Sheet Pan Cinnamon Rolls

Name: Sheet Pan Cinnamon Rolls
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 2 h 50 min
Yield: 20 rolls
Ingredients: 2 1/4 cups whole milk; 2 Tbsp. active dry yeast; 1/4 cup granulated sugar; 1 cup unsalted butter; 3/4 cup granulated sugar; 3 large egg; 2 large egg; 8 cups bread flour; 1 Tbsp. kosher salt; 1/4 cup butter; 1/2 cup brown sugar; 1 cup butter; 2 cups brown sugar; 1/4 cup ground cinnamon; 1/2 tsp. kosher salt; 1 cup heavy cream; 12 oz. cream cheese; 3/4 cup butter; 3 cups powdered sugar; 1 Tbsp. vanilla bean paste

User Reviews

4.9

76 reviews

Excellent

Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Additional Time
2 hrs
Total Time
2 hrs 50 mins
Servings
20 rolls
Calories
495 kcal
Course
Dessert
Cuisine
American

Sheet Pan Cinnamon Rolls

Ulric Williams

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Sheet Pan Cinnamon Rolls combine a yeast-leavened dough made with warm milk, melted butter, sugar, eggs, and bread flour, rolled with a cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter filling. After a thorough kneading and rising process, the dough is shaped and spread on a sheet pan, baked, and topped with a cream cheese-based frosting. The result is a batch of soft, sweet, and gooey cinnamon rolls with a creamy glaze suitable for sharing or batch serving.

Description

This recipe starts by blooming active dry yeast in warm milk and sugar before incorporating melted butter, eggs, salt, and flour to form a dough. After mixing and an extended kneading period to develop elasticity, the dough is allowed to rise until doubled. The filling of softened butter blended with dark brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt is spread over the rolled-out dough before rolling it into a log and slicing into rolls.

These cinnamon rolls bake on a sheet pan, offering convenient preparation of multiple rolls simultaneously with a soft crumb and golden crust. The cream cheese frosting made from cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla bean paste adds rich sweetness that complements the cinnamon-spiced filling.

The rolls can be stored at room temperature for a couple of days, refrigerated up to five days, or frozen for months either baked or shaped. Reheating softens the rolls and refreshes the texture, making them suitable for make-ahead strategies or batch cooking for gatherings.

The dough may also be baked in various pans beyond a sheet pan, allowing flexibility in shape and batch size according to preference or occasion.

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Ingredients

Servings

For The Yeast Mixture

2 1/4 cups whole milk warmed to 110°F
2 Tbsp. active dry yeast 3 standard packets = ~2 Tbsp. so 3 packets = perfect
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For The Dough

1 cup unsalted butter melted
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 large egg room temperature, whisked
2 large egg yolk, room temperature, whisked
8 cups bread flour 125 grams = 1 cup flour, or all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, plus up to ~1/2 more as needed and for dusting
1 Tbsp. kosher salt

For the baking sheet

1/4 cup butter unsalted, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar packed

For The Filling

1 cup butter unsalted, softened
2 cups brown sugar dark; packed
1/4 cup ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream you may not need all this cream, just use your best judgement!, warmed, optional

For The Frosting

12 oz. cream cheese full-fat, softened
3/4 cup butter unsalted, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract is OK.

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Instructions

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Note: Feel free to bake these cinnamon rolls in any pan you'd like, not just on a sheet pan. You can use 2, 9-inch round cake pans, 9x9 inch square baking dishes, or 8x11 or 9x13 inch baking dishes.
Bloom the yeast: add the yeast, warm milk, and sugar to a bowl and gently stir. Allow to sit for about 10 minutes, or until foamy on top.
Make the dough: add the melted butter, sugar, eggs, egg yolks, salt, and yeast mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk together. Gradually begin to stir in the bread flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined. It will look like a very shaggy dough.
Knead: Add the dough hook, and knead for ~10-15 minutes (kind of a long time, I know, but trust the process 😋) on medium speed or until the dough is soft and smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. It will be a little tacky, but that's OK we want that. If it's overly sticky, add 1 Tbsp. flour at a time and knead again.
First rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with baking spray and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap (you can also spray the plastic wrap with baking spray so when the dough rises, it doesn't stick to it) and place a warm, damp towel on top. Rise on the counter or in a warm place for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until the dough doubles.
Prep the baking sheet: spread 1/4 cup softened butter all over the bottom of a standard half baking sheet (18x13-inch) and sprinkle with 1/2 cup brown sugar over the top. This makes the bottom of the cinnamon rolls gooey and delish! Set aside.
Divide the dough: Punch the dough down and turn the dough out onto a clean & lightly floured work surface. Using a bench scraper, divide the dough in half. Since we're working with a lot of dough I find it easiest to split it in half.
Roll it out: Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the first portion of dough out into a 12x15 inch rectangle, ~1/4 inch thick. If the dough springs back when trying to roll out, allow it to rest for 10 minutes and then roll again.
Add the filling: Spread the softened butter onto the dough, leaving about a 1/2 inch border. Then mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl, sprinkle this all over the butter, and press/rub it into the butter.
Cut into strips: using a ruler, make notches at ~1.25-inch intervals, then slice into strips using a pizza cutter, resulting in ~10-12 strips of dough. Roll up each strip and place the cinnamon roll on the prepared sheet pan (or baking dish of choice). Try to place the cinnamon rolls not directly against the edges of the sheet pan. This will allow for room to rise and also help prevent spillage over the sides when baking. Repeat these same steps with the other portion of the dough. It's okay if they don't look perfect, we're all doing our best, right?!
Second rise OR refrigerate overnight: 1. For the second rise option, loosely cover with a piece of foil, and rise again for about 30-60 minutes, or until nearly doubled in size. 2. For the overnight option: cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (You can stick toothpicks in the cinnamon rolls and place the pastic wrap on top so the plastic wrap doesn't touch the rolls). When ready to take out in the morning, remove the plastic wrap and allow rolls to rise. This could take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Optional heavy cream: I have made these cinnamon rolls with and without the heavy cream. They are delicious either way so if you don't have the heavy cream, no worries. If you do, warm the heavy cream until lukewarm. Once the rolls have risen, pour the heavy cream over the top of the rolls right before you place them in the oven.
Bake: You can see the light at the end of the tunnel at this point! Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Avoid overbaking so they remain pillowy. They should reach an internal temperature of about 195°F. If you notice the tops browning too quickly, tent the top with a piece of foil. Pro tip: line the bottom rack in the oven with foil too just in case anything drips over the sheet pan.
Make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until smooth. Add in the remaining ingredients and beat again until smooth.
Enjoy (the best step): Spread on top of warm rolls and enjoy them right away because you just made the best homemade cinnamon rolls and should be proud! 🥳 Cover any leftovers and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Notes

To use instant yeast, mix it with flour, sugar, and salt, and omit the yeast blooming step with warm milk.
Store baked rolls at room temperature in an airtight container up to 2 days; reheat gently to restore softness.
Refrigerate frosted or unfrosted rolls up to 5 days, reheating before serving.
Freeze baked cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months; thaw in fridge overnight before reheating.
Shaped but unbaked cinnamon rolls can be frozen in the pan for up to 1 month; thaw in fridge and allow to rise before baking.

Nutrition Information

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Serving 1cinnamon roll Calories 495kcal (25%) Carbohydrates 69g (23%) Protein 10g (20%) Fat 26g (40%) Sodium 740mg (31%) Fiber 3g (12%) Sugar 37g (74%)