There’s just nothing in my house that says “special breakfast” quite like my favorite Giant Cinnamon Rolls. They’re the ultimate indulgence and the kind of soft, gooey, oversized rolls everyone requests for Christmas morning, birthdays, or honestly any day we feel like celebrating. And the best part? They look impressive, taste incredible, and yet… they’re really not that hard to make.
About This Recipe
Making these giant cinnamon rolls is surprisingly simple: mix up a soft, gorgeous dough in your KitchenAid (or by hand!), let it rise, roll it out, and slather it with plenty of butter and cinnamon sugar. Slice it into big, beautiful spirals, nestle them into your pan, let them puff up, and bake until golden and irresistible. It’s a process that feels cozy and nostalgic, but truly, anyone can do it.
Now, when it comes to frosting, I’ve lived on both sides of the debate. I always thought I was firmly in the “the thicker the frosting, the better” camp… until I tested this recipe a few times and realized that a simple cream cheese glaze is actually perfection. It melts into all the warm nooks and crannies, giving you that glossy, silky finish without overpowering the buttery, decadent roll itself. It might look like it won’t be enough, but it always is. And of course, if your heart tells you to make extra glaze, follow your heart.
And if you’re wondering whether these cinnamon rolls are macro-friendly… absolutely not. Not even a little. And honestly? Anyone trying to convince you otherwise is not to be trusted. Macro-friendly cinnamon rolls would be a sin—or should I say, a SIN-amon roll. If you need a macro-friendly treat, grab a protein bar or make baked oats. These rolls are meant to be pure, unapologetic indulgence, just the way cinnamon rolls should be.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Milk: Whole milk is best, but any milk you have on hand will work.
- Butter: Softened so it mixes easily into the dough and spreads smoothly in the filling.
- Granulated white sugar: Sweetens the dough and helps with browning.
- Salt: Just a touch to balance the sweetness and enhance flavor.
- Instant yeast: Gives the dough its rise, no need to activate separately; it mixes right in.
- Eggs: Bring them to room temperature so they incorporate smoothly and help create a soft, tender dough.
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level (or weigh) for accuracy so your dough stays light and fluffy rather than dense.
- For the filling: Softened butter, brown sugar, and ground cinnamon. The classic trio that melts together into the gooey, caramel-like swirl inside each roll.
- For the glaze: Powdered sugar, melted butter, vanilla, milk, and cream cheese. Whisked into a silky cream cheese glaze that melts into every nook and cranny of the warm rolls. Greek cream cheese works perfectly, too!
Dietary Adaptations
Gluten-free: Use 1:1 gluten-free flour like Cup4Cup Multipurpose flour.
Dairy-free: Use plant-based milk, dairy-free cream cheese, and plant-based butter.
How to Make:
Ok so first, I do feel like they are always the best when I make them same day. But you will never see me waking up at the crack of dawn to get these baked in time for breakfast. So either we have our cinnamon rolls later in the day, OR we use one of these two methods:
Option 1: Make cinnamon rolls days ahead and freeze to halt the rise
Make them in advance, even days ahead. Get them to the point where you’ve got them cut into rolls and placed on the pan. Cover and freeze them before you let the rolls rise. If your freezer can’t fit your sheet pan, you’ll need to break them into a couple of different pans at this point.
Remove from the freezer the night before you want to bake them, place the pan of the frozen rolls on the counter and let them thaw and rise overnight. From my experience they needed at least 8 to 10 hours to rise from frozen, but you might want to check on them a little before that to be sure! When you can tell they’ve risen substantially and are nice and puffy and touching each other, pop them in the oven and bake!
If they look like they’re not rising fast enough in the morning, you can place them in a barely warm oven (heat to 200 and then turn OFF) to help get them going.
Option 2: Make cinnamon rolls the night before and pop in the fridge to slow the rise
I’ve also made them Christmas Eve and then placed the whole pan, before letting them rise, in the refrigerator overnight. Pull them out the next morning and let them rise longer on the counter if needed. Or preheat the oven right away for baking if they’re already puffy! The only risk here is I don’t know how long they will last in the fridge before they rise too much and fall. I’ve only done this when I made them late at night and got them in the fridge after 10 pm. I pulled them out around seven and preheated the oven and they were ready shortly after to bake!
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My Favorite Giant Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- 1 half sheet pan (13×18)
Ingredients
For the Rolls:
- 2 cups whole milk any milk will work
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbsp. instant yeast
- 2 eggs
- 6 cups flour
For the Filling
- 1/2 cup +2 tbs softened butter
- 1¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 1¼ Tbsp. ground cinnamon
For the Glaze
- 2¼ cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tbsp. melted butter
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2-3 Tbsp. milk
- 2 oz. cream cheese or greek yogurt cream cheese works great!
Instructions
- Microwave milk for 2-3 minutes until it’s bubbling. Pour the milk into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment.
- Add the butter, sugar and salt. Mix on low speed until the butter is melted. Let the mixture cool until warm but not hot. Add the yeast and eggs and mix until combined.
- Gradually add about half of the flour. Switch to dough hook attachment and add the rest until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky. Knead for 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a large bowl sprayed with nonstick spray. I like to spray a fine mist on the top of the dough too so I can cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled, about one hour.
- Roll the dough into a large rectangle, (horizontal in relation to your body) about 18×12 inches. Spread softened butter over the dough.
- Stir together the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the dough. Pat it in slightly with the palms of your hands.
- Starting with a long end, roll up the dough as tightly as possible, pinching the seam lightly to seal.
- Using a serrated knife, cut a shallow slit in the roll at the half point, then cut a slit in the center of each half so you’ve got 4 equal portions, and cut slits for 3 cinnamon rolls in each of those portions … until you’ve got 12 cinnamon rolls. I like to do shallow slits to make sure they’re even before I cut all the way through. Cut with a gentle sawing motion.
- Place the rolls evenly spaced on a large, parchment-lined, rimmed sheet pan (13×18). Cover and let rise until double.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 24-26 minutes until light golden brown.
- For the glaze, whisk together powdered sugar, melted butter, vanilla, milk, and cream cheese until smooth. Drizzle over warm rolls. It almost seems like it won’t be enough but it’s perfect!
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Tag @LillieEatsAndTells on Instagram with #LillieEatsandTells! We’d love to see your creations!
I’ve never made bread or cinnamon rolls. Just too afraid to try. Oh my goodness, I’m a baker. 😉 these were easy & are beautiful & easy.
I think this may be the BEST breakfast dessert I have EVER tasted! Took me about 3 hours total to make with the waiting for the dough to rise twice, but it was actually an enjoyable process early on Christmas morning. I am quite shocked I was able to make this on my first try but if you follow the instructions, it was actually really simple. The rolls are HUGE and so so decadent. I mean, special decadent. Definitely a treat for a special day. Love that I now have a new favorite to make that the whole family enjoyed. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Made these for the first time for Christmas morning.My daughter took a bite, her eyes lit up, and she proclaimed that I just signed up to make these cinnamon rolls every Christmas for the rest of my life!😋
Ok, I took a huge risk making these for Christmas morning. We have a family recipe we’ve all made for decades and to switch it up felt a bit like sacrilege. Especially for Christmas morning!
Now I’m so glad I did. Fabulous cinnamon rolls. This will be our new family tradition.
And don’t worry if your dough feels too soft (and a bit too sticky) when rolling it out. It really does make the softest, fluffiest rolls over!!!
I have so many questions. How long do you mix the mixture before switching to dough hook? How long do you mix using dough hook? Aren’t we missing the step about blooming the yeast? Don’t you need to let it sit with the warm milk for about 5 minutes? I’m concerned my dough won’t come out right. It is so sticky right now….and it would be such a waste to have to toss it 🙁
You’re overthinking it. The dough is sticky. Mine was. But once you transfer it to sprayed bowl, it will be perfect and easy to roll when ready. I switched to dough hook half way through the flour. As for the yeast, there is a difference between active yeast and instant. If you use instant, as recommended here, you wont need to let them bloom. It was my first time making those, and I am not a baker, but they came out so so good! Everyone loved them!
Does anyone have the directions to make these ahead of time and bake the next morning?
The make ahead directions are below the rest of the recipe for overnight or freezer.
I’ve made these cinnamon rolls many times now as they are always a crowd pleaser! They really are pretty easy to make and always come out just perfect! I’m not a baker so I’m always nervous I’ll screw them up but they’re fool proof! They are giant, soft and pillows, just the right amount of sweet and cinnamon! So good!
The best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made. Great recipe!
This was my first time making cinnamon rolls from scratch- the instructions were easy to follow. We were going to each eat half because they’re so large, and we all ended up having our own. The hardest part was rolling them up tightly. I will be making these again soon!
The first time I made these I didn’t have instant yeast so I used active dry yeast. I’ve now tried to mix up two batches today with instant yeast and they have both been a sticky disaster. So I’ll be sticking to active yeast from now on.
That said, these are amazing. My kids have been talking about them for months since I made them the first time.
I just started this recipe and realized I only had active dry yeast. Did you make any adjustments to the recipe for active dry?
Best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made. And I have tried all the recipes out there. This turns out every time. Ive done all in one day and in the fridge over night. Both fluffy and perfect everytime.
At what point do you put them in the fridge! I’d love to start it the night before.
Fabulous! So easy! Thank you!
These have been on a regular rotation at our house since making them the first time! My MIL and a friend that went to culinary school both said that they were the best cinnamon rolls that’s they’d ever had! And that’s a HUGE component from them both! I even got asked if someone could pay me to make more!
Since we have a small family, when I make a full batch I will freeze about half of them by wrapping tightly in Saran Wrap, then aluminum foil and then in a freezer bag. Let them sit in the fridge overnight and pop them in the microwave the next day for 15-30 seconds and they taste fresh from the oven!
I had so much hope for these. I’m NOT a baker and I actually hate it! I was determined to do this and failed miserably. The dough was so sticky that I could not manage it. I wish there was a video showing all the steps ☹️ I had to throw it in the trash. I’m giving it a 3 because I’m sure it was my fault but I really don’t know what I did wrong! 😢
What type of flour did you use? Try bread flour.
What kind of flour did you use? Try bread flour!
Love this recipe! However, I was wondering if it would be possible to substitute almond milk in place of regular milk? I wanted to make them for a friend is is lactose intolerant. Thank you!!
I’d love to know if this will turn out well with DF milk too! Preferably coconut milk or oat milk.
Holy smokes! These are fantastic! And really easy (with the right mixer)! I had never braved cinnamon rolls, but wow….i may be making these for everything & everyone! Happy New Year!
These were SO good! Made a ton though. What’s the best way to store them?
I’ve made a lot of cinnamon roll recipes and I can honestly say this is the best one I’ve ever made!! My husband, who is my biggest critic, gave it a 10/10!
These were amazing. I used the freezer option and was a little nervous about it but they turned out perfect.There were out for just over 8 hours and that was plenty. I have never really used yeast before but they really weren’t difficult to make. This will be a yearly tradition!
So yummy! Made them this morning for Thanksgiving brunch. They make the perfect amount.
Favorite cinnamon roll recipe! I love to make these but I need almost 8 cups of flour to get my dough not so sticky and clearing the sides of the bowl. After reading the reviews, I know that this is a “me” problem! Anything I should try to help my dough along without adding so much flour?
These cinnamon rolls live up to the name… they are GIANT, and so incredibly delicious. I am newer to baking with yeast, but this recipe is easy to follow. Perfect for any skill level. These are going to definitely be on the holiday baking rotation (I may never buy store bought cinnamon rolls again!)
Best Cinnamon Rolls ever 😍
Made them over here in Germany and everyone loves them!
Amazing!!!!!!!
Oh my! Lillie!! So good! So easy! And come out perfect! I questioned adding eggs as I’ve never done eggs in a cinnamon roll recipe. But I’ve never not had a good recipe from Lillie. So glad I tried it! This will be the go to recipe! Thank you!
Also, I have to add. I made these the night before. Then stuck in fridge overnight for the 2nd rise. Brought them out a couple hours before cooking and AMAZING!! Made for my daughter’s Birthday breakfast request. She loved them!
Thanks for posting this, was going to ask if I could refrigerate for the second rise!
What type of flour did you use?
These are delicious! The dough is so nice to work with. I did make a double batch of frosting the second time I made them and it is too much.
This was the first time I made these amazing cinnamon rolls. So easy made them Christmas Eve and baked the next morning. I can’t say enough about these rolls. My family raved about them and will make them every time they come home!
Did you allow them to rise for the second time and then refrigerate before baking the next morning?
First time I’ve ever made cinnamon rolls and they turned out fantastic! My family loved them.
Made it, love it!😊
These came out amazing! I started the dough only to remember that my dough hook had chipped and I had tossed it- so I kneaded by hand. I usually use my bread machine to make my dough but it only holds 5 cups of flour and I didn’t want to test it. The recipe was super easy to follow (like most of Lillie’s), and came together quickly! These are double the size of my usual buns so my kids were excited. I thought they’d never compare to my normal go-to recipe, but these just replaced it. Even having to knead by hand, this is my new staple recipe. They’re not too sweet, the dough is so soft, and icing is perfect. Thanks Lillie!
My family loves these!!! Worked great to freeze ahead making it so much easier on the holiday mornings!!
Can you share your timeline to make ahead and freeze? I would like them for Christmas morning too!!
Thank you For the recipe. My family loved them. It will be my go to recipe from now on!! They are soo yummy.
The best, fluffiest, perfectly balanced rolls of flavor and joy in every bite. This has been my go-to ONLY cinnamon roll recipe for several years now and I’m never steering in any other direction! Lillie, thank you for sharing this divine cinnamon roll recipe!!!
Officially becoming part of our Christmas Day tradition and just general go-to cinnamon rolls – because omg they’re AMAZING!
On the icing recipe you say “Greek yogurt cream cheese” works too. I’ve never heard of that. Do you mean just Greek yogurt? Thanks!
The BEST cinnamon roll recipe I’ve ever made! We devoured these and I loved being able to make up a few days in advance and freezing! They rose overnight beautifully! The perfect Christmas morning breakfast!
The BEST recipe! I am wondering how to keep the leftovers though? Thanks for sharing! I will make them every year for Christmas!
They actually freeze great! We wrap in foil! Sometimes if we have enough to make it worth it., I’ll whip up a little more glaze to bring them back to life after thawing and warming in the microwave .,
Do you use all purpose or bread flour for the recipe?
My sister makes these, and I help eat them so I can attest to how good they are. She swears by bread flour being the flour to use for this recipe.
I just made these and they are AMAZING!!! My son has an egg allergy and substitute the eggs with 2 tbs of evaporated milk and they came perfect!
Have you ever tried this with gluten-free flour? I have one child that’s gluten free but if I can sub it in, or if you have other suggestions, it would be appreciated!!!
I haven’t! But I’ve gotten lots of feedback from people who say they turn out great with Cup 4 cup gf flour!
We do this and they’re so good. We use King Arthur 1:1 GF flour from Costco.
Can the dough be made in advance? If so do I need to let the dough rise again before baking?
Voted BEST cinnamon rolls we’ve ever had! Still basking in the glow of how delicious these were. Thank you for this recipe!
This recipe is AMAZING!! Thank you!! So so delicious!!
I have made this recipe several times. Literally every single time I have had people ask me where I got the recipe and tell me it’s better than cinnabun or it’s the best cinnamon roll they have ever had. Every single time!
So good and easy to make. Even the rolling out and bun forming went smooth with this recipe.
Huge, fluffy, delicious.
What size rimmed baking sheet do you use?
These really are giant and yummy. It’s worth noting that the filling should probably be with SALTED butter…I used unsalted and it was too sweet. I know cinny rolls are supposed to be sweet and decadent, but they needed a little cut. Lillie, do you usually use salted butter?
So easy and so delicious! Made these a couple days in advance and froze them to make a Christmas morning. Family absolutely loved them.
This is my new go to cinnamon roll recipe. Followed this exactly. Fabulous.
This is my new go to cinnamon roll recipe. Follow this exactly. Fabulous.
These look delicious! Would you change anything to make them GF besides the flour? Thanks!
Did you ever make them GF?
I think I just have! I think I kept everything else the same.
wow! best cinnamon rolls ever!!
For anyone wondering about making these ahead…I made these last night. I put them in the fridge after rolling and slicing, covered with plastic wrap. I took them out and let them sit on the counter for about 2 hours this morning – enough time to let them get to room temperature and rise a little before baking. They turned out perfectly delicious! Huge hit on Christmas morning!
Thanks Angie for sharing your make ahead tips!
Angie,
Does this mean that you did the first hour rise before rolling them out but skipped the second rise that she says to do after they are rolled out and sliced?
Thanks!
Aline
Yes. I do the first rise, then roll, cut, place on the pan and put in the refrigerator overnight. Take them out in the morning and let them come to room temp/rise a little before baking.
I make this recipe every Christmas with my family and it is one of the many sweet traditions I cherish during the holiday season.
What kind of flour did you use for this?
These cinnamon rolls are fabulous. They’re also amazingly not that hard; the directions are clear and easy to follow. Great for birthday breakfasts!
My dough was so tough and thick I thought for sure these would not work out. OMG, they are still amazing. Thank you!
Easy and soooooo delicious
These are wonderful. We’ve made them the day before and frozen the dough, letting it thaw and rise by morning and made and cooked them the same day. Deadly delicious.
Best cinnamon rolls we have ever had! This has become a staple in our family!
I have always been afraid to make cinnamon rolls. But these were so easy… and so delicious!! They are absolutely wonderful and worth every bite!
i MADE THESE FOR BREAKFAST FOR CHRISTMAS AND THEY WERE A HIT. DEFINITELY WORTH THE EXTRA CALORIES AND I’LL BE MAKING THESE AGAIN FOR SURE!
I made these once (years ago) and they were phenomenal! But I cannot figure out what I did wrong tonight. I made it twice and both times the dough was SO sticky. It never came away from the sides of the bowl even when I added gobs of extra flour (which is why I started over). I accidentally added active yeast instead of instant, could this be why? I didn’t have any issues with rise though… help!
Same issue as a previous commenter about the sticky dough. 🙁 i can’t figure it out.
I wonder if it’s the type of flour you used. My sister makes them and says not to use All-Purpose flour. She uses bread flour.
This is now requested by my family every holiday.
Question Lillie: if I were to make 24 smaller rolls out of the same amount of dough, how long should I bake it for? I’m still thinking 350, but maybe at 20-24 minutes instead?
Thank you!
Hi did you end up making the smaller rolls? What was the baking time?
YUM! I made this, the only thing I did different was I used coconut milk and dairy free cream cheese in the frosting for someone in our house who is sensitive to dairy (does fine when it’s baked, so I left the rolls alone.) Love, love, love!
How long does it usually take to rise and double?
Has anyone done this with dairy free milk? If so what kind worked best?
I did with almond milk and it worked!
Thanks so much for sharing! Did you use the same amount as the recipe called for?
Hi there! Can you make the dough the night before? Do you refrigerate it or let it sit out over night?
Could you do the first eight steps the night before, put the cookie sheet in the fridge overnight, let them rise the second time in the morning and then bake them?
I’m not a great baker, but I made these rolls and they were PERFECT!! These cinnamon rolls really are the best and I don’t ever have to shop around for another recipe!! YAY!!! Wondering if you could make ahead and still have a yummy warm roll for breakfast??
Thank you for this article!! i have just started macro counting and some days I just want to give up and binge and just go back to my old comfy ways.
Seeing someone talk about it and saying it’s worth it does help! I do feel better and it’s exactly as you’ve said, it’s about EATING SMARTER! So that we CAN fit in that dessert 😉 and then it becomes a treat 🙂
These were so delicious!!!
I love these cinnamon rolls! Today is my first time making them with a stand mixer. When it says knead for 2-3 minutes, does that mean by hand or with the hook attachment? Thank you for all of the delicious recipes!!
Can you make these ahead of time and cook in the morning?
These look so good! I’m going to make these for a mid-week quarantine treat! <3
Made these again but increased the cinnamon to 2 Tablespoons. I love Cinnamon and thought it needed a smidge more. This recipe is so easy to follow. The frosting is also amazing I typically don’t love cream cheese frosting but I couldn’t even notice it was in there, it just tasted rich and delicious!