Fluffy, gooey, and the perfect breakfast, these Apple Cinnamon Rolls will become a quick favorite in your household and you will never have any leftovers.
I absolutely love cinnamon rolls, these Apple Cinnamon Rolls are some of my favorites. Mainly because I love baking with apples.
This is a great morning breakfast, but it also makes a great dessert or really anytime during the day that you want them.
My friend made these when she had a house showing because they were moving and it sold the house and the new buyers requested the recipe. Now if that doesn’t tell you something…
While working with dough can sometimes be tricky, don’t let it scare you away. It is one of those things that you just have to practice at.
All the flavors in these Apple Cinnamon Rolls just go so well together from the dough, the filling and the frosting.
Every single bite will be like heaven, so do not hesitate when I say that you need to make these, you will fall in love.
Some of my other favorite breakfast recipes that we have on our site include: Cinnamon Sugar Twist Donuts, French Toast Bites and Maple Bars.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- These are really hearty so one roll will be enough to fill you up.
- Everything works together so well, the flavors pair perfectly.
- Serve up with some coffee and you have yourself the perfect breakfast.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST):
Whole milk
Granulated sugar
Instant yeast
Salted butter
Eggs
Salt
All-purpose flour
Bread flour
Apples
Light brown sugar
Cornstarch
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Ground ginger
Cream cheese
Powdered sugar
Heavy cream
Maple syrup
Vanilla extract
HOW TO MAKE APPLE CINNAMON ROLLS, STEP BY STEP:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the milk, sugar, and yeast lightly with a fork.
- Attach the paddle attachment and mix in the butter, eggs, salt, and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour. Mix until the flour is incorporated, the butter will still not be fully combined.
- Switch to a dough hook attachment and add the remaining all-purpose and bread flour. Knead on low speed for about 4-5 minutes. If your dough is still super sticky, add more all-purpose flour until you get a dough that pulls away from the sides but is still soft and slightly tacky. Do nor over flour or your cinnamon rolls will be dry.
- Once the dough clears the sides of the bowl knead for an additional 4-5 minutes.
- Remove the dough briefly to a clean surface and spray the bowl of the stand mixer with cooking spray and return the dough to the bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 90-120 minutes.
- While the dough rises, make the filling during the last 10 minutes of rising.
- In a large bowl toss together the apples, brown sugar, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Set aside.
- Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Once the dough has risen, turn out onto a lightly floured counter and roll the dough into a roughly 12×18-inch rectangle.
- Spread the softened butter on the rolls evenly and then spread the apple mixture over the top evenly.
- Cut into 12 equal pieces with a pizza cutter or sharp knife and roll each piece up into a cinnamon roll. Place in the prepared baking dish and cover with plastic wrap.
- Let rise again until visibly puffy, they don’t need to double in size this time. This will take about 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat your oven during the last 20 minutes of the second rise to 375 degrees F.
- Bake the cinnamon rolls for about 22-25 minutes. Check them at the 15-minute mark and if the tops are browning too quickly put a piece of foil loosely over top to prevent them from going too dark.
- Once they are golden brown and baked through, remove from the oven and let cool (uncover if you placed foil on it in the oven) for 10-15 minutes while you make the frosting.
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese together for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar, heavy cream, maple syrup, and vanilla extract and mix for 2-3 more minutes until nicely combined.
- Frost the warm cinnamon rolls with the frosting and serve warm.
WHAT ARE THE BEST APPLES TO USE?
We actually use a mixture of Granny Smith and Honeycrisp in this recipe, but other baking apples will work as well, some ideas include:
- Golden Delicious
- Jonagold
- Braeburn
- Cortland
- Rome
You can use just one type of these or do half and half like we do. The choice is really up to you!
HOW MANY APPLES IS 2 CUPS?
2 cups of apples is roughly 2 apples. So you don’t need much for this recipe which saves time on prepping them.
DO I HAVE TO USE BOTH ALL-PURPOSE AND BREAD FLOUR?
You can use all flour be bread flour for a chewier roll or all all-purpose flour for a softer roll. I think the ratios in this recipe are the perfect cinnamon roll dough.
We have always used both in this recipe, but you can choose which one you want to use or what you have on hand.
CAN I USE ACTIVE DRY YEAST?
If you use active dry yeast instead of instant, you will need to proof the yeast in the milk and sugar first until bubbly before beginning.
Your rise times may be slightly longer as well.
HOW TO STORE:
These can be stored covered in the refrigerator where they will keep for up to 2-3 days.
We do not recommend freezing these Apple Cinnamon Rolls, thawing them will make them soggy because of the filling.
To reheat, place on a plate and microwave until just warmed through.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- If you don’t want a hint of maple flavor you can leave out the maple syrup and replace it with another 2 tablespoons of heavy cream in its place.
- The amount of flour needed in yeast doughs depends a lot on the humidity and climate of your kitchen. Add just enough flour until the dough clears the sides of the bowls but is still tacky.
- If you use active dry yeast instead of instant, you will need to proof the yeast in the milk and sugar first until bubbly before beginning. Your rise times may be slightly longer as well.
- If you unsalted butter add an additional ¼ teaspoon salt to the cinnamon rolls and filling and a pinch to the frosting.
- We DO NOT recommend freezing this recipe.
- You can choose to use a mixture of bread flour and all-purpose like we do or just use one.
- Other apples can be used, see above for ideas.
When it comes to a delicious breakfast you absolutely cannot go wrong with these Apple Cinnamon Rolls, trust me!
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried these APPLE CINNAMON ROLLS or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and what shenanigans I’m getting into!
Apple Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Dough:
- 1 cup whole milk warm
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 5 teaspoons instant yeast
- 8 Tablespoons salted butter softened and cut into tablespoon sized pieces
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour plus more if needed
- 2 cups bread flour
Filling:
- 2 cups apples peeled and chopped small
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ Tablespoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
- 6 Tablespoons salted butter softened
Frosting:
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter softened
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 Tablespoon real maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the milk, sugar, and yeast lightly with a fork.
- Attach the paddle attachment and mix in the butter, eggs, salt, and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour. Mix until the flour is incorporated, the butter will still not be fully combined.
- Switch to a dough hook attachment and add the remaining all-purpose and bread flour. Knead on low speed for about 4-5 minutes. If your dough is still super sticky, add more all-purpose flour until you get a dough that pulls away from the sides but is still soft and slightly tacky. Do nor over flour or your cinnamon rolls will be dry.
- Once the dough clears the sides of the bowl knead for an additional 4-5 minutes.
- Remove the dough briefly to a clean surface and spray the bowl of the stand mixer with cooking spray and return the dough to the bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 90-120 minutes.
- While the dough rises, make the filling during the last 10 minutes of rising.
- In a large bowl toss together the apples, brown sugar, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Set aside.
- Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Once the dough has risen, turn out onto a lightly floured counter and roll the dough into a roughly 12×18-inch rectangle.
- Spread the softened butter on the rolls evenly and then spread the apple mixture over the top evenly.
- Cut into 12 equal pieces with a pizza cutter or sharp knife and roll each piece up into a cinnamon roll. Place in the prepared baking dish and cover with plastic wrap.
- Let rise again until visibly puffy, they don’t need to double in size this time. This will take about 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat your oven during the last 20 minutes of the second rise to 375 degrees F.
- Bake the cinnamon rolls for about 22-25 minutes. Check them at the 15-minute mark and if the tops are browning too quickly put a piece of foil loosely over top to prevent them from going too dark.
- Once they are golden brown and baked through, remove from the oven and let cool (uncover if you placed foil on it in the oven) for 10-15 minutes while you make the frosting.
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese together for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar, heavy cream, maple syrup, and vanilla extract and mix for 2-3 more minutes until nicely combined.
- Frost the warm cinnamon rolls with the frosting and serve warm.
Notes
- If you don’t want a hint of maple flavor you can leave out the maple syrup and replace it with another 2 tablespoons of heavy cream in its place.
- The amount of flour needed in yeast doughs depends a lot on the humidity and climate of your kitchen. Add just enough flour until the dough clears the sides of the bowls but is still tacky.
- If you use active dry yeast instead of instant, you will need to proof the yeast in the milk and sugar first until bubbly before beginning. Your rise times may be slightly longer as well.
- If you unsalted butter add an additional ¼ teaspoon salt to the cinnamon rolls and filling and a pinch to the frosting.
- We DO NOT recommend freezing this recipe.
- You can choose to use a mixture of bread flour and all-purpose like we do or just use one.
- Other apples can be used, see above for ideas.
Nutrition
Tornadough Alli is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value is important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and values can vary depending on which brands were used.
Leave a Reply