Love cinnamon rolls, but the idea of making them from scratch keeps you from making them? I’ve got you boos! My easy cinnamon rolls recipe, is, well, EASY! I love calling these my lazy cinnamon rolls because they taste so bomb but I use puff pastry to make them no-fuss and fast! We ain’t messing with a homemade yeast dough on this one because ain’t nobody got time for that.
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How to Make Easy Cinnamon Rolls
Step 1: Make the Rolls
- Roll out one sheet of puff pastry until about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface.
- Brush the puff pastry with melted butter and evenly sprinkle the puff pastry with half of the brown sugar, and cinnamon just over the buttered area.
PRO TIP: Make sure to leave about an inch of space along the edges free of butter and the sugar mixture to make rolling easier.
- Roll the dough up tightly but gently, and use a little melted butter on the open edge of the roll to seal the seam.
- Slice the roll into six pieces. Place each roll inside a parchment paper-lined baking dish. Refrigerate while you repeat the above steps with the last sheet of puff pastry. Bake the cinnamon rolls in your preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden.
Step 2: Make the Icing
- Beat the butter until it’s fluffy.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar while continuing to beat.
- Add the milk and mix it into the icing. Increase the amount of spice or sugar until the desired consistency and flavor are reached in your cinnamon roll icing.
- Place the icing in the microwave for 10-20 seconds until it melts down and is pourable.
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Step 3: Add the Icing
- Remove the cooked cinnamon rolls from the oven.
- Drizzle with the icing and serve.
Easy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
For the Rolls
- 2 frozen puff pastry sheets that has thawed out in the refrigerator for at least two hours.
- 3 tbsp melted butter
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
For the Icing
- 4 tbsp salted butter room temp
- 1 cup confectioner's sugar sifted
- 1-2 tbsp milk
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp chai spice
- ⅛ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
For the Rolls
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Lightly flour your surface and roll out one sheet of puff pastry until about 1/4 inch thick (leave the other sheet in the refrigerator).
- Brush puff pastry with melted butter, leaving 1 inch of space around the edges. Evenly sprinkle puff pastry with half of brown sugar, and cinnamon just over buttered area.
- Tightly but gently roll the dough up. Use a little melted butter on the open edge of the roll to seal the seam.
- Using a sharp knife, slice the roll into six pieces. Place each roll inside a parchment paper lined baking dish. Place the dish in the refrigerator as you repeat the above steps with the last sheet of puff pastry.
- Bake the cinnamon rolls in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden (watch carefully!).
For the Icing
- While rolls are baking, make the icing. Beat butter until fluffy. Once fluffy continue to beat while gradually adding the powdered sugar, then add milk and vanilla, chai spice and cinnamon. Increase amount of spice, or sugar until desired consistency and flavor are reached.
- Then place in the microwave for 10-20 seconds until it melts down and is pourable. Drizzle over cinnamon rolls when they are fresh out of the oven.
Notes
How to Store & Reheat
These are always best served freshly baked while still warm. But if you gotta store some leftovers, just toss them in an airtight container in the fridge. Try to avoid stacking them because they will stick together. Store them in the fridge for up to five days. Serve them at room temperature or slightly warmed. To reheat place the desired amount in a baking dish and cover with foil and heat at 350° F for 8-10 minutes or until warmed. You can also heat them one at a time in the microwave using short intervals.To freeze
Wrap them up in a container that’s safe for the freezer and freeze for up to three months. Thaw them out in the fridge overnight and then serve warm.Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Use a Sharp Knife. When cutting the cinnamon rolls or use unflavored dental floss for clean cuts.
- Make Sure to Thaw the Puff Pastry. It needs at least a couple of hours to thaw out before working with it.
- Keep the Dough Chilled. Work with one sheet at a time and refrigerate the rolls after they’re cut until you’re ready to bake.
Recipe Help
Yep, this works great to make the day before! Fill and roll the cinnamon rolls following the directions. Then place them in the baking dish. Cover well with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Mix up the icing but don’t microwave it. Remove the baking dish in the morning and let it sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Bake as instructed and then microwave the icing and drizzle it over the top.
Heat is the greatest enemy of puff pastry. It’s much easier to work with when it’s cold. That’s why you need to keep the second sheet in the fridge while you are working with the other one. It’s best to have your cinnamon sugar mixture and melted butter before rolling out the puff pastry. If it seems too soft or sticky, refrigerate it before continuing on with the recipe.
It’s important that the puff pastry is cold when it goes in the oven. The layers in puff pastry are created by the fat that’s layered in the dough, if it’s not cold it won’t puff up properly and may end up flat and dense. After cutting the cinnamon rolls, put them back in the fridge until you’re ready to bake.
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They did not rise at all! My dough was cold and followed directions perfectly!
I’m not sure why your dough would be cold since you it should be at room temperature with luke warm and hot water. Happy to troubleshoot with you.
The dough is perfectly fluffy and the cinnamon swirl is just heavenly. They’re so simple to make and the aroma while baking is pure bliss. A perfect treat for any cinnamon lover!
Enjoyed these for breakfast this morning and started my day off right! Turned out light, fluffy and delicious; my whole family loved them!
I drooling over these simple and easy cinnamon roll recipes. Thanks for sharing.
I made this last Sunday for brunch and they were a huge hit! The cinnamon rolls turned out perfect. I can’t wait to make again.
I am not one who loves to bake, but I do love cinnamon rolls! So when I came across this “lazy” version, I knew I had to give it a try. I was so pleased with the results. The pastry was flaky and delicious and the chai flavors added a nice twist.
Hi! Quick question,
In the chai spice ingredients, for ginger it says “2/3 1/2 tsp ginger.”
Did you mean to write 1 1/2 tsp ginger?
i love cinnamon rolls..it’s very tasty and have a nice flavour,i’m using srilankan real spice for cinnamon rolls..
These sound amazing – I was looking for something a little different to do with cinnamon buns, and this nails it!
This screams holiday time. The chai mix is a nice variation. Quite a morning pick me up!