:475kcal | Carbohydrates:64g | Protein:7g | Fat:22g | Saturated Fat:13g | Polyunsaturated Fat:1g | Monounsaturated Fat:6g | Trans Fat:1g | Cholesterol:71mg | Sodium:301mg | Potassium:154mg | Fiber:2g | Sugar:28g | Vitamin A:716IU | Vitamin C:0.1mg | Calcium:91mg | Iron:2mg
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