Classic Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
There’s no faster way to make a morning feel like an occasion than waking up to the smell of cinnamon rolls already baking. The trick is doing the work the night before: mix, fill, and shape after dinner, then let the pan rest in the fridge overnight while the dough slowly rises. In the morning, it’s just a bake and an icing away.
Why You’ll Love It
- All the shaping happens the night before – morning-of, it’s just bake and ice
- A thick, tangy cream cheese icing instead of a thin glaze
- Classic bakery-style cinnamon-brown sugar filling in every swirl
- No sourdough starter or discard required, just yeast
- Makes a full 9×13 pan – plenty for a holiday morning or a crowd
Ingredients
Volume measurements are included for convenience, but weighing your flour on a kitchen scale will give you the most consistent dough.
Dough
- Whole milk, warmed (240 g / 1 cup)
- Instant yeast (7 g / 2¼ tsp)
- Granulated sugar (50 g / ¼ cup)
- Unsalted butter, melted (57 g / 4 Tbsp)
- 2 large eggs
- Fine sea salt (9 g / 1½ tsp)
- Bread flour (560 g / 4½ cups)
Cinnamon Filling
- Unsalted butter, softened (85 g / 6 Tbsp)
- Light brown sugar (165 g / ¾ cup, packed)
- Ground cinnamon (15 g / 2 Tbsp)
Cream Cheese Icing
- Cream cheese, softened (113 g / 4 oz)
- Unsalted butter, softened (28 g / 2 Tbsp)
- Powdered sugar (180 g / 1½ cups)
- Vanilla extract (5 g / 1 tsp)
- Whole milk (15-30 g / 1-2 Tbsp), to thin
Equipment
- Kitchen scale: for weighing ingredients – the most reliable way to get consistent rolls
- Stand mixer with dough hook: kneads the dough to a smooth, elastic texture
- Rolling pin: for rolling the dough into an even rectangle before filling
- 9×13-inch baking pan: for the overnight rise and baking
- Bench scraper or dental floss: for slicing the rolled log into even rounds without squashing them
- Plastic wrap: covers the pan tightly during the overnight rest in the fridge
Sample Schedule (2-Day)
Day 1
- Mix and knead the dough (20 minutes)
- First rise (1-1½ hours)
- Roll, fill, and slice into rolls
- Arrange in the pan and refrigerate overnight (8-12 hours)
Day 2
- Let the pan sit at room temperature while the oven preheats (30-45 minutes)
- Bake (25-28 minutes)
- Make the icing and spread over the warm rolls
Classic Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
Method
- Bloom the yeast. In a stand mixer bowl, whisk the warm milk (240 g / 1 cup) and instant yeast (7 g / 2¼ tsp). Let sit 5 minutes until foamy.
- Mix the dough. Add the sugar (50 g / ¼ cup), melted butter (57 g / 4 Tbsp), eggs, and salt (9 g / 1½ tsp). Add the bread flour (560 g / 4½ cups) and mix on low with the dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead. Increase to medium speed and knead 8–10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
- First rise. Shape into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm spot 1–1½ hours, until doubled.
- Make the filling. Beat the softened butter (85 g / 6 Tbsp), brown sugar (165 g / ¾ cup), and cinnamon (15 g / 2 Tbsp) into a spreadable paste.
- Roll out the dough. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll into a 16×12-inch rectangle.
- Fill and roll. Spread the filling to the edges. Starting from a long edge, roll into a tight log and pinch the seam to seal.
- Slice. Using a bench scraper or a piece of dental floss slid underneath, slice into 12 even rolls.
- Arrange and refrigerate. Arrange the rolls in a buttered 9×13-inch pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight, 8–12 hours.
- The next morning, warm up. Remove the pan from the fridge and let sit at room temperature 30–45 minutes while the oven preheats to 350°F.
- Bake. Bake 25–28 minutes, until golden brown and the centers are set.
- Ice. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth, then beat in the powdered sugar (180 g / 1½ cups) and vanilla (5 g / 1 tsp). Thin with milk, a tablespoon at a time, until pourable. Spread over the warm rolls.
Notes
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How to Make It
1Bloom the yeast. In a stand mixer bowl, whisk the warm milk (240 g / 1 cup) and instant yeast (7 g / 2¼ tsp). Let sit 5 minutes until foamy.
2Mix the dough. Add the sugar (50 g / ¼ cup), melted butter (57 g / 4 Tbsp), eggs, and salt (9 g / 1½ tsp). Add the bread flour (560 g / 4½ cups) and mix on low with the dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
3Knead. Increase to medium speed and knead 8-10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
4First rise. Shape into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm spot 1-1½ hours, until doubled.
5Make the filling. Beat the softened butter (85 g / 6 Tbsp), brown sugar (165 g / ¾ cup), and cinnamon (15 g / 2 Tbsp) into a spreadable paste.
6Roll out the dough. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll into a 16×12-inch rectangle.
7Fill and roll. Spread the filling to the edges. Starting from a long edge, roll into a tight log and pinch the seam to seal.
8Slice. Using a bench scraper or a piece of dental floss slid underneath, slice into 12 even rolls.
9Arrange and refrigerate. Arrange the rolls in a buttered 9×13-inch pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight, 8-12 hours.
10The next morning, warm up. Remove the pan from the fridge and let sit at room temperature 30-45 minutes while the oven preheats to 350°F.
11Bake. Bake 25-28 minutes, until golden brown and the centers are set.
12Ice. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth, then beat in the powdered sugar (180 g / 1½ cups) and vanilla (5 g / 1 tsp). Thin with milk, a tablespoon at a time, until pourable. Spread over the warm rolls.
Tips & Troubleshooting
- Rolls didn’t rise much overnight: that’s expected – the fridge slows the yeast way down. Give them the full 30-45 minutes at room temperature before baking to finish rising.
- Rolls stuck together after baking: that’s normal for a pan bake – pull them apart gently, the sides will be extra soft where they touched.
- Icing too runny: beat in more powdered sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until it holds its shape.
- Want extra-gooey rolls: pour 2 tablespoons of heavy cream over the unbaked rolls right before they go in the oven.
How to Store
To store: keep iced rolls covered at room temperature up to 2 days, or in the fridge up to 5.
To freeze: freeze the shaped, unbaked rolls (before the overnight refrigeration) in the pan wrapped tightly; thaw overnight in the fridge, then follow the Day 2 steps as written.
Nutrition
Per roll, based on 12 rolls. Estimated from the ingredients used – provided for convenience and not a substitute for a precise calculation.
385
Calories
52
Carbs
6
Protein
17
Fat
1
Fiber
290
Sodium
Desi’s Notes
There’s a reason cinnamon rolls topped the request list every holiday morning growing up, and it wasn’t because anyone wanted to stand in the kitchen for two hours before breakfast. The overnight fridge rise solves that – all the work happens the night before.
Cream cheese icing over a thin glaze, always. It sets up thick enough to actually see and doesn’t just soak straight into the rolls.
If you’re not a fan of raisins or nuts in cinnamon rolls, you’re not alone in this kitchen – this filling is deliberately just butter, sugar, and cinnamon.
Before You Bake
Want a printable reference for weighing ingredients or converting between cups and grams? Grab the Conversion & Baker’s-Percentage Cheat Sheet, one of six free Printable Quicksheets on the site.
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