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Overnight Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
4.6 from 309 votes

Overnight Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls

This recipe for Overnight Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls features a tender yeast dough enriched with buttermilk and eggs, filled with a spiced brown sugar and cinnamon mixture, and topped with creamy vanilla-tinged cream cheese frosting. The dough's slow rise overnight ensures light, fluffy rolls with a rich, buttery bite, ideal for a special breakfast or brunch treat.

Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
22 mins
Rise Time
4 hrs
Total Time
4 hrs 52 mins
Servings: 12
Calories: 754 kcal
Course: Breakfast, Bread
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Dough
  • all-purpose flour divided, up to 4 1/4 cups
  • ⅓ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum
  • pinch salt optional and to taste
  • 6 tablespoons butter melted (3/4 of one stick, unsalted
  • 3 egg lightly whisked, large
  • ¾ cup buttermilk See Notes
Filling
  • ½ cup butter 1 stick, very soft - let it sit out while dough rises, unsalted
  • 1 to 1 ¼ cups light brown sugar packed (granulated sugar or a half-and-half combo of white and brown sugars may be substituted)
  • 3 to 4 teaspoons cinnamon or to taste (I use 5 teaspoons)
Cream Cheese Frosting
  • ½ cup butter softened, unsalted
  • 6 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 pound confectioners’ sugar 4 cups
  • ½ teaspoon salt optional and to taste

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Make the Dough
  2. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine 4 cups flour, 1/3 cup sugar, yeast, salt to taste; set aside.
  3. Place 6 tablespoons butter in a small microwave-safe bowl, and heat to melt, about 45 seconds; set aside.
  4. Crack eggs in another bowl and whisk; set aside.
  5. Add buttermilk to a glass measuring cup and warm to temperature, about 45 seconds on high power in the microwave. Tips - Based on the type of yeast used, milk temperatures will vary. Red Star Platinum yeast calls for warmer temperatures than most, 120 to 130F; other brands and yeast call for much lower temperatures, about 95 to 105F. Warm milk according to manufacturer’s recommendations on the packaging. Taking the temperature with a digital thermometer is highly recommended, but if you’re not, make sure the milk is warm, not hot. Err on the cooler rather than hotter side so you don’t kill the yeast. If the milk separates or gets a little funny looking after being warmed, whisk it to smooth it out.
  6. To the dry ingredients in the stand mixer, add the melted butter, eggs, buttermilk, and beat on medium-low speed for about 1 minute, or until combined.
  7. Switch to the dough hook (the dough will have stuck to the paddle and just pick off what you can and put it into the bowl) and knead for 10 to 12 minutes (15 to 18 minutes by hand).
  8. If after 5 minutes more flour is needed, add the remaining 1/4 cup flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough clears the side of the bowl but sticks to the bottom. Tips - This is a very sticky, tacky, moist, and borderline sloppy dough; don’t be tempted to over-flour it. It’s supposed to be that way. The more flour you add now, the less fluffy and more dense the rolls will be. Dough should clear the sides of the mixer while kneading but sticking to the bottom is fine. However, if the dough is simply too sloppy to work with, you can't move it from mixing bowl to rising bowl, it does need more flour so add some, as little as you can get away with, until you can work with the dough more easily.
  9. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl, spray a large mixing bowl with cooking spray, and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place it in a warm, draft-free place to rise for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or doubled in size. I keep my bowl inside a powered-off oven. Every 45 minutes or so, I power on the oven for 1 minute to 400F, as if I am preheating it, then I power it off. Do not, repeat not, keep the oven on. These short bursts of 1 minute of heat create a stable 85F-ish warm environment, ideal for the yeast. If your rising spot is cold, it will take longer than 2 1/2 hours.
  10. Prepare a 11-by-17-inch or similar sized jellyroll pan or sheetcake pan with a raised edge, or use a 9-by-13-inch pan. I prefer a jellyroll pan because it’s slightly larger so the rolls are less squished, have more room to rise, and bake more evenly. Line pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
  11. Shape the Cinnamon Rolls
  12. After dough has doubled in size, punch it down. Turn dough out onto a floured Silpat or floured countertop. Knead it lightly for about 2 minutes.
  13. With a rolling pin, roll it out to a 16-by-12-inch rectangle; just slightly larger than a standard Silpat.
  14. With a knife, butter the dough with 1/2 cup soft butter, leaving a 3/4-inch border around the edges.
  15. Sprinkle the brown sugar over it. Sprinkle the cinnamon over the brown sugar; I was very generous with the cinnamon and used almost 5 teaspoons and recommend at least 3; just eyeball it and shake it on.
  16. Loosen the dough from the counter using a bench scraper (or metal spatula), and starting with a long edge, roll the dough into a tight log. Pinch the seam closed and turn log so seam side is down.
  17. Gently stretch the log to be 18 inches in length with an even diameter all the way around and pat the ends to even them up. Don’t fret if your log isn’t perfect; it’s okay.
  18. Slice the cylinder into 12 evenly sized rolls (about 1 1/2 inches wide) using a bench scraper, serrated knife, or plain unwaxed dental floss (works great to not squish and compact the log).
  19. Arrange the rolls cut side down in the prepared baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap.
  20. If making the rolls straight through: Let rise in a warm, draft-free place until the rolls have nearly doubled in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
  21. If making the rolls overnight: Don’t let rolls rise after they’ve been sliced and placed in covered pan. Place pan in refrigerator for up to 16 hours. Before baking, let the rolls sit at room temperature until they have nearly doubled in size, about 1 hour.
  22. Bake the Rolls
  23. For either version, bake at 350ºF for 22 to 25 minutes, or until lightly golden on top and cooked through but not overly browned.
  24. While the rolls cool, make the frosting.
  25. Make the Cream Cheese Frosting
  26. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine 1/2 cup butter, cream cheese, and beat on medium speed to combine, about 1 minute.
  27. Add the vanilla, 3 cups confectioners’ sugar (I don’t bother sifting), and beat until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
  28. Add remaining 1 cup of sugar (or more, or none) as necessary, to taste, based on desired frosting consistency and flavor.
  29. Spread the frosting over the tops of the semi-cooled rolls and serve. Tips - Make sure they're not too warm or the frosting will melt. You may not use all the frosting if you don't like a lot of frosting on your rolls. That's fine, you don't need to use it all. Extra frosting will keep airtight in the fridge for many weeks or you can freeze it.

Notes

  • Use fresh buttermilk or homemade substitutes for best results; avoid regular milk or water alone.
  • For storage, keep rolls in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days; reheat briefly before serving.
  • If cream cheese frosting softens too much at room temperature, refrigerate leftovers to maintain texture.
  • Freeze unfrosted rolls to preserve freshness; thaw at room temperature and frost before serving.
  • Make the cream cheese frosting ahead and refrigerate; bring to room temperature with the rising rolls for easy spreading.
  • Adjust sugar and cinnamon amounts to taste; additions like almond extract or orange zest can be incorporated.
  • Powdered buttermilk is a handy pantry replacement when fresh is unavailable.

Nutrition Information

Serving 1 Calories 754kcal (38%) Carbohydrates 108g (36%) Protein 9g (18%) Fat 33g (51%) Saturated Fat 18g (90%) Polyunsaturated Fat 12g (71%) Cholesterol 117mg (39%) Sodium 279mg (12%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 63g (126%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12 Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 754

% Daily Value*

Serving 1
Calories 754kcal 38%
Carbohydrates 108g 36%
Protein 9g 18%
Fat 33g 51%
Saturated Fat 18g 90%
Polyunsaturated Fat 12g 71%
Cholesterol 117mg 39%
Sodium 279mg 12%
Fiber 2g 8%
Sugar 63g 126%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.