The Very Best, Easiest Cinnamon Rolls

Last week, my parents dropped off a few tubs of my childhood schoolwork they had been keeping all these years. As a purger, I threw out a good majority of everything in the tubs, but not before reading some of my writing samples I made in elementary school. I had to laugh when I read the story about our family's Christmas traditions."On Christmas Eve, we make cinnamon rolls and cookies for Santa and for us to eat on Christmas morning."


That was a totally made up story. We never made cinnamon rolls growing up, but we did make cookies. Apparently, my seven year old heart really, really wanted the memory of making cinnamon rolls with my mom and dad that now, as a grown up, our little family makes cinnamon rolls on the Christmas mornings we're home.

So, wether you enjoy these cinnamon rolls on Christmas Day, or throughout the year, this is the easiest, yummiest recipe for Cinnamon Rolls I've found.

Typically, I make these the day before, cover, and put in the fridge. On Christmas morning, I take them out and let them come to room temperature (about 30-45 minutes) just enough time to open those Christmas presents!


The Very Best, Easiest Cinnamon Rolls 

Dough
1 cup warm milk
1 tablespoon instant dry yeast
2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons salted butter, softened
1 large egg
3 cups all-purpose flour

Filling
½ cup salted butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk, yeast, sugar, salt, vanilla, butter, and eggs. Add in flour. Using a dough hook, turn the mixer on to a low speed.

2. Once the flour starts to incorporate into the dough, increase the speed to a medium range. Add more flour as necessary so that the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The dough mixture should be tacky, but not stick to your hands. It should be soft. Add more or less flour until the dough reaches the desired consistency. The amount of flour you add in bread making is always an approximation and you should go by feel.

3. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased mixing bowl. Cover with a towel and let rise until double in size, about 1 hour.

4. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Punch down the dough and roll into a 12inch by 18inch rectangle.
Brush the dough with ½ cup melted butter. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle on top of the melted butter. Roll up tightly lengthwise so you have one long roll. Use plain dental floss or a sharp knife to cut the dough into 12 one-inch slices.

5. Place the slices onto a lightly 9x13 pan. Cover and let rise 30 to 45 minutes.

6. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake the rolls for about 14 minutes, until just barely brown on top.

Because the frosting is just as important: 

Cream Cheese Glaze 

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon milk, or as needed for consistency

In a large bowl, whip together the cream cheese and butter. Add the vanilla and salt and mix until combined.

Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until thick and creamy. Add cream or milk a tablespoon at a time until the frosting is smooth and spreadable to your liking. Spread the cinnamon rolls with frosting while they're still warm