Published 9/11/2022 • Updated 10/4/2022
Easy Apple Cinnamon Rolls
We can’t get enough of these deliciously fall-y apple cinnamon rolls! They’re ooey gooey and topped with an easy brown butter cream cheese frosting that you’ll be licking right off the spoon. Plus, we’ll show you how to prepare the rolls the night before so all you need to do is bake them in the morning.
Ingredients for Apple Cinnamon Rolls
The ingredients for these apple cinnamon rolls can be broken down to 3 elements: the dough, the filling and the brown butter cream cheese frosting. Here’s what you’ll need: Prepare the night before: you can prepare your rolls the night before and store in the fridge overnight. Simply bake in the morning, and ENJOY. No white sugar: instead this recipe uses maple syrup and light brown sugar for a never too sweet flavor combination.
FOR THE DOUGH
2% milk Quick rise yeast Maple syrup Butter Egg Vanilla extract All-purpose flour Salt
FOR THE FILLING
Unsalted butter Light brown sugar Ground cinnamon Diced honey crisp apples Ground nutmeg
FOR THE Brown Butter CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
Browned butter Powdered sugar Vanilla extract Cream cheese Ground cinnamon
How to Make Apple Cinnamon Rolls
For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card for a list of ingredients and instructions.
START WITH THE DOUGH
Prepare the yeast by adding the warm milk and quick rise yeast packet to a bowl for at least 5 minutes or until the yeast has bloomed. Then, whisk together the rest of the wet ingredients and combine with the bloomed yeast mixture. Then, with your stand mixer on low-medium speed with a dough hook, and slowly add the flour and salt to the wet ingredients until it forms a shaggy dough. And then continue until the dough is smooth and elastic (it should bounce back when you poke it). Don’t have a stand mixer? You can use a wooden spoon until the dough is formed enough to knead by hand. Then hand knead the dough until it’s smooth and elastic.
LET THE DOUGH RISE
Transfer you ball of dough to a lightly buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap and then a tea towel. Place in a warm place (we like to set ours IN the oven with the oven OFF) until the dough has doubled in size. This will take approximately 1-1.5 hours.
MAKE THE FILLING
While your dough rises, it’s time to make the filling. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and begin to melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Once the butter is melted, add your diced apples and nutmeg, and cook until the apples are soft. While the apples are sautéing, simply measure the following in a small bowl and stir together until fully combined:
Softened butter (softened / room temperature butter is CRITICAL to ensure you don’t have clumps of butter in your filling) Light brown sugar Ground cinnamon
ROLL THE DOUGH
Now that your dough has risen, it’s time to turn it out. Using a rolling pin, roll your dough into a rectangle that’s approximately 18” long, 12” wide, and 1/4” thick. Maple Cinnamon Rolls Then, spread the filling over the dough, top with the apples and roll it into a tight log. Next, slice the log into 1” rolls. To do this, start in middle of the roll, and mark the dough with a knife, then mark every inch on each side of the middle mark. This will ensure you have equal sized rolls 😀
2ND RISE
Add the apple cinnamon rolls to your prepared dish, cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel again, and place in a warm location to rise for a 2nd time, this time for around 30 minutes. Making these rolls for tomorrow? Instead of placing in a warm location, cover and place in the fridge overnight for baking in the morning. Just make sure you allow your rolls to come to room temperature before baking in the morning.
MAKE THE Brown Butter FROSTING
In a small pot or skillet, brown the butter over medium heat, stirring continuously and then let it cool. Combine the cooled butter, softened cream cheese vanilla extract and cinnamon in your stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Once combined, slowly add the powdered sugar. Beat the frosting on medium speed until it’s light and fluffy.
TIME TO BAKE
Once your rolls have risen for a 2nd time, it’s time to bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes. Your house is about to smell AMAZING.
FROST & ENJOY
Wait at least 10 minutes after your rolls have come out of the oven before spreading on the brown butter cream cheese frosting. Then, SERVE AND ENJOY!
Pro Tips for Apple Cinnamon Rolls
We have a few pro tips to share when it comes to making these apple cinnamon rolls. Follow these tips to cinnamon roll perfection:
Don’t Overheat the milk
Because the yeast is getting started in the warm milk, you don’t want it to be TOO WARM. Yeast will bloom perfectly when the milk is around 110°F. If the milk is too warm, it can kill the yeast. Conversely, if the milk is too cold, the yeast will have a tough time blooming, which can result in dense rolls — no one wants that!
Quick Rise Yeast vs Active Dry Yeast
We love using quick rise yeast for these rolls! Technically, quick rise yeast doesn’t require you to let it bloom before mixing into the dough, but we like to get it started in warm milk to allow for perfect rising. Does active dry yeast work, too? Yes! Follow the same instructions, but be mindful that your rise times may increase slightly.
USE A SHARP serrated KNIFE TO CUT ROLLS
Use a SHARP serrated knife and gently slice your apple cinnamon rolls using a gentle back and forth motion, making sure to not squish the rolls. This will help keep the form, but don’t you worry if the rolls squish a bit — you can reform the rolls easily with your hands.
EXPECT A LITTLE FIlling OOZING
Expect a small amount of apple cinnamon filling to ooze out from your dough when rolling and cutting your cinnamon rolls. Simply take this filling and either spread it on top of the cinnamon rolls once they’re cut, or lick that deliciousness off your finger and enjoy 😀
TO CUT EQUAL-SIZE CINNAMON ROLLS
For equal-sized apple cinnamon rolls, you’ll need to evenly divide the roll of dough into 1 inch cinnamon rolls. Start in middle of the roll, and mark the dough with a knife, then mark every inch on each side of the middle mark.
Overnight Apple Cinnamon Rolls Instructions
To prepare these cinnamon rolls the night before so all you need to do the morning you serve them is bake, follow these simple instructions:
Storage Instructions
Store these apple cinnamon rolls in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat: while reheating in the microwave absolutely works, our preferred method is in the oven. Reheat rolls covered at 350°F for 10 minutes or until the rolls are warm and just as delicious as the first time you took them out of the oven.
Sweet Breakfast Recipes
Maple Cinnamon Rolls Cinnamon French Toast Bake Peanut Butter Banana French Toast Bake Instant Pot French Toast Casserole
