Homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls are by far my favorite sourdough recipe. If you have not jumped on the sourdough wagon yet, you are missing out on a whole new world of possibilities and adventures. And also these fantastic homemade sordough cinnamon rolls. I believe they alone are worth the effort.

These cinnamon rolls are fluffy and soft with a lovely flavor of cinnamon and brown sugar, and when topped with the cream cheese glaze…oh, simply irresistible!

The cinnamon rolls, in our family, hold a special place. They are usually reserved for cozy Christmas mornings when we all enjoy a warm cup of coffee or tea and fresh from the oven sourdough cinnamon rolls. A perfect start to Christmas! But as time goes by, we find ourselves having these little swirls on rainy, cold autumn, and winter weekends. As they bake, they fill the house with the fantastic fragrance of cinnamon, which no lousy weather can trump.

Baking with sourdough has been quite an adventure for the past eight years. It is more challenging and requires more patience and care than baking with standard commercial yeast. However, the immense taste and flavor you get as a result are unmatched. Also, healthwise it is definitely better for you. Since sourdough baking can be a bit intimidating at first, I tried to describe the whole process and the experience in a bit more detail. Hence, a bit lengthy post.

THE BAKING SCHEDULE

The first order of business is to decide when you will bake the rolls. You can either bake them the same day or spread the work over two days and essentially have the rolls for breakfast or brunch the next day. To give you a better idea of what that means, please refer to the following figure. The timeline of both options with a description is shown.

Please note that the timeline represents the recipe given below and closely follows the dough and ambient temperature. This means that if your ambient and dough temperatures vary, you will have to adjust the timeline accordingly.

THE SOURDOUGH STARTER

The most important ingredient for the homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls is the sourdough starter. It has to be vibrant enough so that it reaches the mature state in the shortest time possible at standard ambient temperature.

The recipe calls for a mature sourdough starter, which means that you should use it right before it reaches the peak and starts to collapse. I find that the best time to use it is while still slightly concave on top. When you smell it, it should have a creamy note and not be acidic at all. If unsure, you can also taste the starter at different points of its rising time.

In this recipe, a 100% hydration starter is used, which means that the starter is fed with equal amounts of water and flour.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SCALE

When baking, it is essential that you correctly measure the ingredients, which generally calls for using the kitchen scale. Measuring ingredients using volume measurements is great when you don’t need to be overly precise, but baking precision is essential to achieve the desired results.

This is especially true when starting out with baking adventures. There are just way too many variables to consider, and proper proportions of ingredients should be one less thing to worry about if using the kitchen scale.

Also, on the plus side, there is considerably less cleaning since you measure and add all the ingredients to the mixing bowl directly.

PREPARING THE DOUGH

To prepare the dough for the homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls, it is best to use the stand mixer as the dough is quite sticky at first, and the process of incorporating the butter at later stages is much easier with a stand mixer. Whichever stand mixer you use, make sure it can successfully mix the amount of dough the recipe calls for and has a dough hook attachment. The information in this post is for the KitchenAid stand mixer.

Since the mixer is doing all the physical work, the whole process of making the dough is not too complicated. However, you need to be extra observant of the changing structure of the dough.

The process of preparing the dough consists of 3 stages:

• the initial mix of ingredients
• resting time and hydrating the flour
• developing gluten and adding the butter

The initial mix of ingredients

Once you have all the ingredients in place (don’t forget the butter should be at room temperature), you can start by placing the bowl on the kitchen scale and measure all the wet ingredients directly into the bowl. Once measured, use a dough whisk and stir until the mixture is uniform in structure. Measure and sift the flour directly into the bowl. Attach the bowl to the stand mixer and mix on speed 2 until there are no dry bits, and all the flour is incorporated. Don’t worry if there are some small lumps of dough as these will be incorporated in the second stage of the mixing process. At this initial stage, you are hydrating the flour and starting the gluten development.

Resting the dough

Turn the mixer off and rest the dough for 30 minutes. The dough will spread slightly in the bowl. The dough might seem a bit dry at this point, but note that adding the butter later will soften it further.

Developing the gluten

Ater the dough has rested, continue mixing on speed “stir” for 2.5 minutes, followed by another 2.5 minutes on speed 4. The initial 5 minutes of mixing will start forming the gluten. 

It is essential to form the gluten bonds before adding the butter as this will ensure we don’t end up with a cake-like dough structure when baked, but instead with an airy and light crumb. Note that if you add the butter before the gluten is formed, it will block the proper formation of the gluten. The butter kind of coats the gluten forming proteins (gliadin and glutenin) and prevents them from forming a nice bond.

How do we know when the gluten is formed correctly?

You will notice that after the dough’s initial mixing on the lowest speed, the dough does not “follow” the hook attachment but is instead spread in the bowl. As the mixing proceeds, the initial 5 minutes, the sides of the bowl will start to get cleaner; the dough will begin to “follow” the hook attachment until it almost completely cleans the sides and the bottom part of the bowl. At this point, you can stop the mixer and do the windowpane test. Do this very carefully since the dough has not had a chance to relax. It is tighter and can break if too much pressure is exerted on it. The streaks of gluten should be visible. Only after this initial change of structure should you start adding the butter.

Adding the butter & continue with the mixing

With the mixer speed on four, start to add the butter incrementally. You will notice that the dough is getting softer and starts to spread in the bowl again. This structural change is normal.

• At around the 10th minute of mixing time, turn off the mixer and scrape the top rim of the bowl. This dough will dry out during the mixing and will have to be thrown away. By scraping it down, it will get mixed into the dough again. Continue to mix on speed 4.
• After 12 minutes of mixing, lower the speed for one notch to 3 if the sides of the bowl are clean.
• At 13.5th minute lower the speed for another notch to 2 if the sides of the bowl are clean.
• At about the 15th minute, you should hear a slapping sound as the dough is being mixed, and the sides of the bowl should be clean, as well as the bottom of the bowl. The dough should be very elastic and shiny. The windowpane test should pass with flying colors.

Transfer the dough to a buttered proofing bowl. Fold the dough using the coil method several times to form a nice ball and cover the bowl. The dough temperature at this point should be around 25°C (77°F).

Shaping the Homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Dust the clean working surface with some flour. Take the dough from the fridge, scrape it from the bowl, and place top-down on the working surface. Dust it with the flour and start rolling it out, from the middle outwards. Apply light pressure to form a rectangle measuring 54cm by 40cm (21.3in by 16in).

Remove the excess flour from the dough and the work surface using a brush. Brush the surface of the dough, except for 1.5cm (0.5in) along one long edge, with melted butter and the remaining non-buttered area with water. The coating of water will help seal the rolled dough, which will make for nice compact rolls.

Sprinkle the cinnamon brown sugar mixture evenly over the buttered area avoiding the part of the dough brushed with water.

Starting from the long edge containing the filling mixture, carefully roll the dough inwards. Make sure not to apply too much pressure on the dough and not create air pockets as you keep rolling. The finished “log” should not be wobbly but firm. Leave the “log” to rest directly over the seam on the bottom for at least 5 minutes.

Cut the “log” into 12 rolls every 4.5 cm (1.8in). When cutting, don’t add pressure on the dough, but rather slice as if you are slicing the bread. Such a way will ensure nice clean even edges.

Place the rolls in the baking pan spaced at least 1.5cm (0.8in) apart and cover (a disposable shower cap is excellent for this purpose). As the rolls proof, they will expand into this extra space, which will ensure that they properly bake and have a uniform structure. If there is not enough space for the rolls to expand, the rolls’ center tends to shoot up; they will not expand evenly and might not bake properly, leaving some area overbaked while other areas remain underbaked.

Proofing and Baking

Proof the rolls in a warm area. Oven with a light on is perfect for this.

Below is a short gif of the proofing process. As you can see, the rolls expand and fill the space between them.

Around 40 minutes before baking, start preheating the oven to 200°C (400°F). If you are proofing in the oven, don’t forget to take the cinnamon rolls out before turning on the oven.

Bake the sourdough cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes. At around the 20th minute, check whether the rolls have started to take on color.

Please make sure not to overbake them as it will dry them out considerably, and fluffy and soft cinnamon rolls are what we are after.

You can check whether the rolls area baked by inserting a clean toothpick into the dough (not the filling) of the most center cinnamon roll. If the toothpick comes out clean, they are done.

Storing the Homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

If you, by some miracle, have any cinnamon rolls left on the day of the bake, you can store them in an airtight container for the next day. Store the cream cheese separately and in the fridge.

The next day, simply reheat them, without the cream cheese glaze, in a preheated oven at 200°C for 5 minutes. Another great way to reheat them is in a bamboo steamer for just a minute or so. This makes them extra soft.

Add the glaze on top and enjoy!

Related Sourdough Recipes

If you try these sourdough cinnamon rolls please leave a comment below. Also, there are some other yummy sourdough recipes you might like:

• Homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Buns
• Homemade Sourdough Doughnuts
• Sourdough Parker House Dinner Rolls
• Triple Citrus Babka With Cream Cheese, Poppy Seeds, and Cranberries
• Sourdough pumpkin burger buns
• Sourdough pumpkin pancakes with caramelized apples
• Sourdough Carob Babka
• Pumpkin Kamut Calendula Sourdough Bread

Happy baking!

5 from 1 vote

Homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls

These homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls are soft and fluffy with a delicate cinnamon brown sugar filling topped with extra creamy cream cheese and vanilla glaze. A perfect weekend treat.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Fermentation Time6 hours hrs

Total Time7 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

Servings 12 rolls

Calories: 334.8 kcal

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Equipment & Tools

• KitchenAid stand mixer
• Baking tray 25cm x 30cm x 6cm (9.8in x 11.8in x 2.4in)
• Kitchen scale
• Kitchen ruler

INGREDIENTS

 

MetricUS Customary

 

1x2x3x

Dough

• 190 g whole milk, cold (Note 1)
• 2 eggs (~ 110g)
• 35 g maple syrup
• 250 g sourdough starter (mature, 100% hydration)
• 500 g T00 flour (Mulino Marino)
• 10 g salt (kosher)
• 115 g butter (unsalted, room temperature)

Filling

• 50 g butter (melted)
• 190 g light brown sugar
• 1½ tbsp cinnamon (Ceylon)
• ⅛ tsp salt (kosher)

Glaze

• 172 g cream cheese (Philadelphia)
• 1 tsp vanilla paste (Nielsen-Massey)
• 20 g whole milk
• 45 g powdered sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

• Gather all the ingredients.

Prepare the dough

• Mix all the ingredients in a bowl of a stand mixer, except for the flour and butter.

  Add flour and mix on low speed until there are no dry bits of flour in the dough (see Note 1).

  Cover and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
• Mix on lowest speed for 2.5 minutes.

  Mix on speed 4 for 2.5 minutes.
• Add butter incrementally while mixing on speed 4.
• After 5 minutes of mixing turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• Continue mixing for another 2 minutes of speed 4.
• Lower the speed for one notch and mix for another 1.5 minutes.
• Lower the speed for another one notch and mix for another 1.5 minutes.

  The dough should be ready now if the sides and the bottom of the bowl are clean and the dough has formed a cohesive mass. The dough should be elastic, shiny passing the window pane test.

  The desired dough temperature should be 25°C (77°F).

Bulk fermentation

• Transfer the dough to a clean buttered bowl. Fold the dough using the coil method to form a ball.
• Rest for one hour after which another coil fold should be done. The desired dough temperature should be 25.5°C (78°F).
• Rest for another hour after which do one more coil fold. The desired dough temperature should be 25.5°C (78°F).
• Rest the dough for another hour and a half.
• Place the dough in the fridge for cold fermentation overnight.

Prepare the filling (next day)

• Melt the butter on low heat in a small saucepan. Set aside.
• Add all the filling ingredients, except the butter, to a small food processor and process until all the sugar chunks are broken down and the mixture is uniform and almost powder like. Set aside.

Making the rolls (next day)

• Dust the clean working surface with some flour. Take the dough from the fridge, scrape it from the bowl, and place top-down on the working surface. Dust it with the flour and start rolling it out, from the middle outwards, applying light pressure to form a rectangle measuring 54cm (21.3in) by 40cm (16in).
• Remove the excess flour from the dough and the work surface using a brush. Brush the surface of the dough, except for 1.5cm (0.5in) along one long edge, with melted butter and the remaining non-buttered area with water.
• Sprinkle the cinnamon brown sugar mixture evenly over the buttered area of the dough.
• Starting from the long edge containing the filling mixture, carefully roll the dough inwards. Make sure not to apply too much pressure on the dough and not create air pockets as you keep rolling. The finished "log" should not be wobbly but compact and firm. Leave the "log" to rest directly over the seam on the bottom for at least 5 minutes helping to seal the edge.
• Cut the "log" into 12 rolls every 4.5 cm (1.8in). When cutting, don't add pressure on the dough, but rather slice as if you are slicing the bread. Such a way will ensure nice clean even edges.
• Place the rolls in the baking pan spaced at least 1.5cm (0.8in) apart. Cover and proof for about 2 hours at an ambient temperature of 25ºC (77ºF).

Baking the rolls (next day)

• Once proofed, bake the rolls in a preheated oven at 200ºC (400ºF) for 20 to 25 minutes or until they start to take on color.

Prepare the cream cheese glaze (next day)

• Add all the ingredients to a small food processor.

  Process until creamy and no lumps are visible.

Assemble the rolls (next day)

• Once the rolls are baked spread the cream cheese glaze on top of the rolls you plan to serve immediately.

Storing the rolls

• You can store the rolls in an airtight container for a couple of days in the fridge.

  Reheat the rolls in a preheated oven at 200°C (392°F) for 5 minutes or steam them in a bamboo steamer for 1 minute. Spread the cream cheese glaze over the top and serve immediately.

NOTES

1. After the initial mix of the ingredients the dough should be on a softer side and a bit sticky. Due to the differences in flour (and its absorption abilities) and also the weight of the eggs, the dough consistency can deviate a bit and be a bit too dry. If this happens add some more milk. I suggest you start adding 5 grams of milk and only after this additional milk is mixed into the dough you should add more if needed. Note that once the dough has relaxed and the butter is added in the second stage the dough will be softer. So please take care not to add too much additional liquid.

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