Many of us have gotten away from making our own Cinnamon Rolls as we think they are just too much work and take too much time. We should realize that yeast dough is really not much more difficult to make than your usual cake batter. The difference is that with yeast dough we are adding one more ingredient, yeast, to an already similar routine and that the dough takes time to rise, allowing you that time to take off to do something else.
These cinnamon rolls have a soft and tender crust because of the butter and mayonnaise combination. Apples give these rolls a very good taste. Drizzle of the cream cheese topping makes them look very tempting. And the baking gives your house a cinnamon seasonal aroma you just can’t get enough of.
You may let the rolls rise and bake on the same day or another option is to place the unbaked rolls in the refrigerator overnight. This is perfect for when you want to serve freshly baked Cinnamon Rolls for breakfast. The unbaked rolls rise slowly in the refrigerator overnight, so all you need to do the next morning is take the rolls out of the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature while you heat up the oven.
Then just bake them and you have delicious, hot Cinnamon Rolls with Apples and Cream Cheese Frosting that everyone will enjoy! Although you may be able to buy these gorgeous yeast rolls, nothing compares to the smiles you get when your family wakes up to the lovely smell of these baking in the oven! 🙂
Ingredients you will need:
Dough
1 tsp. – dry active yeast
1 tsp. – sugar
2 tbsp. – warm water
1 ½ cup – low fat milk
½ cup – water
5 large – eggs
1 cup – sugar
8 tbsp. – unsalted butter
1 tbsp. – Best Foods mayonnaise
½ tsp. – vanilla
6 cups – all-purpose flour +1 tbsp. for dusting
Filling
2 tbsp. – unsalted butter (melted)
4 tbsp. – white granulated sugar
2 tbsp. – ground cinnamon
4 Fuji apples
Glaze
4 oz. – cream cheese room temperature
1 cup – confectioners’ sugar
1 tbsp. – unsalted room temperature
¼ tsp. – pure vanilla extract
Instructions:
1. Into a small glass cup add yeast, sugar and water.
2. Mix it well. Set aside and let it rise.
3. Pour milk and water into a small sauce pan. Bring it to a boil while stirring constantly until it boils (if you don’t stir it constantly than milk will burn on the bottom of the sauce pan).
4. Pour half a large bowl of cold water and place the sauce pan with boiled milk in it to cool faster. Set aside.
5. Place butter and margarine into a small bowl and melt it in the microwave for 30 seconds.
6. Add mayonnaise, and stir with a whisker or fork until well incorporated. Set aside to cool.
7. Put eggs and sugar in your electric mixer bowl. Beat it on high for 5 minutes.
8. During the beating time sift the flour.
9. Stir the yeast mixture into the milk until well combined.
10. Egg mixture should be done mixing. Stir in boiled milk with water, and melted butter/margarine/mayonnaise mixture into the egg mixture.
11. Attach the dough attachment of the mixer and add sifted flour ½ cup at a time (if you don’t have a Kitchen Aid mixer, it still turns out well mixing with a hand mixer). When you are all done with the flour the dough should be sticky.
12. Remove the dough attachment, scrape the dough off it. Cover the mixer bowl with a clean towel and place the bowl in a warm place (I preheat the oven to 100 – 105 F, then turn it off and place the bowl on a folded towel or a mat). Let it rise for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
How to assemble:
1. Remove the risen dough from the oven.
2. Dust a large cutting board with flour. Press the dough down, remove it from the bowl, coat the dough with dusted flour and divide into 2 equal pieces.
3. Cover one part with a kitchen towel, and roll out the other half on the cutting board to thickness of a ¼ inch square.
4. Brush entire square with melted butter, sprinkle with 2 tbsp. white sugar, and 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon.
5. Using a pizza cutter, cut strips about 1 ¼ inch wide. You should have 12 strips.
6. Wash and slice apples very thinly (so the knife is visible through the apple, if you slice apples too thick it will be hard to roll them).
7. Lay out the apple slices on the dough strip towards the top of the cinnamon roll.
8. Roll the strip and pinch the end so it doesn’t come out during rising and baking.
9. Place the rolled cinnamon rolls on a buttered pan. Repeat the same process with all the strips. When you are done with the square, place the pan in a warm place or oven to rise for 30 minutes. While the first pan is rising you can work on the second half of the dough by repeating the same steps of assembling.
10. Remove from the oven. Preheat oven to 350 F (since I have a double oven stove, I preheat the second oven and place first pan of rolls to bake, while second pan of rolls goes into the warm oven to rise. It cuts on time). Bake for 30 minutes or until edges of the rolls are golden brown.
11.While the first pan of rolls is baking and second pan is rising, it’s a good time to make the glaze. Into a small bowl add all the glaze ingredients and mix with a hand mixer for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl down and mix it again for 3 more minutes. Set aside.
12. Remove baked rolls from the oven (I place second pan of rolls into the hot oven to bake). Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes on the pan.
13. Place the cream cheese frosting into decorating bag.
14. Remove rolls from the pan. Drizzle cream over the roll, and spread the frosting evenly on top of the roll with a spoon.
Enjoy!
Recipe Card
Cinnamon Rolls with Apples and Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- Dough
- 1 tsp. – dry active yeast
- 1 tsp. – sugar
- 2 tbsp. – warm water
- 1 ½ cup – low fat milk
- ½ cup – water
- 5 large – eggs
- 1 cup – sugar
- 8 tbsp. – unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp. – Best Foods mayonnaise
- ½ tsp. – vanilla
- 6 cups – all-purpose flour +1 tbsp. for dusting
- Filling
- 2 tbsp. – unsalted butter melted
- 4 tbsp. – white granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp. – ground cinnamon
- 4 Fuji apples
- Glaze
- 4 oz. – cream cheese room temperature
- 1 cup – confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tbsp. – unsalted room temperature
- ¼ tsp. – pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Into a small glass cup add yeast, sugar and water.
- Mix well. Set aside and let it rise.
- Pour milk and water into a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil while stirring it constantly (if you don’t stir constantly the milk will burn on the bottom of the sauce pan).
- Pour half a large bowl of cold water and place the sauce pan with boiled milk in it to cool faster. Set aside.
- Place butter and margarine into a small bowl and melt it in the microwave for 30 seconds.
- Add mayonnaise, and stir with a whisker or fork until well incorporated. Set aside to cool.
- Put eggs and sugar in your electric mixer bowl. Beat on high for 5 minutes.
- During the beating time sift the flour.
- Stir the yeast mixture into the milk until well combined.
- Egg mixture should be done mixing. Stir in boiled milk with water, and melted butter/margarine/mayonnaise mixture into the egg mixture.
- Attach the dough attachment of the mixer and add sifted flour ½ cup at a time (if you don’t have a Kitchen Aid mixer, it still turns out well mixing with a hand mixer). When you are all done with the flour the dough should be sticky.
- Remove the dough attachment, scrape the dough off it. Cover the mixer bowl with a clean towel and place the bowl in a warm place (I preheat the oven to 100 – 105 F, then turn it off and place the bowl on a folded towel or a mat). Let it rise for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
- How to assemble:
- Remove the risen dough from the oven.
- Dust a large cutting board with flour. Press the dough down, remove it from the bowl, coat the dough with dusted flour and divide into 2 equal pieces.
- Cover one part with a kitchen towel, and roll out the other half on the cutting board to thickness of a ¼ inch square.
- Brush entire square with melted butter, sprinkle 2 tbsp. white sugar, and 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut strips about 1 ¼ inch wide. You should have 12 strips.
- Wash and slice apples very thinly (so the knife is visible through the apple, if you slice apples too thick it will be hard to roll them).
- Lay out the apple slices on the dough strip towards the top of the cinnamon roll.
- Roll the strip and pinch the end so it doesn’t come out during rising and baking.
- Place the rolled cinnamon rolls on a buttered pan. Repeat the same process with all the strips. When you are done with the square, place the pan in a warm place or oven to rise for 30 minutes. While the first pan is rising you can work on the second half of the dough by repeating the same steps of assembling.
- Remove from the oven. Preheat oven to 350 F (since I have a double oven stove, I preheat the second oven and place first pan of rolls to bake, while second pan of rolls goes into the warm oven to rise. It cuts on time). Bake for 30 minutes or until edges of the rolls are golden brown.
- While the first pan of rolls is baking and second pan is rising, it’s a good time to make the glaze. Into a small bowl add all the glaze ingredients and mix with a hand mixer for 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl down and mix it again for 3 more minutes. Set aside.
- Remove baked rolls from the oven (I place second pan of rolls into the hot oven to bake). Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes on the pan.
- Place the cream cheese frosting into decorating bag.
- Remove rolls from the pan. Drizzle cream over the roll, and spread the frosting evenly on top of the roll with a spoon.
- Enjoy!
If you make this Cinnamon Rolls with Apples and Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe please share a picture with me on Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. Tag with #valyastasteofhome. I’d love to see your creations! ?
Rachel @ Bakerita says
These rolls are gorgeous!! I love how you put the apple slices inside the cinnamon roll, so beautiful. Pinned!
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Thank you for Pinning Rachel it is really appreciated. 🙂
jessica says
How many eggs would you advise to use if i want to make only half of the portion?Thanks
valya'stasteofhome.com says
You can use 3 small eggs.
tworaspberries says
I love cinnamon rolls and such a great idea to put apples in them! they look beautiful kinda look like roses! 😉
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Thanks Michele! You're right! They do look like roses, especially before baking.
Tatyana says
Your creations looks so gorgeous! I love how you add apples and then roll into a neat roll instead of making roulette and then cut into individual rolls. Thank you for your time and wiliness to share your kitchen creations with us!
valya'stasteofhome.com says
This type of cinnamon rolls recipe requires slicing the square of dough before rolling, because you need to lay out apple slices. I also make cinnamon rolls with raisins, which I roll into roulette and then cut it. Thank you for you encouraging words Tatyana! 🙂
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says
These look like the ultimate cinnamon rolls! I've never made my own before because I've been too intimated, but I love your step by step tutorial. And that cream cheese frosting looks amazing!
valya'stasteofhome.com says
I like home made so much better. Worth the time making it. Thanks Gayle! 🙂
Nina says
Oooh that looks so delicious! And attractive. I want to make these soon. I really need a KitchenAid mixer, I think I would bake much more:) I'll look for deals on black friday.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Thank you Nina! Kitchen Aid mixer is great. Let me know how they turn out for you. 🙂