Learning how to make homemade cinnamon rolls using yeast will become one of your new favorite things. They are amazingly delicious! This recipe has been in our family for a very long time and it has only improved with the invention of rapid rise yeast and conversations at family reunions where different tips and tricks are shared and talked about. It starts with a basic yeast roll recipe that you can read more about here in my blog.
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Traditional Made From Scratch Cinnamon Rolls Using Yeast
Cinnamon rolls are a real treat! They are soft, rich, and addicting. You can enjoy them for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or as a dessert. It will take practice, but learning how to make them will connect you with the past in a way that is rewarding beyond words. There is no hurry to this recipe and it is an art that you can really learn to enjoy.
The History of This Particular Made From Scratch Cinnamon Roll Recipe Using Yeast
My great-grandma passed this recipe down to my mom and she passed it down to me. It has been told that her mom, my great-great-grandma, is the one who started this recipe. I am curious as to just how old this recipe truly is and where it began. We have guesstimated that it is well over one hundred years old.
Family Recipe Variations
I love hearing about the different ways that my family members make these. Some use a teaspoonful of milk over the top of each roll before baking. Other members put syrup in the bottom of the pan before putting the rolls in it. There are some that use white granulated sugar and others that use brown sugar. Rapid rise yeast is another variation that has sped up the process tremendously.
Recipe Steps: Shortened Version
Ingredients for Dough
- 2 cups warm water (no more than 110 degrees)
- 1 package rapid rise yeast
- 1 tsp. Salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup oil
- 4 1/2 cups bread flour
Ingredients for Filling
- ½ cup softened butter (1 stick)
- 1 ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon
Short Directions for Phase One
Combine water, yeast, and salt. Add sugar, oil, and then bread flour. Do NOT over mix. Cover with wax paper and leave it alone for about 2-3 hours. Knead dough for around 10 minutes, and make sure to sprinkle flour in as you go so it isn’t sticky. Let it rest for 10-20 minutes.
Short Directions for Phase Two
Sprinkle plenty of flour on the counter, and roll out dough into a large rectangular shape. Mix together the brown sugar, softened butter, and cinnamon. Spread sugar mixture over dough and roll up dough. Use dental floss or a large sharp knife to cut individual rolls. You should be able to fill one 9×13 pan and one 8 x 8 size pan with this amount of dough. Cover them with wax paper and let them rise for another one to two hours. Remove the wax paper and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. The inside may be gooey, so you will want to check them and extend the baking time in very short increments so that you don’t over bake them and dry them out.
Can I double the recipe?
Yes, you can double the ingredients for this recipe with no problems. You will need to use two 9×13 pans when it is time to bake them.
Approximate Schedule for Making Rolls for Breakfast
4:00 pm Mix up the dough and then let it rise.
6:00 pm Knead dough for 10 minutes.
6:10-6:30 pm Let dough rest. (10-20 minutes)
6:30 pm Roll out dough, spread sugar mixture over, roll up, and cut into individual rolls.
6:45 pm Cover rolls with foil and put into the fridge overnight.
6:30 am Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Bake rolls at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
How long will it take for me to make these?
These rolls are delicious and you and your friends and family will love them. Even if you are busy, you can make these. The hands-on time is only about 30-35 minutes. However, you will need to plan on being somewhat near the day you bake. It will take you about 10 minutes to mix up the dough, another 10 to knead the dough, and around 10-15 minutes to roll out, spread on the sugar mixture, roll up, and cut them into individual rolls. Rapid rise yeast has sped up the process tremendously. In the past, if I wanted any type of yeast roll or cinnamon roll by late afternoon, I would have to start them the day before. Not anymore. Everything can be done in one day, depending on when you want to bake them. The waiting and dough rising time is much longer than the actual hands-on time, but it is worth the wait!
What do I do if they are still gooey in the middle when I take them out of the oven?
If they are still a dough like consistency in the middle, you will want to put them back into the oven. Bake them a minute at a time longer, and keep an eye on them. You didn’t do all that work and wait all that time for dried out rolls. Remember, if they are just a teeny tiny bit gooey, they will continue to bake when you take them out of the oven, because the pan is still so hot. If they are just a bit gooey, but not doughlike, then you can probably take them out of the oven.
What about icing?
Of course! That is a great idea, and it just depends on your preference. I don’t usually add icing, because that is the way I grew up eating them. I have made icing for them before and it only adds to the deliciousness.
Made From Scratch Cinnamon Rolls Using Yeast
Equipment
- large bowl (clear plastic is what I recommend)
Ingredients
- 2 cups warm water (no more than 110°)
- 1 pkg. rapid rise yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 4 ½ cup bread flour
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- 1½ cup brown sugar
- 1½ tsp. cinnamon
- 1 stick butter (softened)
Instructions
Yeast Dough
- Combine 2 cups of warm water (no more than 110°) and 1 pkg. of rapid rise yeast. Let the yeast dissolve for about a minute and then gently stir around until fully dissolved.
- Sprinkle in 1 tsp. salt and swirl around.
- Add ½ cup granulated sugar and ⅓ cup oil. Gently mix in by swirling the spoon around in the mixture.
- Stir in 4½ cup bread flour. Do not over mix. Dough will be stringy.
- Cover the bowl with wax paper and then let it rise for 2-3 hours.
- After the dough has risen to the top of the bowl or doubled, gently take the wax paper off of the top.
- Sprinkle plenty of flour on the surface you are going to knead the dough on and gently pour the dough out of the bowl and onto the counter.
- Sprinkle more dough on top of the flour and begin the kneading process.
Kneading the Dough
- Knead dough for around 10 minutes. The dough will let you know when it is done. Turn, fold, and press. Repeat process.
- Sprinkly on additional flour when the dough starts to tear or when you feel sticky dough.
- Flip dough over and let it rest for 10-20 minutes.
- Roll dough out into a large rectangular shape using a rolling pin.
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- Mix together softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
- Spread mixture over rolled out dough.
- Roll up dough into a long tube.
- Use dental floss or a large sharp knife to cut individual rolls.
- Put rolls in a 9 x 13 pan. You should be able to do three rows of three. You may have enough rolls to fill an 8 x 8 pan as well.
- Cover them with wax paper and let them rise for another one to two hours.
- **If you are baking them in the morning, cover the pan with foil, and put it in the fridge as soon as you add them to the pan. They do not need to rise on the counter as they will rise in the fridge overnight.**
- Remove the wax paper and bake in a preheated 350° oven for 25 minutes.
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