Just the thought of cinnamon rolls- warm, gooey, soft, sweet- makes me literally swoon. I love them. If I were a baking superhero (I’m working on it) my weakness would be cinnamon rolls.
As much as I love the little devils (and I hate to say this) I hate to bake them. The problem is not the sweet yeast dough or the rolling or the slicing. I simply have no patience for the waiting that is required of me during the proofing, rolling, slicing and proofing again process. I realize this is totally unreasonable, but it’s just the truth.
Nicole at Baking Bites seems the understand my need for instant, yet stubbornly homemade cinnamon roll goodness.
I’d like to introduce you to Cinnamon Roll Muffins- add the yeast, subtract the long rising.
Imagine my glee when I had cinnamon roll-esque goodness coming out of my oven in well under an hour. These muffins rise for a short 15 minutes in the bowl and then are placed into a cold oven to cook as the oven preheats to 350 degrees. After 20 minutes in the oven, they’re risen and golden and bubbling with cinnamon and brown sugar.
Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tsp active dry or rapid rise yeast
2/3 cup warm milk (100-110F; low fat is fine)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
Filling/Topping
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom
Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp milk or cream
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Dissolve the yeast in a measuring cup filled with the warmed milk, then stir milk mixture, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and egg into the flour mixture. Mix well, until very smooth. Pour into prepared pan and let rest for 15 minutes.
While the dough rests, mix together butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl using a fork until all the butter has been incorporated into the sugar and mixture is crumbly. Divide the batter between 12 greased muffin cups. Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.)
Place pan into a cold oven, then set the oven temperature to 350F.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until bread is lightly browned at the edges and the center of the bread springs back when lightly pressed. Some of the sugar mixture on top may still be bubbling.
Cool for at least 30 minutes before whisking the powdered sugar and milk together to form an icing and drizzling it onto the bread.
Serve warm. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave.
{ 141 comments… read them below or add one }
← Previous Comments
These look outstanding and an easy and quick way to enjoy the smell and tastes of cinnamon rolls with less work!
I made these today. Are you supposed to let the dough rest in the muffin tins, or in the bowl after mixing?
They turned out very small and I wondered if I didn’t let them rise long enough. They are delicious tho! Also, the bits of cinnamon mix went all over the pan and did not stay on the rolls. I pushed it back on the rolls after it cooled out of the oven but then they just fell off when I took them out of the pan to frost them. I just drizzeled the frosting over the pieces of cinnamon I had put back on the rolls.
Me again…..Oh, by the way, my husband and son say these things are the most wonderful muffins. And request that I make a double batch the next time I make them. I can hear them in the kitchen now teasing each other about having another one. Very good!
Those look so delicious, looking forward to seeing more recipes. I have found a number of healthy recipes over at http://www.Chefdave.com
It is the personal blog of Chef Dave Fouts. You should consider a guest recipe from him for us dieters.
They look and sound delicious – will be trying them ASAP!
UK Foodie
http://www.ukfoodies.co.uk
I love cinnamon rolls, so I am going to have to give this a try. Love the pics.
Is there any way to make these yeast-free? My hubby’s allergic, and never gets cinnamon rolls! I know if I could surprise him with something similar he would flip!
I am right there with you. I absolutely hate baking cinnamon rolls! These seem like a great solution.
Great looking cinnamon rolls Joy! Thanks for sharing
zesty
I’m going to try these tonight, but could I make it into a cake, rather than muffins? in an english cake pan and leave it in a bit longer? yum…
These do look good, so I decided to make them christmas morning yay! Happy Holidays Everyone
I just stumbled upon these. Yum. Add to my cinnamon roll obsession!
Wow those look amazing!
I tried recreating it but it did not work. My muffins were not muffin-y… =(
I’m pretty sure I just didn’t follow the directions correctly.
The
“Pour into prepared pan and let rest for 15 minutes…. Divide the batter between 12 greased muffin cups. Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.)”
Is a bit confusing to me… What prepared pan? I have batter AND dough? I am so confused!
My mom tried helping me, but I’m a lost cause… Help, please?
=D
This was confusing for me also, but after thinking it through, I came up with doing it this way…
For the muffins, you can leave the dough in the bowl you mixed it in to rise for 15 minutes.
After the 15 minutes, you divide the batter into the muffin cups, and then sprinkle the cinnamon mixture on top and press down into each muffin. Hope this helps.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I am going to make them tomorrow morning for breakfast. And btw, your pictures look beautiful and clear
These fantastic Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins are in my stove right now!!!!! I really adore your blog, it’s always hard for me living in France to make my favorit american cookies, cupcakes etc…. because all the recipe I find includes shortening and I don’t like shortening ( and it’s nearly impossible to find any here!!!) So I want to say THANK YOU!!!!! for giving us such good recipes, and for being so much fun reading, you lighten up my kitchen!!
okay, tried these in a loaf pan as bread instead of buns.
in the oven for 1 hour, YUM.
everything is perfect, what an quick cheat for real yeast cake! minus the time and trouble :)
I made these for a brunch I hosted this weekend – they were fantastic! My only issue was that the yeast turned into a big lump when I mixed it with the milk (maybe because I used whole?). Luckily I had extra and re-did it with water. They turned out great. I have been obsessed with cinnamon rolls lately and will definitely be making these on a regular basis – they are soo much easier! Thank you!
made these today, they’re so good and crazy simple to make.
(this is how mine came out http://twitpic.com/1bdx5)
Wow! These are different! I love cinnamon rolls, so I must try them. They look so quick and easy too.
This looks absolutely delicious!
I was wondering if it would still taste fine if I take out the cardamom?
Just made these. YUM!!! I’m not a huge fan of the icing, so I just left that part off. Still super delish!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
These are fabulous!! I just did a taste test with your version and a more traditional rolled cinnamon roll muffin at:
http://adashofsass.com/2009/03/22/cinnamon-roll-muffins/
(I don’t want to spoil the surprise, but your version won!)
Thanks for the great idea and recipe!
Ohgosh I tried making these today. One suggestion I’d give is to specify how much you filled your muffin pan. I had no idea how high to fill them so I just kind of guessed and they ended up overflowing. Woops! I’ll have to try these again.
Oh YUM. I have some in the oven right this second. I’ve just found your blog, and as soon as my muffins are out of the oven, I have to go to the shop to get some peanut butter for the flourless p/b cookies…. *drool*
I have these muffins cooling on my counter. They are so good. Thank you Joy!
Just a quick note as I am on my way to the kitchen to make this recipe! Its that darn icing that gets me. As to the cinnamon and vanilla extract; I use an online Juliet Mae Spices. They have a bunch of different cinnamon’s that they grind. Also, they have great value vanilla beans. So now I make my own vanilla extract at home! Try it it makes the great greater.
I don’t know what I did wrong, but my muffins rose over the top of the pan and most of the sugar topping melted all over the muffin tin. I thought I pressed the topping in, but apparently not well enough.
This was a big flop for me.
Maybe I’ll try just baking it in a pan like the original recipe called for.
@Mama K I had the same experience! These were a bust. I’m not sure what I did wrong but they tasted very yeasty when baked. And not at all golden and delicious. Grar! I had such high hopes. Maybe I’ll try once more.
Hi Mama K and April- I’m so sorry that these muffins didn’t work out for you! That’s a total bummer. Give the recipe a try in a baking pan… I certainly hope you have better luck!
Made these and they turned out wonderful! They were everything I expected and more. I love a high content of yeast in my breads so it was right on point. I only filled the tins 1/2 way and they came out exactly like your pictures. Thanks for this recipe! It is definately a keeper.
This is marvelous just look at the texture of that muffin!!!
I just made these today for the hub for Father’s Day and they are fantastic! I love that sweet yeast bread flavor with so little time. I just found this blog about a week ago and this is my first of your recipes that I’ve tried. I really look forward to trying more. :)
They look absolulely delicious Joy! I attempted to make a batch of these but they don’t look like yours…I think I used too small muffin tins as mine came out the oven perfectly rounded…as any good muffin should, alas they were meant 2 be flat like yours, they still tasted lovely tho…I think there is a little difference in the measurements & weights when it comes to our different baking/cooking systems as in US you still use ounces where in Australia we use grams. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll figure it out with more practise! ;)
I think these might just be the best muffins I’ve *ever* made. They actually stunned my boyfriend into silence when he was eating them. They’re seriously amazing! Will definitely make them again as the only thing better than how they taste is how easy they are…
I’m making these in the morning, so I’m probably posting this question too late. But does anybody know if these would work okay as mini muffins? Anybody? :)
These are quite possibly THE BEST muffins I have ever made/had! I just sat there at the kitchen counter chewing and thinking oh my GOD. I must make more.
Wonderful, Wonderful, Wonderful! Thanks for this great recipe!
I loved the idea of these but when I made them they came out really dense and a little chewy. Do you know why that would happen? Thanks!
I just made these too and they didn’t raise. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I’m not giving up! I love love love cinnamon rolls and the idea of these are wonderful, I’m going to keep trying till mine look like Joy’s!!!
Hi Joy! LOVE your blog! I was in charge of baking for my work’s monthly birthday celebrations this month so I made these and some chocolate ones for today. I got RAVE reviews!! I made about 3 dozen of them and about 2 dozen of the chocolate and these went faster than the chocolate! Seriously, it’s 30 minutes past since we started and there’s maybe a dozen left. My boyfriend was my taste tester last night and he ate one… then opened his mouth and asked for more. Good stuff! Thank you soooo much!!!!
hi joy
these are ultra yum… i also have to say though that mine were a lot doughier than yours look, they tasted more like donuts. any tips on how to make them fluffier? leave them to rise for longer?
thanks for all the delicious recipes
hello there..
i attempted muffins again and did leave them to rise for an hour, and looked just like yours woo hoo!
that’s great news.
I made these for a Labor Day this year & they loved this recipe. The muffins were not very big, the perfect bite with a lot of good flavor. It was easy to make so thank you very much. Loved it!
I believe heaven was coming down to earth when I saw the picture of your muffins! I love cinnamon, I love little cakes–it’s just perfect!
they could have been delicious but there was way too much of a yeasty flavor. euch.
The same thing happened to me!
Oh this website looks just amazing and I love the recipes, however after reading several of the comments it looks like the recipes do not always turn out. Seem many readers have great difficulties. There is nothing worse than baking and having it NOT turn out…I have to say that I do not want to risk it…thank-you though for your obvious effort.
I made these this morning and they were delicious. It’s hard not to eat all of them, by myself, in one sitting. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Maybe next weekend I’ll try the cream cheese cinnamon rolls. Yummers!
Is it OK if I only use 7 grams of dry yeast for the recipe? Or will they not rise? the yeast I bought in packets of 7 grams and I only have one left ….
I just whipped up some of these delectable little muffins, but alas, I too found that mine did not rise. Not sure what I did wrong, except that maybe my milk was not at the right temperature to activate the yeast??? I am soooo disappointed as they looked so good.
I made these muffins, and they looked and smelled great. However, when I tasted them, they tasted like yeast a lot. I am not sure what I did wrong, but I will try again and see what happens.
I just posted about this recipe on my blog, http://www.flexitarianfoodie.com. Thanks for the great recipe!
WOW….yummy! When you give them proper time to rise they turn out perfectly!!! Great recipe!
← Previous Comments
{ 30 trackbacks }