Cinnamon Roll Muffins have cinnamon sugar swirls and bake up in a muffin tin. Drizzle the tops with a simple cream cheese frosting and you have the breakfast recipe everyone will be reaching for!
These individual cinnamon rolls are a take on my mom's homemade cinnamon rolls.
Unlike a traditional muffin with dry ingredients and wet ingredients, these have a simple, cinnamon infused yeast dough that bakes up light and fluffy.
If that wasn't enough, a cinnamon sugar is swirled inside and they're topped with a cream cheese frosting to drizzle or smear right over the tops when they're still warm from the oven.
Go on, get your cinnamon roll fix with this easy recipe!
Why you'll love these cinnamon roll muffins
These bake up in less time because they cook individually in muffin tins.
Perfect for brunch, breakfast or an easy to grab breakfast to grab and eat on the go.
There's no arguing about who gets the middle piece of the cinnamon roll pan, which is an issue of civility in our family.
If you, too love goodies baked in a muffin tin, be sure to check out these French toast cups, too!
Ingredients
For the muffins
- warm milk - you'll want to gently heat the milk in the microwave or saucepan to a temperature of 100°–110°F. You can check the temperature with a digital thermometer to be sure. The warmth helps activate the yeast. We don't want the temperature too hot or it kills the yeast. I know, it sounds very dramatic but it's really not too difficult.
- dry active yeast - if the thought of cooking with yeast intimidates you, don't sweat it. Once you've done it once you'll feel much better. You can check this video to see how to start dry yeast.
- vegetable oil
- all-purpose flour - if you have a gluten sensitivity you can substitute a 1:1 gluten free flour. The texture will be slightly different but equally delicious.
- cinnamon
- salted butter
- light brown sugar
For the cream cheese glaze
Optional but highly recommended!
- cream cheese
- vanilla extract
- powdered sugar
How to make cinnamon roll muffins
Combine warm milk and yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer and stir to combine. Let it sit for about 5 minutes until it starts to foam.
Combine warm milk and yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer and stir to combine. Let it sit for about 5 minutes until it starts to foam.
Add the dough hook to your mixing bowl. Add the oil, flour, and one teaspoon of the cinnamon to the yeast mixture and mix until the dough starts to come away from the sides of the bowl.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 3 minutes to help work the yeast in the dough.
Place the dough back in the mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise for 20 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.
Turn the dough back onto a floured surface and roll it out into a large rectangle about ¼ inch thick.
Combine the butter, brown sugar, and remaining cinnamon together in a bowl with a fork until it resembles sand and spread the mixture over the sheet of dough.
Roll the sheet of dough, jelly roll style so it resembles a long, thin roll. Cut the dough into 12 evenly sized discs.
Place the discs with the cinnamon swirls facing up into a muffin tin greased with butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and allow the cinnamon rolls to rest for an additional 20 minutes while the oven preheats.
Bake the cinnamon roll muffins for 20 minutes, or until the tops begin to brown. As the cinnamon roll muffins bake, the filling soaks the outside of the cinnamon roll, which encases the muffins in a delicious, sugary shell once the muffins have cooled down.
If you would like to top your muffins with cream cheese frosting, step by step instructions are in the recipe card below.
Cool slightly and then pipe or drizzle the cream cheese icing over the top of each muffin.
Can you make cinnamon rolls with store bought dough
To be perfectly honest, I haven't tried it but I think it would work. You'd thaw it, roll it out into the rectangle and go from there.
Can I make muffins ahead of time and freeze them?
Yes, you can. To freeze them unbaked, prepare up to the step where you cut them into 12 pieces. Freeze in an airtight freezer container. To bake, pull however many you'd like and allow to thaw and rise. Bake as directed.
How can I store cinnamon rolls
If you frost your muffins, they are best stored in the fridge for up to five days.
If they're unfrosted, they can be stored on the counter for up to four days. Either way, make sure they are in an airtight container.
Other recipes
If you make this cinnamon roll muffins recipe, leave a rating or recipe review. I'd love to hear from you!
Cinnamon Roll Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm milk - heated to 100-110°F
- 1 Tablespoon dry active yeast
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoon cinnamon divided
- 3 Tablespoons softened butter + extra for greasing the pan.
- 1 cup light brown sugar
For the cream cheese icing
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Pour the warm milk and yeast into a large mixing bowl and stir in the yeast until just combined. Cover the mixture with a dish towel and allow it to sit until foamy (about five minutes).
- Add the oil, flour, and one teaspoon of the cinnamon to the bowl fitted with a dough hook and mix until the dough starts to come away from the sides of the bowl.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 3 minutes to help work the yeast in the dough.
- Place the dough back in the mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise for 20 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.
- Turn the dough back onto a floured surface and roll it out into a large rectangle about ¼ inch thick and DIMENSIONS. Combine the butter, brown sugar, and remaining cinnamon together in a bowl with a fork until it resembles sand and spread the mixture over the sheet of dough.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the sheet of dough, jelly roll style so it resembles a long, thin roll. Cut the dough into 12 evenly sized discs.
- Place the discs into a muffin tin greased with butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and allow the cinnamon rolls to rest for an additional 20 minutes while the oven preheats.
- Bake the cinnamon roll muffins for 20 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins begin to turn a light golden brown.
- If you would like to top your muffins with cream cheese frosting, whisk together the cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar until smooth and creamy.
- Drizzle the top each muffin after they come out of the oven, serve, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This Farm Girl Cooks is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
