These small batch cinnamon rolls are irresistible! Six soft and fluffy buns with a gooey cinnamon sugar filling and topped with a sweet cinnamon roll icing. These sweet buns make for the perfect breakfast or dessert.
Skip all the work and make my effortless cinnamon roll casserole with premade cinnamon rolls.
SMALL BATCH CINNAMON ROLLS
There is something irresistibly comforting about fresh, homemade cinnamon rolls, and this small batch gives you exactly that! Not looking to make a regular batch of cinnamon rolls, make this small batch of six delicious rolls instead! Whether you’re treating yourself on a lazy weekend morning, celebrating a special occasion, these cinnamon rolls will hit the spot. Get ready to indulge in these homemade cinnamon rolls that are the perfect blend of nostalgia and homemade goodness!
| This small batch of cinnamon rolls is great when you have a smaller crowd to feed, or when you want to make half a recipe but don’t want to ruin a batch by halving the ingredients in a recipe! |
WHAT YOU NEED-
- Heavy Whipping Cream– Adding heaving whipping cream over the cinnamon rolls before baking, helps give you moist and gooey buns! I highly recommend you do not skip this step!
SWEET BUNS
- Flour– Be sure to use a high-quality all-purpose flour, I like to use Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose flour.
- Sugar– To sweeten the buns, you want to add granulated sugar to the dough.
- Yeast– This recipe calls for rapid rise yeast, or instant yeast, for a quicker rise time! Be sure the yeast is fresh and active!
- Milk– Adding whole milk to the dough, helps soften the rolls and give you fluff!
- Butter– You want to use unsalted butter in the dough. The butter enriches the flavor or the buns and makes them more tender. If you use salted butter, leave out the salt in the dough.
- Egg– Adding egg to the dough, adds texture. You can use either brown or white, whatever you prefer.
- Salt– For added flavors, add salt to the dough!
CINNAMON FILLING
- Butter– The filling is the key to a cinnamon roll! Use softened unsalted butter for the filling!
- Cream Cheese– I love to add a little bit of cream cheese to the filling to give it a creamier and more gooey filling!
- Cinnamon– Cinnamon is the KEY to perfect cinnamon rolls! You want to use ground cinnamon.
- Sugar– This recipe calls for brown sugar, either light or dark brown sugar can be used. You can substitute it for granulated sugar.
CINNAMON ROLL ICING
You can’t forget the icing on top of this recipe! This homemade cream cheese frosting brings together the entire dessert, and it is so easy to make!
- Cream Cheese– Be sure to use softened regular cream cheese for the frosting. You can swap out the regular cream cheese for low-fat cream cheese.
- Butter– The icing calls for softened unsalted butter, I do not recommend you use salted butter. Be sure the butter is softened!
- Vanilla– For extra flavors, add vanilla extract to the frosting.
- Sugar– To sweeten the icing, this recipe calls for powdered sugar, also known as confectioners sugar. You can adjust the sweetness level of the icing, depending on preference.
HOW TO MAKE CINNAMON ROLLS
Do not be intimidated by the number of steps this recipe has! This recipe is truly so easy and comes together in no time!
- Make the Dough–Sift together flour, sugar, and salt.
- In a small bowl, mix warmed milk, melted butter, yeast, and a pinch of sugar. Let sit for 10 minutes until bubbly.
- Once foamy, add the flour mixture along with a whisked egg.
- Knead until smooth dough will be sticky at first but will firm up. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- Assemble the Cinnamon Rolls- Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Using a roller, roll dough into a 10×12 rectangle on a floured surface.
- Mix softened butter and cream cheese, then spread over the dough.
- Sprinkle the dough with cinnamon and brown sugar.
- Roll tightly from the long side and cut into 6 rolls. Place in the pan, cover, and let rise for 1 hour.
- Bake-Preheat the oven and pour heavy cream over the rolls.
- Bake the rolls uncovered until golden.
- Let cool for 15 minutes.
- Spread the cream cheese frosting over the warm rolls and serve.
| Pair these warm cinnamon rolls with a glass of milk or Caramel Brulee Latte! |
CINNAMON ROLL FROSTING
There are several different types of frosting that you can use for your cinnamon buns! You can buy store-bought frosting or make my homemade cream cheese frosting!
- In a bowl, mix cream cheese and butter until creamy.
- Add in the powder sugar and vanilla extract and mix again to combine.
- Use immediately or store in the fridge until ready to use.
| Making Frosting Ahead of Time– You can make the frosting up to 2 weeks ahead of time, storing in the fridge. Just allow it to come to room temp before using it. |
FROSTING VS ICING
You might see some recipes call for icing and others call for frosting! The difference is icing is a thinner consistency while frosting tends to be thicker. Either will work, but I recommend using cream cheese frosting.
| Tip– Double the recipe for the frosting for more icing on your buns! If you are a sucker for the frosting, I highly recommend you make extra frosting. |
OVERNIGHT CINNAMON ROLLS
This recipe is tested to be overnight cinnamon rolls! This is great if you want to serve these for breakfast! Just prepare everything the night before, so effortless!
- Once the cinnamon rolls are assembled, transfer the 6 rolls to your baking sheet, cover, and refrigerate overnight (up to 12 hours).
- Remove from the fridge and let rise for 1 hour at room temp, or a warm space.
- Bake until golden and let cool. Top with frosting and enjoy!
OVERNIGHT SCHEDULE:
Here is a schedule to help you figure out how it would work if you wanted to make your cinnamon rolls the night before!
- Night Before:
- 6:30 pm– Prepare the cinnamon roll dough.
- 6:45 pm– Allow the dough to rise for an hour, or until doubled in size.
- 7:45 pm– Assemble the buns.
- 8 pm– Cover the assembled rolls and place in the fridge until morning baking time. Keep them in the fridge for no longer than 12 hours.
- Next Morning:
- 8 am– Remove from the fridge and let rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
- 9 am– Bake for 28-30 minutes.
- 9:45 am– Top the cinnamon rolls with frosting and enjoy your hard work!
QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE:
Yes, there is a difference between the two yeast types. Instant yeast, also called rapid rise yeast, does not need to be proofed first. It also requires less rise time in recipes. Active dry yeast is another type of yeast that needs to be activated through warm water. This yeast is used most, especially in baking and breads.
Yes, you can use active dry yeast instead or instant or rapid. Just be sure to add 20-30 extra minutes to your rise time.
If after 10-15 minutes, your yeast is not foamy or bubbly, then your yeast is dead, or you killed it by using milk that was too hot. You will have to restart and make sure you use fresh yeast.
This usually means that you added too much flour to the dough! Don’t forget that your dough will still be a little sticky after kneading, before rising. It should be sticky, but not stick to your hands.
Yes, if you want a regular batch instead of a small batch, just double the recipe!
Because you did not let the buns cool! Hot buns combined with frosting, causes the frosting to melt. That is why you cannot skip the cooling time.
Once the buns are cooled, store in an airtight container, or covered at room temp for 2 days. Or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
To reheat, just pop a cinnamon roll in the microwave for 10-20 seconds, so GOOD!
Yes, you can totally freeze these buns, be sure to freeze without the frosting! Once the buns are cooled, transfer to a freezer safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months! Then when ready to enjoy, thaw, top with frosting and enjoy!
Small Batch Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
Dough-
- 1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour sifted
- 2 ½ Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp instant yeast
- pinch salt
- ⅓ cup warm whole milk (110-115°F)
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 1 egg
Cinnamon Sugar Filling-
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 2 oz cream cheese softened
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
Cinnamon Roll Frosting-
- 2 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the Dough-
- Sift together the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine warmed milk and melted butter, yeast and a pinch of sugar. Allow the mixture to sit for about 10 minutes, to allow the yeast to proof and become bubbly or foamy. Be sure the milk and melted butter is between 100-115°F so as to not kill the yeast!
- Once the yeast is foamy or bubbly, pour the mixture to the flour along with a whisked egg. Knead the dough until combined. The dough will be sticky to the touch, but it should not stick to your hands when pinching it.
- Add the dough back into the bowl, cover with a towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until the dough doubles in size.
Assemble the Cinnamon Rolls-
- Line an 8X8 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Dust the counter with flour and transfer the dough to the counter. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a 10×12 rectangle.
- In a small bowl, mix together the softened butter and cream cheese. In a separate bowl mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Spread the cream mixture over all the dough using all the mixture. Then evenly spread the cinnamon sugar mixture onto the butter spread.
- Starting with the 12-inch side, roll the dough tightly, forming a log. Once you have a log shape, evenly cut into 6 rolls with a sharp knife. (Be careful not to smush the rolls when cutting.)
- Add the six-cinnamon rolls to the lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise for an hour.
Bake the Cinnamon Buns-
- After the second rise time, the cinnamon rolls will be doubled in size and ready to bake!
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and pour the heavy whipping cream over the cinnamon rolls.
- Bake at 350℉, uncovered for 28-30 minutes or until the rolls are golden. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 15 minutes.
- Using a spoon or spatula spread the icing over the tops and crevasses of the warm cinnamon rolls.
- Serve while warm!
Cinnamon Roll Icing-
- In a bowl, mix the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Once creamy add the vanilla and powdered sugar and mix again to combine.
Notes
Overnight Cinnamon Rolls-
- Once the cinnamon rolls are assembled, transfer the rolls to the baking sheet, cover the baking sheet with a towel and place in the fridge overnight for up to 12 hours.
- When ready to bake, remove from the fridge and allow to rise an hour at room temp.
- Bake at 350℉ for 28-30 minutes or until golden.
- Remove and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
- Top with frosting and enjoy!
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