Quick Cinnamon Rolls . . . it’s true, you can have light and fluffy homemade cinnamon rolls in just an hour! If you love cinnamon rolls, this recipe is a game changer.
We love cinnamon rolls at our house. I’ve made basic (but awesome) Cinnamon Rolls, Cake Mix Cinnamon Rolls, and even Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls. These are so speedy they are sure to climb to the top of the list!
QUICK CINNAMON ROLL RECIPE
We are big fans of cinnamon rolls at my house, and my kids tell me that I don’t make them nearly often enough. Well, I think that with this new one hour cinnamon roll method, they will be making an appearance on our table more often!
I’d seen recipes for one hour rolls online, but I was hesitant to try them because I thought they would either have the texture of hockey pucks, or have a yeasty taste.
Then I went to a class at Pinner’s Conference and watched my friend Leigh Anne make cinnamon rolls in an hour. I got to sample them. They blew my mind! I knew I had to make them at home.
Guys, these cinnamon rolls really are amazing. So soft and fluffy, and just downright delicious. My family was in heaven, and they couldn’t believe they only took an hour to make.
Well technically, they took an hour and eight minutes. But that’s because I had to stop in the middle and hang up a permanent press load in the dryer. And I couldn’t find my cinnamon because someone had put it away in the wrong place.
So yes, you can actually have warm cinnamon rolls in your mouth in an hour. Sixty minutes people!
I tweaked the recipe a bit from Leigh Anne’s version. She used bread flour, but I don’t keep that on hand. So I added gluten to the dough. That adds the extra protein that is in bread flour. I also added more butter and cinnamon to the filling, because I like my cinnamon rolls plenty cinnamony.
How to make Quick Cinnamon Rolls in One Hour
Ingredients for these rolls:
- warm water
- buttermilk
- instant yeast
- sugar
- canola oil
- salt
- eggs
- wheat gluten
- flour
- butter
- ground cinnamon
You will make up a soft dough just like regular cinnamon rolls, but an extra boost of yeast makes these rolls rise faster. The dough rests for ten minutes, then you form cinnamon rolls and place them on a greased pan. They rise for about 20 minutes while the oven preheats.
Bake them for about 20 minutes, then slather them with cream cheese frosting. That’s it. If you’re a busy cook, this is the perfect cinnamon roll recipe.
Give them a try. I know you’ll love them!
MORE FABULOUS BREAD RECIPES:
Cranberry Eggnog Bread / Chewy Pretzel Rolls / Coconut Chocolate Sweet Rolls
One Hour Parmesan Breadsticks / Cinnamon Swirl Bread / Best Ever Cheese Bread
Quick Cinnamon Rolls
One Hour Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup warm water
- ¾ cup buttermilk warmed in the microwave
- 3 Tbsp instant yeast
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup canola oil
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup wheat gluten
- 5 ½ cups all purpose flour more or less
Filling
- ¼ cup melted butter
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp cinnamon I used 3 tablespoons
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 3 Tbsp butter softened
- 4 oz cream cheese
- dash of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1-2 Tbsp milk as needed
Instructions
- Combine warm water, warm buttermilk, yeast, sugar, and oil in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let yeast mixture sit till it bubbles, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add the salt, eggs, gluten, and about 2 cups of the flour. Beat with the dough hook till smooth. Add enough flour to make a soft dough that is easy to work with. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for 10 minutes.
- With a rolling pin, roll dough out on a counter sprayed with non-stick spray into a rectangle about 12'x16". Spread the melted butter over the entire surface. Combine the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the butter.
- Roll the dough up lengthwise, and pinch to seal. Cut into 12 slices. Place each roll on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Cover with waxed paper that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.
- Turn on the oven to 375°. Let the rolls rise for 15 minutes while the oven is preheating. Remove waxed paper and bake for 18-20 minutes.
- While rolls are baking, prepare your frosting. Beat the butter and cream cheese till smooth. Add the salt, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Beat till creamy, adding milk as needed. Frost rolls while they are still warm.
Notes
Nutrition
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I don’t normally leave a comment, but OMG this is the recipe of the year for me. I love my cinnamon rolls. Thank you so much. The only thing I added was brown sugar to the filling. 1/4 c. white sugar, 1/2 c. brown sugar. I can’t rave enough.
I am so happy to hear that Chaoni!! And thanks for sharing your adaptation, I bet they were awesome with brown sugar. 🙂
Can I freeze these to later?
I have never actually frozen sweet rolls of any kind before, so I’m not sure. I’d try freezing one and see how it turns out. That way if it doesn’t work, you won’t ruin half the batch. If you try it, let me know how it works! 🙂
I do have bread flour so can you tell me the measurements to use bread flour? Thanks in advance
You should be able to use approximately the same amount, just add enough till you have a soft dough that isn’t sticky.
How do I adjust for high elevation? Im above 7000 ft. Thank you!!
I also live at a high altitude. You don’t have to change the ingredients, just add enough flour till you get a soft dough. Sometimes rise times vary, so just make sure that your rolls are doubled in size before you bake them. Let me know how they turn out!
I wanted to try this recipe but I don’t have gluten or bread flour. Can I use Combination of all purpose flour and whole wheat flour instead? If yes, what is your recommendation of measurements?
Thank you.
I have these in the oven baking right now. They look amazing and can’t wait to eat one with a nice, hot cup of coffee!
I made these for our youth group this morning and they were a hit! I didn’t have wheat gluten so I substituted xanthan gum (1tsp per 1 cup flour) and they turned out fluffy. Although it took longer than 1 hour (2.5 from start to finish for me) I did double the batch and got 28 big cinnamon rolls. I added mini chocolate chips to half the batch in the cinnamon layer and they were yummy too! Baked them all in one large sheet cake pan for 25 minutes, I thought they weren’t looking done but them realized that they just bake light colored, I was expecting a browning to happen so I kept adding a minute here and there, probably would have been fine at 20 minutes. I’ve never made homemade cinnamon rolls before but this will be my go to recipe for sure!
Glad that they were such a hit! It’s good to know that they work with xanthan gum instead of gluten, thanks for that tip! When I double the batch it takes me longer than an hour as well, because it does take extra time to form the rolls. Totally worth it though. 🙂
I made these last night. I accidentally used a full cup of buttermilk so I had to use more flour. I used King Arthur bread flour. This is the second time I have made cinnamon rolls using a different recipe. These were by far the best!!! I could not believe how soft and tender the rolls were.
I used an 8 oz brick of cream cheese to make the icing. Since I ended up with more rolls, oh no, I had just enough to frost all of them with a nice amount.
This is a major keep recipe!!
I love this recipe! Thanks for coming up with it. I make them all the time. My husband even got me a new mixer that mixes dough for Christmas so I can make then even more!!!!
What a handy gift! Hope you enjoy cinnamon rolls all year long! 🙂
Vital Wheat Gluten is the key to making these rolls light and fluffy. Bread flour already has more gluten in it than regular all-purpose. Another thing: Anytime anyone makes dough with whole wheat flour, even a partial mix in with white flour, add gluten for an amazing soft texture.
As for glaze, and this is just my preference, I usually either use a plain glaze or leave them unglazed. Not fond of cream cheese glazes. Most times, quick breads and sweet cinnamon rolls have enough sweetness and they don’t dry out around here. They never last that long!
I love using wheat gluten in my wheat bread, it does make the bread soft and yummy! Cinnamon rolls don’t last long enough at my house to dry out either. Haha.
Just made them and they were so soft and fluffy. For the filling I used half brown sugar and half white sugar and only 1 1/2 Tbsp of cinnamon because we use top of the line cinnamon and I know from previous experience that 3 Tbsp is a bit much. For the icing I used 6 oz of cream cheese and 2 cups of powdered sugar and no butter
Thanks for all your suggestions Amanda! So glad you enjoyed the cinnamon rolls. 🙂
I followed your recipe last evening and these rolls turned out better than any I have purchased. They were perfect! It took me a little longer to prepare them, but it was the first time. After I rolled out the dough, I cut the strips , then pushed the strips back together and applied the filling, rolled the dough into pinwheels, pinched to hold them together and placed them close together on the baking sheet. I basted them in melted butter then folded some aluminum foil about an inch and a half in height, wrapping it around the outside of the amassed rolls. 20 minutes in the oven. Thank you so much for this excellent recipe!
That makes me so happy to hear Sandra!! I hope you will make them often. Just think of all the money you’ll save! 😉
I tried these today excellent for first time ever!!! Taste great!!! Will suggest with convection oven make sure to reduce time by at least 3-5 min. Little too done at 18 min.
Thanks so much for the tip!
Can I use whole wheat pastry flour?
I’ve never tried whole wheat pastry flour, but I’ve substituted whole wheat flour in some of my other roll recipes. I like to start with replacing half the flour with whole wheat, but you could definitely try all. You will probably not need as much flour because whole wheat absorbs more moisture.
Can regular milk be used or does it have to be buttermilk?
You can make your own buttermilk by adding a tablespoon of white vinegar to a cup of milk and letting it sit for five minutes.
Can this recipe be doubled? Or should I just make two batches if I need more? They look amazing!
You can definitely double it! It just takes a little longer than an hour because of the extra time rolling and cutting. You need to divide the dough in half and roll out each section. 🙂
My kids are always begging me to make homemade cinnamon rolls, I’ve never tried, but this looks like a winner. I will definitely try this recipe. I enjoy your site!
You should definitely give them a try, and let me know how they turn out! 🙂
How long do you warm the milk in the microwave?
It totally depends on your microwave, they are all different. Just heat it till it’s warm to the touch, but not hot.
What if you don’t keep bread flour or gluten on hand? Are one of those needed for them to turn out right? Can I use somethibg else? They look amazing! I may need to run to the store in this snow if I need those!
You can make them with regular all-purpose flour, and they will still be great. The texture won’t be as fabulous, but they will still taste amazing!
I just made these on a Monday night just because (do you really need a reason to bake cinnamon rolls??) and my husband and I approve! I decided to do a 50/50 mix of white sugar and brown sugar for the filling because I love that molasses flavor. So yummy! We love them!
I bet they tasted amazing with the addition of brown sugar. Yum!
The cinnamon rolls looks delightful. My daughter is addicted to cinnamon rolls and she would love this recipe, especially about how simple they are too make. Thank you for sharing.
These cinnamon rolls look so light and soft and really only one hour to make?! I’m in love! I need to make these this weekend! My boys love cinnamon rolls! Pinned!