Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Having cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning has become a sweet tradition for our family. Truthfully, we love cinnamon rolls any time of year, but there is something fun about having an extra special breakfast as we celebrate Christmas and all that it means for us. I have a go-to cinnamon roll recipe, but in keeping with my sourdough theme for the year, I just had to try out some sourdough cinnamon rolls to see how they lived up. Let me tell you guys…. SO good. The flavor is delicious and rich and warm and just perfect. I promise you will enjoy them and that your home will smell delicious!

If you have made sourdough before, these rolls will feel familiar to you. They begin by making a roux and then mixing together the dough. Then we move into bulk fermentation, where the dough has time to rise and develop for several hours. Next, we roll out the dough, add the filling, roll up & cut the rolls, and place in the pan to rise again. After the final rise, all that is left is to bake and enjoy!

The entire process takes about 7.5 hours, but don’t let that scare you away. The majority of the time is spent letting the dough rest and rise, and bake. The hands-on time for this recipe is only about an hour. So find a good day when you will be home and enjoy these! 

The night before baking, be sure to feed your starter and leave it out to rise so that it will be ready to go in the morning. Once your starter is at peak, we are ready to bake! Begin by making the roux. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour. Whisk the mixture continuously while cooking until it thickens into a light colored roux. This will only take around 5 minutes, but be sure to stir the entire time so that it doesn’t clump up or burn. Remove from the heat and set to the side for a moment. 

To make the dough, add the roux, your active sourdough starter, lukewarm water (100-105 degrees F), sugar, salt, and half of the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer. Begin mixing using the dough hook. Once the dough starts to come together, gradually add in the remaining flour. Be sure to stop as needed to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Before the flour is fully incorporated, start adding small slivers of the softened butter to the mixture. You want your butter to be quite soft, but not melted, so that it incorporates well into the dough. Try leaving it out on the counter or in a warm place for longer than you normally would for cookies or cake. If you can very easily leave an impression in it by just slightly pressing with your finger, it should be good to go.

Continue slowly kneading the dough and adding slivers of butter until all has been mixed in. This step should take about 9-10 minutes to get all of the ingredients incorporated and the dough well kneaded. Scrape down the sides of the bowl once more if needed, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 30 minutes.

Just like with sourdough, the dough enters the phase called bulk fermentation now. You will complete a series of rests and folds and then have a long rest. This will be the schedule: 30 minute rest + fold + 30 minute rest + fold + 30 minute rest + fold + 2.5 hour rest. 

To make one full fold, fold each of the 4 sides of the dough over onto itself. With a damp hand, slide your hand under the top edge of the dough, lift, and fold the dough down onto itself. On the left side, slide your hand under the edge of the dough, lift, and fold the dough over onto itself. Repeat this on the bottom side and on the right side. This is one complete fold. Cover the dough and let rest until the next fold. If pictures of this process would be helpful, check out my post from earlier this year on how to make a classic sourdough loaf.

Towards the end of bulk fermentation, line your pan(s) with parchment paper. I had enough rolls to fill both a square 8×8 pan and a 9×13 pan. If you don’t have parchment, you can grease your pans instead, but I do recommend parchment! At this point, you can also prep the filling. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar & cinnamon. In a separate microwaveable bowl, melt the butter.

With the filling and pan prepped, carefully turn the dough out onto a floured surface. With a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a long rectangle until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Brush the melted butter evenly on top of the dough. Then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly on top of the butter. Starting with the longest edge farthest from you, gently roll the dough toward you. Once rolled, use floss to cut the rolls into slices about 1.5 to 2 inches thick.

Floss is my favorite hack for cutting cinnamon rolls! Simply slide the floss under the rolls and place it where you would like to cut. Then pull the ends of the string up and across the roll in opposite directions to slice easily through the dough. Place the cut rolls into the parchment-lined pans so that they are just barely touching. Cover the pans and let them rest and rise for 2 hours or until doubled in size.

Once the cinnamon rolls have risen, bake at 375°F for 35 minutes or until cooked through and golden on top. While the cinnamon rolls are baking, you can make the icing. Using a mixer, simply mix together all of the icing ingredients. Adjust the amount of powdered sugar and water called for if you prefer a slightly thicker or runnier icing. Let the cinnamon rolls cool slightly and then spread the icing on top.

As far as timing the recipe to have these ready for breakfast, there are a few options. Option 1: You can make and bake these one day and then reheat the pan for about 10 minutes or until warm the following morning for breakfast. I cover the pan with foil while warming so the rolls don’t get dried out, and then ice them once they are warm. This is what we do most often. Option 2: If you would rather bake them fresh in the morning, you can put the cinnamon rolls in the fridge after they have had their final rise. The next morning, take the pan out of the refrigerator and let it warm to room temperature, and then bake as normal.

We can’t get enough of these, and I hope you guys feel the same way! Enjoy this special treat and Merry Christmas!

Anna

Print Recipe

Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

These warm and rich sourdough cinnamon rolls are perfect for a special breakfast.

Source: Anna Reid

Course: Breakfast

Prep Time: 7 hr

Cook Time: 35 min

Total Time: 7 hr 35 min

Yield: 20-24

Serves: 1 Scale Update

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• ¹⁄₂ cup all purpose flour
• Dough
• 200 g active sourdough starter
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 4 cups all purpose flour
• ¹⁄₄ cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¹⁄₂ cup unsalted butter softened
• Filling
• ³⁄₄ cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• ¹⁄₂ cup unsalted butter melted
• Icing
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions

1. The night before baking, feed your starter and leave it out to rise so that it will be ready to go in the morning. Once your starter is at peak, we are ready to bake!
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of all purpose flour. Whisk the mixture continuously until it thickens into a light colored roux. This should take about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set to the side for a moment.
3. To make the dough, add the roux, active sourdough starter, lukewarm water, sugar, salt, and half of the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook, begin mixing. Once the dough begins to come together, gradually add in the remaining flour and mix together slowly. Be sure to stop as needed to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Before the flour is fully incorporated, start adding small slivers of the softened butter to the mixture. Continue mixing slowly and adding butter until all of the butter has been mixed in. This step should take about 9-10 minutes to get all ingredients incorporated and the dough well kneaded. Scrape down the sides of the bowl once more if needed, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 30 minutes.
4. During bulk fermentation you will follow this schedule: 30 minute rest + fold + 30 minute rest + fold + 30 minute rest + fold + 2.5 hour rest. To make one full fold, fold each of the 4 sides of the dough over onto itself. With a damp hand, slide your hand under the top edge of the dough, lift, and fold the dough down onto itself. On the left side, slide your hand under the edge of the dough, lift, and fold the dough over onto itself. Repeat this on the bottom side and on the right side. This is one complete fold. Cover the dough and let rest until the next fold. At the end of bulk fermentation the dough should be doubled in size.
5. Towards the end of bulk fermentation, line your pan(s) with parchment paper. I had enough rolls to fill both a square 8×8 pan and a 9×13 pan.
6. When the dough is ready, prep the filling by whisking together the brown sugar & cinnamon in a small bowl. In a separate microwaveable bowl, melt the butter.
7. With the filling and pan prepped, carefully turn the dough out onto a floured surface. With a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a long rectangle until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Brush the melted butter evenly on top of the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly on top of the butter. Starting with the long edge farthest from you, gently roll the dough toward you. Once rolled up, use floss to cut the rolls in slices about 1.5 to 2 inches thick. Place cinnamon rolls into the parchment lined pans so that they are just barely touching. Cover the pans and let rest and rise for 2 hours or until doubled in size.
8. Once the cinnamon rolls are risen, bake at 375 for 35 minutes or until cooked through and lightly golden on top.
9. While the cinnamon rolls are baking, make the icing. Using a mixer, simply mix together all of the icing ingredients. Adjust the amount of powdered sugar and water called for if you prefer a slightly thicker or runnier icing.
10. Let the cinnamon rolls cool slightly and then spread with icing and enjoy!

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