Easy Cinnamon Rolls (no yeast required!)
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These no yeast cinnamon rolls are the easiest homemade cinnamon rolls you’ll ever make. With no dough-punching & no waiting for the dough to rise, the hardest thing about these cinnamon rolls is waiting for them to come out of the oven!
This is one of my older recipes on the blog (originally published April, 2015), and also one of my favorites. My old pictures didn’t do justice to these amazing easy cinnamon rolls, so I’m updating the pictures and re-publishing today. Originally I was going to re-write the whole post, but instead I’m leaving about 90% of the original writing, because it just didn’t feel right to change it. I left the old photos at the very bottom of the post, too, in case you wanted to have a laugh.
I present to you: The lazy girl’s cinnamon roll recipe.
No yeast. No dough-punching. No two-hour rise time followed by another hour of rise time.
Nothing but cinnamon-y, gooey, need-a-fork-to-eat-it goodness <3.
I (obviously) enjoy baking, and considering that you’re reading this I assume you don’t hate spending time doing it either. I’ve even previously posted a recipe for orange sweet rolls that require all of those heinous, time-consuming things mentioned above, taking over 3 hours from start to finish.
However… if you want cinnamon rolls for breakfast on a Saturday morning, you shouldn’t have to get up at the crack of dawn just to have them ready before it’s actually lunch time. These cinnamon rolls can be ready in less than one hour (probably faster if you spend more time actually baking and less time sampling the cinnamon filling… or is that just me…).
Since these rolls don’t use yeast they have a softer, flakier texture to them, which is perfect for those of us who love melt-in-your-mouth cinnamon rolls that require a fork to enjoy.
And wait! We haven’t even discussed the frosting yet!
That lovely, crowning cream cheese-based, sticky frosting that any cinnamon roll would just be sad and naked without. Pour this cream cheese frosting on heavy over these cinnamon rolls while they’re still warm, and enjoy!
If you try these out, I’d love to know how you like them! Please leave a comment or tag #sugarspunrun on Instagram!
Easy Cinnamon Rolls (no yeast required!)
Ingredients
Rolls
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons (38 g) sugar
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter, + additional 2 Tbsp butter for baking
- ¾ cup (178 ml) milk
Filling
- ⅔ cup (133 g) brown sugar
- 3 Tablespoons (38 g) white sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
- 1 oz (28 g) cream cheese, softened
- 1 Tablespoon salted butter, softened
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup (63 g) powdered sugar
- ½ Tablespoon (7 ml) milk
Instructions
Rolls
- Preheat oven to 375F (190F).
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour, 3 Tablespoons (38 g) sugar, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- Use a box grater to grate 5 Tablespoons of butter into the dry ingredients (alternatively use a pastry cutter to cut in the butter).5 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter, + additional 2 Tbsp butter for baking
- Add milk and stir until all ingredients are just combined.¾ cup (178 ml) milk
- Transfer dough onto a very well floured surface and use your hands to work the dough together until it forms a cohesive ball. Continue to flour the surface you are working with as needed.
- Generously sprinkle flour on the top of the ball of dough and use a rolling pin to roll dough out to roughly a 10x12" rectangle. Set aside and prepare your filling.
Filling
- Prepare your filling by combining brown sugar, sugar, and cinnamon and then stirring in butter and vanilla. This mixture will be very much like a paste.⅔ cup (133 g) brown sugar, 3 Tablespoons (38 g) white sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 4 Tablespoons salted butter, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spread the filling over the rectangle of dough, leaving about ¼" of space as a perimeter around the filling.
- Carefully roll dough starting with one of the 12" ends and rolling tightly. Press the edge of the roll into the dough so that it sticks.
- Cut into 10 slices. If the log is not holding its shape well, transfer it to your freezer for about 10 minutes and then try to cut again (it should hold it's shape this way so you will have mostly round cinnamon rolls)
- Place the reserved 2 Tbsp of butter into a 9" pie pan and set it in your preheating oven for a few minutes until the butter has melted. Remove from oven.
- Place your cinnamon rolls in baking dish, they do not need to be touching, they will spread to fill their surrounding area.
- Bake on 375F for 28-30 minutes (beginning to lightly brown around edges). Prepare your icing while the rolls are baking.
Icing
- Use an electric mixer to cream together softened cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract.1 oz (28 g) cream cheese, 1 Tablespoon salted butter, ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- Gradually add sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.½ cup (63 g) powdered sugar
- Add milk, stirring until combined.½ Tablespoon (7 ml) milk
- When cinnamon rolls are finished, remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before spreading icing over rolls.
- These cinnamon rolls are nice and soft. Keep in mind that the warmer they are, the harder it will be to separate one from the other. But if you go in for one cinnamon roll and end up with one and a half, it's really not the worst thing that could happen, right?
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Hi I’m a bit confused about how much butter is required for the dough , on your recipe you say ‘5 tablespoons + 2 tables spoons for baking ‘ does that mean I need to cut in 5 tablespoons of butter in with the dry dough mixture ? Or 7 tablespoons ? ( sorry I’m a very new baker!) thanks
Hi Anj! sorry about the confusion! You’ll use the 5 Tbsp first in the dough, then the 2 Tablespoons will go in the pie plate (step 12). I hope that helps, and I will adjust the recipe to be more clear. I hope you love the recipe 🙂
I have not tried these yet but wondered if buttermilk would be beneficial for the texture? I’ve been baking a lot during social Distancing and found the donuts I made with buttermilk were so much lighter than just plain milk. Just wondering.
Hi, LeNee! Buttermilk is not needed however, this recipe will work fine if you wanted to substitute it for the milk. Keep me posted on how it turns out. 🙂
Hello there! I am planning on making these today. Can I use a cast iron skillet instead of a pie pan? Very excited to try your recipe!
Hi, Anthony! I haven’t tried it in a cast-iron skillet before but they should be fine. Keep me posted on how they turn out. 🙂
Hi hi if no cheese , what icing I can replace with .
Serene
Hi, Serene! Others have made a glaze instead. They have done so by omitting the cream cheese from the recipe and just added more powdered sugar to achieve the desired consistency. I hope that this helps! 🙂
I live in the country ( 20miles from a store) . That being said , the last time I followed your recipe to a T , but i only have self rising flour. I understand it just contains the baking powder already but is it the necessary amount for them? I should leave out the extra, correct? thank you in advance. i know it might sound like a silly question i’m sorry lol .
Hi, Jacki! I do not recommend using self-rising flour in most cases because it already contains the baking powder. If/when you use it, you need to be strategic on how much additional will need to be added. Without trying it myself, I am not certain of the amount. If you try it, I’d love to know how it worked for you. 🙂
My son said these were the best things I’ve ever baked and, trust me, I bake a lot! So easy and delicious. Definitely will make 1/2 the icing next time, it’s a lot.
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Pauline! Icing is my favorite part so I may be guilty of going heavy on it at times. 🤣
With the yeast shortage, I decided make these this morning for my mom for Mother’s Day. They came out so incredibly delicious and wasn’t too difficult to make. I love how the bottom got a little caramelized with the melted butter in the pan. Such a great technique! Looking forward to making these again.
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Amy! 🙂
Made these cinnamon rolls this morning for breakfast, and they were absolutely delicious! The best cinnamon roll I have ever tried, and I’ve tried a lot!! I was iffy at first knowing that they didn’t have yeast, but they were even better then the yeast cinnamon rolls! Will definitely be making these often!! Absolutely amazing!!!!
I am so glad everyone enjoyed the cinnamon rolls, Kylie! 🙂
These were amazing!! I was weary about taking the easy way out with no yeast but I will likely never use yeast again because these were TO DIE FOR. My family loved them and everyone had seconds and requested I make more a few days later.
I am so glad everyone enjoyed the cinnamon rolls so much, Tori! 🙂
These were delicious, super gooey, I wasn’t sure if they were cooked through in the middle! Fun to make!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cinnamon rolls so much, Kim! 🙂
Made these this morning and they were fantastic!!!
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Cassandra! 🙂
Hiya!
I am planning on making these today but only have almond milk- would this suffice? Thank you!
Hi Gillian! I haven’t tried it with almond milk but I’d be afraid the cinnamon rolls would end up being pretty dry without the fat from the milk. If you try it out I would love to know how it goes. 🙂
I’m making these for my mom tomorrow for Mother’s Day brunch! They look amazing, thanks so much for sharing!!
I hope everyone loved them, Erin!
I would like to prep them for Mothers Day tomorrow so I can just put them in the oven. Should I cut them up and place in freezer?
Hi Phylicia! You can make them in advance. Just cover the unbaked dough tightly with plastic wrap and then store it in the refrigerator overnight. 🙂
Hi Sam
Thanks for the reply. I decide to just bake them today. And put them in the fridge. The frosting tastes delicious 😂🤫 I will have one tomorrow for Mother’s Day. Happy Mothers Day to all you moms out there!!!
I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Made this last weekend. Amazing and the frosting was oh so good!! Anyone try this with whole wheat flour? I’m out of regular and wondering if it would still turn out.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed, Cheryl! Unfortunately whole wheat flour would probably make the dough more crumbly and the end result more dense and dry (you’d likely want to use a bit less flour as well).