Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies – My Recipe Reviews (2024)

by sblades

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Who doesn't love fresh soft cinnamon rolls to go with their morning coffee?

Well, I do. I don't have time right now to make full-fledged rolls, so I went with these delicious Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies.

The recipes I usually see for cinnamon roll cookies are more shortbread-like cookies filled with cinnamon sugar and rolled into spirals. Others are sugar cookies swirled with cinnamon sugar.

I prefer this softer version - kind of cake-like with a glaze icing.

Rolling the dough takes patience, but take your time and roll slowly (or better yet, trick your kids/grand kids into doing it). Be assured, the outcome is well worth it. Flouring your surface well and your hands lightly will make it easier to roll up.

The dough is rather tacky, so definitely refrigerate it for awhile until it firms up some. The recipe calls for at least 15 minutes to chill, but the longer you refrigerate it, the easier it is to roll up. Some of my readers have suggested an hour.

Be gentle with the dough so the cookies don't turn out tough.

The final cookie, although more cakey than cookie, does actually taste like a cinnamon roll and goes great with coffee or milk. The cookies can be quite large - almost as big as a real cinnamon roll. If you want them smaller, be my guest - they'll still be great!

These Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies are terrific. They're the top Pinterest pin and top recipe on my site and for good reason!

Some day I'll take better photos of these cookies, but it seems like every time I make them they disappear before I can grab my camera.

If you're in a hurry, you may not want to make these until another day. Take a little time (and have a little patience) and try these - you'll like them!

Looking for more great cookie recipes?

  • Texas Sheet Cake Cookies
  • Cherry Ribbon Cookies
  • Oatmeal Lace Cookies
Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies – My Recipe Reviews (4)

Monster Cinnamon Roll Cookies

Yield: 12 -14

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Inactive Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 5 minutes

Large cake-like cookies, swirled with cinnamon, sugar, and butter. Like a cinnamon roll, but is a cookie!

Ingredients

  • ¾ C butter, softened
  • 1 C sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 3 C flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ C buttermilk
  • Filling
  • 2 tablespoon butter, softened
  • ½ C brown sugar
  • 1-2 tablespoon cinnamon
  • Glaze
  • 2 C powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 3-4 tablespoon milk

Instructions

  1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together until creamy then mix in the vanilla. In a small bowl, add the baking soda to the buttermilk and stir - set aside. Add one cup of the flour slowly to the butter mixture until combined. Pour in the buttermilk/soda and mix until combined. Finish by adding the rest of the flour. Mix until just combined (don't over mix). Put the dough into the refrigerator for at least one hour.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350°. Prepare the cookie sheets with parchment paper or spray the sheets with cooking spray.
  3. Generously flour your counter or baking marble. Turn out the dough onto the flour and shape into an approximately 12" x 8" rectangle, about ¼" thick. (Yes, it's a very sticky dough, be patient!) Spread the butter evenly over the dough, then sprinkle with the brown sugar and cinnamon.
  4. Roll the dough from the long side, slowly nudging up and as tightly as possible without breaking the dough. Don't worry if there are some little places that open up - just lightly pinch them closed.
  5. Put in refrigerator for at least 15 minutes, then slice into 1" slices, wiping the sharp knife between cuts. Place the cookies onto the cookie sheet, at least 2 ½" apart as they will spread. Lightly reshape cookies into circles if needed, making sure the cinnamon sugar is showing in spirals.
  6. Bake for 18-20 minutes until lightly browned. Transfer baked cookies to a wire rack immediately to cool.
  7. After completely cooled, mix the glaze ingredients together until smooth and desired texture. Spoon glaze to completely cover the cookies and give them enough time to set before serving.

Notes

Tips and Stuff:

Don't skip the refrigeration part. The dough is sticky and needs to firm up some. It won't be like a thick bread dough - more like a thick cookie dough.

When glazing the cookies on the rack, place a big piece of wax paper under the rack to catch the drippings.

Store in a tightly sealed container.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 14Serving Size: 1 cookie
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 368Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 216mgCarbohydrates: 62gFiber: 1gSugar: 39gProtein: 4g

Nutrition Values are Approximate

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies – My Recipe Reviews (5)Sherlynn

    Susan, these look SOOO delicious!! Thanks!
    Sherlynn

    • Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies – My Recipe Reviews (6)sblades

      They really are good, Sherlynn! A little messy to make, but good. I found they were the best the next day after I made them.

Soft Cinnamon Roll Cookies – My Recipe Reviews (2024)

FAQs

What is the trick to making soft and chewy cookies? ›

It's not the egg, all-purpose flour, or even the vanilla extract. The simple, yet oh-so-necessary component is cornstarch. That's right, the flavorless thickening agent used for soups, stews, and curries is also the secret weapon for baked goods that boast a silky-smooth mouthfeel.

What is the secret ingredient in Cinnabon? ›

Cinnabon's Secret Ingredient

This special Indonesian cinnamon, called Makara, is trademarked by Cinnabon. And because of that trademark, you won't find this product in your local grocery store spice aisle.

Why are my cinnamon rolls not light and fluffy? ›

There are a lot of variables that go into the consistency of dough, even down to the weather and humidity. But the most common reason cinnamon rolls don't turn out fluffy is because the dough didn't have enough time to rise.

How to make cinnamon rolls soft again? ›

Reheat In Oven

Add a little dribble of water (1 teaspoon per roll) over each to rehydrate them as they are reheated. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. This will trap steam and rehydrate the rolls as they warm up. This will make sure they are soft and delicious.

What is the secret ingredient to keep cookies soft? ›

For soft cookies, use: Brown sugar, as it has a high moisture content and retains moisture better than white sugar. Also, when combined with eggs, brown sugar can prevent spreading (taller cookies tend to be softer and fluffier). Shortening instead of butter or in addition to butter.

What makes a cookie more soft? ›

Baking cookies quickly in a hot oven – at 375 degrees F as opposed to a lower temperature – will make for soft results. They'll bake fast instead of sitting and drying out in the oven's hot air. Ever so slightly underbaking your cookies will give you softer results than cooking them the full amount the recipe says.

What makes Cinnabon so good? ›

2. They use the best cinnamon in the world. Cinnabon's creators set out to find the most flavorful and aromatic cinnamon possible, and settled on "Korintje" or "Makara," a variety that can only be harvested from cassia trees in the mountains of Indonesia. It's considered the gold standard of the spice.

Why are my cinnamon rolls tough? ›

Don't Overmix the Dough

When making cinnamon rolls, mix the dough just until the ingredients are incorporated and the dough is smooth and soft. Overmixed dough leads to tough cinnamon rolls. The dough is ready when it pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl and feels tacky but doesn't stick to your fingers.

What is the most unhealthy Cinnabon? ›

Worst: Caramel Pecanbon

The Caramel Pecanbon, while a delicious treat from Cinnabon, is considered an unhealthy choice due to its high calorie, sugar, and fat content. A single serving packs a hefty caloric punch, often exceeding the daily recommended sugar intake in just one pastry.

What happens if you add too much flour to cinnamon rolls? ›

Too much flour in your dough will give you dry, dense rolls. You can always add a bit more flour after it has kneaded if it's too sticky to work with. Letting your dough double rise will improve its texture and volume. It should rise until double in size.

Can you over rise cinnamon rolls? ›

The rolls are still prone to over-proofing if left in the fridge too long; and the cinnamon-sugar filling can melt and make the bottoms of the rolls syrupy and damp if left unbaked for too long. Also note that some cinnamon roll recipes are made with chemical leaveners versus yeast.

Why are my homemade cinnamon rolls dense? ›

Make sure you give the dough the full rise time for the ultimate soft and fluffy dough. If you try to rush the process you can end up with sad, dense rolls.

How do you keep cinnamon rolls from drying out when baking? ›

Keep the rolls covered tightly with foil so they don't dry out. Some ovens have a “bread proof” setting and this works great!

Why did my cinnamon rolls turn out doughy? ›

The cinnamon rolls came out too doughy

They'll be rich from the ingredients, but they shouldn't be heavy or dense. Sometimes, though, that's not the case. Are your cinnamon rolls too doughy? Jenni Field of Pastry Chef Online shared with us that it could be because you packed them in the pan too tightly.

What keeps cookies soft and chewy? ›

The bread/apple trick

Here's a baker's trick you'll find in our new Monster Cookies recipe: Adding a piece of fresh white bread to the storage container will keep cookies from becoming hard or stale.

How do you make cookies soft and chewy vs hard and crisp? ›

Different types of sugars affect the texture because they absorb different amounts of water. Remember moisture is the key! White sugar creates crispier cookies and brown sugar creates chewier cookies.

What are three factors that contribute to a chewy cookie? ›

Salted butter, softened – I prefer salted butter but you can also use unsalted and add an extra pinch of salt to the dough. Brown sugar – Just brown sugar because we will get the 'granulated sugar' flavor from the corn syrup. Corn syrup – The corn syrup is what makes these cookies CHEWY FOR DAYS.

What is the trick to soften hard cookies? ›

Here is the simplest method to soften hard cookies quickly in a microwave.
  1. Wrap the cookies in a paper towel.
  2. Place in the microwave for 1 minute.
  3. The paper will absorb any excess moisture.
  4. That's it! Your cookies are as deliciously warm and crisp as the day they were baked.
Oct 18, 2023

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