Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls (with Cream Cream Frosting)

I hope you don’t let all the steps hold you back from making these: they aren’t hard, and the work is split into little sections. These are ooey-gooey and perfect.

Ingredients

If you’d like to double or triple this recipe, or use metric measurements, you can make adjustments in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Dough

• ½ cup active sourdough starter (If you don’t have a starter, you can make your own sourdough starter, but it takes a week, so plan ahead!)
• 1 ½ cups milk
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ cup unsalted butter
• 4-4 ½ cups all-purpose flour (start with the lower amount and add more as needed)
• ½ teaspoon salt

Filling

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt

Frosting

• ½ cup cream cheese, room temperature
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-2 tablespoons milk

Equipment

• saucepan
• Stand mixer (makes kneading the dough much easier; if you don’t have one, you can knead by hand)
• 9×13 baking dish

Instuctions

You’ll need a lot of rising time for these! I recommend starting the dough in the afternoon, letting it bulk rise overnight, shaping and filling early in the morning, and baking as everyone is waking up.

By the way, kids love cutting the dough into strips and rolling it up (and making the frosting!), so once you have the dough made, you can pretty much hand the rest of the baking off to them.

Activate Starter The Night Before

Note: If you keep your starter ready to go, just measure out 100 grams and proceed with the recipe.

Combine 30 grams of sourdough starter in a clean pint mason jar and add 35 grams of all-purpose flour and 35 grams of water. This will give you a total of 100 grams of active sourdough starter.

Stir to combine the flour, water, and starter until well combined. Let it sit lightly covered at room temperature for 6-12 hours or until it has doubled in size. You can use a layer of cheesecloth secured by a rubber band or the ring of your mason jar lid.

Heat Milk, Butter, Sugar, Salt

In a saucepan, add the milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Place over medium-low heat and slowly bring the mixture up to about 90℉. The butter should start to melt at this point.

Do not allow the mixture to go over 100℉. If it gets too hot, let it cool before moving on.

Add some of the Flour

To the bowl of your electric stand mixer, add the milk mixture and 2 cups of flour.

Using the dough hook attachment, stir to combine.

Once combined, add the sourdough starter. Stir to combine.

knead and add rest of flour

Slowly add the rest of the flour by adding about ⅓ cup at a time, stirring in between to allow the flour to be fully incorporated. Depending on the weather, you will add between 4 and 4 ½ cups. You will know you have enough flour added when the dough is still slightly sticky and releases itself from the side of the bowl.

Once the flour has been incorporated, set your stand mixer to medium and allow the dough to knead for about 2 minutes. If you make this by hand, you will want to knead for 5-8 minutes. The dough will be soft, smooth, and shiny when ready.

Bulk Rise

Turn the dough out onto a clean, dry surface and grease a large mixing bowl.

Transfer the dough to the greased mixing bowl, cover it with a towel, plastic wrap, or a plate, and allow it to sit at room temperature for 8-12 hours or until it has doubled in size.

Make The Filling

In a medium bowl, add the butter, cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt.

Mix the ingredients until they are well combined and resemble a paste. Set aside.

Roll Out Dough

Prepare your 9×13 baking dish by spraying a small amount of baking spray. Roll the dough out into a 12-inch by 18-inch rectangle (double the size of your baking dish).

Spread Cinnamon Mixture

Spread the cinnamon butter mixture out onto the dough, making sure it is evenly distributed over the entire surface of the dough.

Cut and roll

Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 12 equal strips.

Roll up the strips to create a cinnamon roll and transfer them to the prepared baking dish. Repeat this process until all 12 are in the baking dish.

second rise and preheat the oven

Cover and let the shaped rolls rise for 1 hour. About 45 minutes into the rise time, preheat your oven to 375℉.

Bake And Cool

Bake at 375℉ for 35-40 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes before topping with frosting and serving.

Make Frosting

Mix together the room-temperature cream cheese, butter, vanilla, salt, and powdered sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer. If the frosting seems dry, thin out the mixture by adding 1-2 tablespoons of milk.

Serve

Top the rolls with the frosting and serve.

They’ll keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two. For longer storage, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also freeze individual rolls tightly in plastic wrap then pop thme in a zip-top bag to have individually.

More Sourdough Breakfast Recipes

• Make my sourdough blueberry bagels with some cream cheese on top.
• Chocolate chip sourdough waffles are the perfect treat for a weekend morning.
• These sourdough banana muffins are the perfect on-the-go breakfast.
• For a less sweet and sticky breakfast, try sourdough cinnamon swirl bread.

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