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Close up of apple cinnamon rolls.
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5 from 7 votes

Apple Cinnamon Rolls

These apple cinnamon rolls are super gooey and soft rolls. They are full of cinnamon filling, diced apples that are coated in spices. The rolls are topped with cream cheese brown butter icing.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time25 minutes
Resting Time1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time2 hours 45 minutes
Servings: 12 cinnamon rolls
Calories: 478kcal

Ingredients

Dough

  • 1 cup Milk warmed to 110°F
  • 2 ¼ teaspoon Active dry yeast or 1 packet
  • 2 Large eggs room temperature
  • 4 ½ cups All-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • ¼ cup White granulated sugar
  • 10 tablespoon Unsalted butter room temperature and cubed

Cinnamon Filling

  • ½ cup Unsalted butter room temperature
  • ½ cup Brown sugar packed light or dark
  • 2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
  • 2 Gala apples diced very finely
  • 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon Ground ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg

Cream Cheese Brown Butter Icing

  • 4 oz Cream cheese room temperature
  • 4 tablespoon Unsalted butter browned
  • 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup Powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Milk

Instructions

Dough

  • In a microwave safe bowl, warm the milk to 110°F. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let it sit for 10 minutes. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs together. Set aside.
    1 cup Milk, 2 ¼ teaspoon Active dry yeast, 2 Large eggs
  • While the yeast is resting, mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the cubed butter and use a pastry blender or your hands, to blend the butter into the size of a pea. Then, add in the milk and eggs.
    4 ½ cups All-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon Salt, ¼ cup White granulated sugar, 10 tablespoon Unsalted butter
  • Use a stand mixer with a dough hook. (For mix by hand instructions see notes.) Start on low speed until a dough starts to form and some of the flour is incorporated. Then, turn to medium speed and knead for 5 minutes.
  • Place the dough in a large bowl that is sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover with a kitchen towel. Preheat the oven to 200°F. Place the bowl in the oven, turn off the oven, and crack open the door. Let it rise for 1 hour.

Filling

  • In a small bowl using a hand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Cut the apples into small pieces. If they are too large, it won't roll correctly. Pour the apples into a separate bowl, and mix in the cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
    ½ cup Unsalted butter, ½ cup Brown sugar, 2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon, 2 Gala apples, 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon Ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
  • Punch the dough down and roll using a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface. Roll into a large rectangle until it is ¼ inch thick.
  • Spread the cinnamon filling over the dough using an icing spatula. Then. sprinkle the apples on top. Roll starting from the short side into a log.
  • Use a serrated knife to cut off the uneven ends. Then, cut in 12 rolls. Use a measuring tape for accuracy. Spray a 9X13 pan with baking nonstick spray. Place the rolls in the pan.
  • Cover the pan for a kitchen towel and let rise for 25 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
  • Bake for 22-28 minutes until the tops of the rolls are light golden brown.

Icing

  • Start the icing while the rolls are baking. In a frying pan, melt the butter. Then, stir until the milk deposits separate and it turns amber in color. Let it cool until room temperature.
    4 tablespoon Unsalted butter
  • Using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and brown butter until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk and mix until it is pourable consistency.
    4 oz Cream cheese, 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract, 1 cup Powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon Milk
  • Pour the icing immediately on top of the rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.

Notes

Flour- Make sure flour is spooned and leveled or use a kitchen scale. Compacted flour can dry out the rolls.
High altitude baking- Add an extra 3 tablespoon of flour.
Pull out dairy ingredients 2 hours before baking.
Making by hand:
Mix the wet ingredients into the dry by using a rubber spatula. Switch to using your hands to mix until a dough starts to form.
Place dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead using your hands for 5-8 minutes.
It is done when your spread the dough apart thinly using your fingers. Hold the dough to the light. If you can see light through it, then it is done.
Brown butter: This is part can be skipped. You can also melt the butter instead of browning it.

Nutrition

Calories: 478kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 68mg | Sodium: 240mg | Potassium: 171mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 824IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 64mg | Iron: 2mg