Cinnamon Rolls in an Hour

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I typically don’t have room in my fridge to make overnight cinnamon rolls and I’m not sure I have the mental capacity to get up several hours before breakfast.

Despite of all this, I promised our family that I would make cinnamon rolls a few times a month for a weekend breakfast. The recipe below was born out of a need to make this deliciousness in not a lot of time!

These cinnamon rolls can be made, baked, and ready to go in about an hour. They are delicious and soft and my family loves them. I also make a cream cheese frosting to go on top to make them extra yummy!

Note: If you plan on eating all the cinnamon rolls the day you make them, this is the best recipe to make. If you plan on having leftovers, I would recommend my Amish Cinnamon Rolls recipe as they will stay softer after being stored.

The full printable recipe with directions is below the step by step images.

How to Make Cinnamon Rolls in an Hour

Start by mixing together your wet ingredients, including the yeast so that it can get working. It’s very important that your milk is not too hot or it will kill off your yeast and the rolls will not rise.

Add in your dry ingredients and mix in the flour slowly. You may need a little more or a little less based on your elevation. I stay on the lower end of the amount of flour because we are at a higher elevation. Give the dough about 10 minutes to sit while you gather more ingredients and prepare your pan for the oven. If you haven’t already, turn on your oven and preheat it.

Roll out your dough to make a large rectangle. I don’t measure this but it’s probably around 18 inches long by 12 inches wide. You will be cutting 12 cinnamon rolls out of this dough. The dough is somewhat stiff and harder to work with so a rolling pin is best to roll it out.

Spread your melted butter over the top of your dough. Do not spread it all the way to the edges.

Sprinkle the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture over the butter. Again, do not go all the way to the edges.

Roll up the dough from the bottom to the top. Don’t squish it down too hard or the filling might come back out!

Cut the roll of dough into 12 pieces and place them in a greased 9×13 (or similar size) baking pan with sides. Do not put them right next to each other in the pan, give them a little space to rise.

Place the cinnamon roll pan in the oven and bake until the tops of the rolls are golden brown. While they are baking, you can make the cream cheese frosting.

Combine all the frosting ingredients in a clean bowl and beat it together with hand mixers. It’s very hard to get this frosting nice and smooth without them. The cream cheese also needs to be at room temp to get the right texture.

Beat the frosting until smooth.

Remove the cinnamon rolls from the oven. They should have risen nicely while baking. Let them cool for a few minutes before you put the frosting on top.

You can frost each roll individually or you can just spread the cream cheese frosting over the whole pan like it do. These are best warm and straight from the oven!

I’m not sure it gets better than this on a Saturday morning!

What I Used:

• Cordless Kitchen Aid Hand Mixer
• Norpro Stainless Steel Roasting Pan
• Wooden Tapered Rolling Pin
• Lindy’s Stainless Steel German Bowl
• Lindy’s Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl

5 from 1 vote

Print

Cinnamon Rolls in an Hour

Here's how I make fresh cinnamon rolls from scratch with cream cheese frosting in only an hour.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Keyword Cinnamon Rolls

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 12 rolls

Calories 474 kcal

Creator Merissa

Ingredients

Cinnamon Roll Dough

• 1 cup warm water not too hot!
• 3/4 cup milk also warmed, but not hot
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter melted
• 3 Tablespoons instant yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 5-6 cups all purpose or bread flour
• 6 Tablespoons butter melted, for filling
• 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon for filling
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar for filling

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 6 ounces cream cheese room temp
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Start by mixing together your wet ingredients, including the yeast so that it can get working. It's very important that your milk and water is not too hot or it will kill off your yeast and the rolls will not rise.

2. Add in your dry ingredients and mix in the flour slowly. You may need a little more or a little less based on your elevation. I stay on the lower end of the amount of flour because we are at a higher elevation. Give the dough about 10 minutes to sit while you gather more ingredients and prepare your pan for the oven. If you haven’t already, turn on your oven and preheat it.
3. Roll out your dough to make a large rectangle. I don’t measure this but it’s probably around 18 inches long by 12 inches wide. You will be cutting 12 cinnamon rolls out of this dough. The dough is somewhat stiff and harder to work with so a rolling pin is best to roll it out.
4. Spread your melted butter over the top of your dough. Do not spread it all the way to the edges.
5. Sprinkle the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture over the butter. Again, do not go all the way to the edges.
6. Roll up the dough from the bottom to the top. Don’t squish it down too hard or the filling might come back out!
7. Cut the roll of dough into 12 pieces and place them in a greased 9×13 (or similar size) baking pan with sides. Do not put them right next to each other in the pan, give them a little space to rise.

8. Place the cinnamon roll pan in the oven at 350 degrees and bake until the tops of the rolls are golden brown. (about 30 minutes) While they are baking, you can make the cream cheese frosting.

9. Combine all the frosting ingredients in a clean bowl and beat it together with hand mixers. It’s very hard to get this frosting nice and smooth without them. The cream cheese also needs to be at room temp to get the right texture.
10. Beat the frosting until smooth.
11. Remove the cinnamon rolls from the oven. They should have risen nicely while baking. Let them cool for a few minutes before you put the frosting on top.
12. You can frost each roll individually or you can just spread the cream cheese frosting over the whole pan like it do. These are best warm and straight from the oven!
13. I’m not sure it gets better than this on a Saturday morning!

Nutrition Facts

Cinnamon Rolls in an Hour

Amount Per Serving

Calories 474 Calories from Fat 108

% Daily Value*

Fat 12g18%

Saturated Fat 7g44%

Trans Fat 0.4g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 3g

Cholesterol 56mg19%

Sodium 396mg17%

Potassium 182mg5%

Carbohydrates 82g27%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 42g47%

Protein 11g22%

Vitamin A 372IU7%

Vitamin C 0.1mg0%

Calcium 122mg12%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

More From Scratch Breakfasts

• Sourdough Caramel Rolls Recipe
• Amish Cinnamon Rolls or Caramel Rolls Recipe
• Cream Cheese Danish Recipe From Scratch

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about and living the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from the Contact Page.

This recipe for Cinnamon Rolls in an Hour was originally posted on Little House Living in February 2025.

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