I came up with the idea of Apple Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls after years of disappointment trying recipe after recipe that claimed it made the World's Best, or Softest Ever, cinnamon rolls. From my experience most cinnamon roll recipes have pretty much the same dough, and are topped with extra sweet cream cheese frosting, which I am not a big fan of. In my opinion, a cinnamon roll should be melt-in-your-mouth soft, flaky, and have the perfect level of sweetness.
One of my favorite things is soft, homemade bread. Over the years, I have experimented with different ingredients and techniques that would create that soft, pillowy bread dough. I've incorporated those ingredients and tips into this recipe, which I believe is what elevates this cinnamon roll recipe above all the others. To set it apart even more, the addition of raisins and apple add another level of flavour to these cinnamon rolls. They are good on their own, but I can't resist the semi-sweet, semi-savoury sour cream icing that puts a special, non-traditional spin on the classic cream cheese frosting.
I like the sour cream icing more than traditional cream cheese icing because I feel super-sweet cream cheese icing competes too much with the sweetness of cinnamon rolls. Instead, the savouriness and tangy-ness the sour cream adds is an interesting and delicious contrast to the sweet rolls.
Ingredients in Cinnamon Rolls
Butter and Sugar
When creating this recipe, I researched several different filling ratios when it came to butter and sugar. Why did some recipes use melted butter in the center, while other recipes used softened butter? What about white sugar vs. brown sugar? What impact did these changes have on the overall product? I have tested my findings and discovered that the gooey-ness of cinnamon rolls is not dependent on the butter, or rather its physical state, but on the type of sugar used: white vs. brown.
White sugar = sugary/monkey bread type rolls
Brown sugar = gooey rolls (and very sweet)
As for the butter, I find using room temperature butter to be the easiest to spread over the dough, as melted butter tends to run off and create a big mess. Everything is going to melt in the oven anyway, so you might as well make it easier on yourself and use softened butter.
Milk vs. Water
The liquid that I am using in this recipe is evaporated milk. I am using evaporated milk rather than water or whole milk because of its high fat content and slight sweetness. Adding ingredients with fat in them help enrich the dough, making it softer and less crumbly.
You CAN use water in replacement of the evaporated milk, but your cinnamon rolls will not be as soft and flakey. They will be just OK, and they will dry out quicker. Regular whole milk would be a better substitution than water. The evaporated milk does something different to the dough that you just have to experience for yourself. It adds an entirely different level of softness and richness to the rolls that is unparalleled with any other liquid ingredient.
Making Cinnamon Rolls
These rolls are in the monkey bread type of roll category when it comes to texture. After baking, the edges of these rolls will have a crispy, sugary coating on them that resembles the crunchy topping you would have on monkey bread. That being said, they are not ultra-gooey. If you like gooey cinnamon rolls, simply swap out the 3/4 cup white sugar in the filling with 1 cup of packed brown sugar! Just mix it with the room temperature butter before spreading it on the dough.
Otherwise, here is the cast of characters:
For the dough:
3 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast
1/4 cup softened butter (4 tbsp)
2 eggs + 1 yolk (room temperature, slightly beaten)
1 cup evaporated milk (there is 1 1/2 cups per can, save the remaining 1/2 cup for baking)
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup golden raisins (I do not recommend using red raisins, as they tend to burn and get hard while baking)
For the filling:
1 large or two small apples (such as a Gala or Pink Lady), diced small
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar (If you prefer extra gooey rolls, use 1 cup packed brown sugar instead)
1-2 tbsp cinnamon
For the icing:
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
1.5 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
How to make the dough
1 Gather all your ingredients for the dough. Warm 1 cup of evaporated milk in the microwave for 40 seconds, or until it reaches 110 degrees F.
2 In the bowl of your stand mixer combine the warmed milk, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast. Let it sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. If your yeast does not foam, throw everything out and start again with new yeast.
3 Pour in your 2 eggs + 1 yolk, 1 tsp salt, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and 3 1/4 cups flour. Mix using a dough hook attachment until the mixture starts to form a dough. The dough will be wet.
4 Slice 1/4 cup butter into 4 pieces, and, while the machine is on, add the butter slices. The dough will be quite sticky and stick to the sides of the bowl while holding most of its shape toward the dough hook. See texture below.
5 Add a tablespoon or two of flour to the dough if needed. The dough should be sticky but sturdy. Turn the mixer on to medium high.
Mix for 5-7 minutes. The dough will firm up a little bit during the kneading process. Add 2/3 cup golden raisins and mix on medium high for one more minute. Grease a bowl with olive oil while the dough kneads.
6 When the dough is finished kneading, wet your hands and scrape the dough from the sides of the bowl, then plop it into your greased bowl. I've inserted some photos so you can see the texture of the dough. You'll see that it has firmed up quite a bit, but it will still be sticky. Give it a few turns to grease it all around and cover it with a clean, dry tea towel. Rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
How to form the cinnamon rolls
7 After it has doubled in size, punch down your dough and quickly form it into a ball while still in the bowl. Generously flour a clean work surface and plop your dough on top. Let it sit for five minutes. While it is resting, peel and dice your apple. This is also a good time to grease your 9x13 baking pan. For easy clean up, you can also line your pan with parchment paper; just make sure to butter it well.
8 Sprinkle some flour on top of the dough, and with a floured rolling pin roll out the dough to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thickness, and 10 inches long by 20 inches wide. It does not have to be perfect, just make sure it is rectangular.
9 Spread 1 stick of softened butter over your dough using your hands.
10 Sprinkle 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar over the butter layer. This will be a thick coat of sugar. (NOTE: If you like extra gooey rolls, swap the white sugar with 1 cup packed brown sugar. Mix the 1 stick of softened butter with 1 cup of packed brown sugar in a bowl before spreading it on the dough.)
Sprinkle cinnamon on top. You do not have to measure the cinnamon, just sprinkle enough to coat the sugar. Add as much cinnamon as you want.
Sprinkle your diced apple on top of the sugar layer.
11 Beginning at the long end closest to you, roll the dough tightly into a log, pushing it away from you. You do not need to stretch the dough, just make sure there are no air pockets between the layers of the roll.
Once it is rolled, wet your hands and use them to wet one side of the dough where the seam is. Then pinch the log closed.
12 Using floss or a thin string, wrap the floss around the underside of the dough. Take a strand in each hand and bring the strands to meet at the top of the log. Cross them, and then pull the strings away from each other. This will slice the log into a neat pinwheel.
Start by cutting off the uneven ends so all of your rolls are uniform (Bake these ends in a separate dish as scooby snacks for the chef!).
Repeat this process every 1-1.5 inches until you have 12 cinnamon rolls. (You will technically have 14 rolls total, including the sliced off ends) Note: I ended up with two bonus rolls because I did not measure where to cut my rolls. I like to live dangerously!
Place the cinnamon rolls in the buttered baking dish, cover them with a clean, dry tea towel, and let them rise for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
Baking the rolls
13 When your rolls are done rising, pour the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk over the rolls. This will keep them soft as they bake in the oven and help make the edges sugar-crispy rather than dry-crusty.
Insert a thermometer into the middle of a cinnamon roll that is in the center of the dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the thermometer reads 180 degrees F. This is 10 degrees less than the temperature of fully cooked bread, but we can safely assume the temperature will rise at least another five degrees while the rolls are cooling. As for the other five degrees, well, we want these rolls soft and when you want soft, slightly underbaking really helps in that department.
NOTE: If your rolls begin to brown more than slightly, cover them with a piece of aluminum foil. I cover my rolls at around the 23-minute mark. They took 28 minutes to reach 180 degrees F for me.
While your rolls bake, make the icing.
Making the Icing
The special ingredient in this cinnamon roll icing is sour cream! We are replacing the ultra-sweet, ultra-rich, cream cheese frosting with a fresh, tangy, sour cream icing. It adds a wonderful creamy, savoury flavour to the icing that is the perfect balance against rich, sweet rolls. The tangy-ness of the sour cream provides a nice break in sweetness, and does not compete with the sweetness of the cinnamon rolls like traditional cream cheese frosting does.
14 Mix together 4 tbsp melted butter, 1 cup sour cream, and 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar in a bowl until creamy. Start with 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, and if you want the icing less tangy add another half cup of sugar. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla, mix, and set aside.
(NOTE: You can play around with extracts here. Maple extract or orange extract pair perfectly with cinnamon rolls!)
Final Touches
15 When your cinnamon rolls are done, remove any foil you may have placed on the rolls and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before you pour on the icing.
What I particularly like about this cinnamon roll recipe are the edges! Rather than being dry and hard, they have a crispy, sugary coating that resembles the top of monkey bread! I am usually a middle-of-the-cinnamon-roll type of gal, but these edges are my new favorite part! Delicious!
Top with the icing and enjoy!
Apple Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls with Sour Cream Icing
Servings: 14
Nutrition (including icing): Cals: 459 Fat: 18g Carbs: 69g Fiber: 2g Protein 6g
Prep time:1 hr. 30 min
Bake time: 25-30 min
Total time: 2 hr.
Ingredients:
For the dough:
3 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast
1/4 cup softened butter (4 tbsp)
2 eggs + 1 yolk (room temperature, slightly beaten)
1 cup evaporated milk (there is 1 1/2 cups per can, save the remaining 1/2 cup for baking)
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup golden raisins (I do not recommend using red raisins, as they tend to burn and get hard while baking)
For the filling:
1 large or two small apples (such as a Gala or Pink Lady), diced small
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
For the icing:
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions:
For the dough:
1 Gather all your ingredients for the dough. Warm one cup of evaporated milk in the microwave for 40 seconds, or until it reaches 110 degrees F.
2 In the bowl of your stand mixer combine the warmed milk, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast. Let it sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. If your yeast does not foam, throw everything out and start again with new yeast.
3 Pour in your 2 eggs + 1 yolk, 1 tsp salt, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and 3 1/4 cups flour. Mix using a dough hook attachment until the mixture just starts to form a dough. Dough will be wet. *
4 Slice 1/4 cup butter into 4 pieces, and, while the machine is on, add the butter slices. The dough will be quite sticky and stick to the sides of the bowl while holding most of its shape toward the dough hook.
5 Add a tablespoon of flour to the dough if needed. Turn the mixer on to medium high. The dough should be sticky but sturdy.
Mix for 5-7 minutes. The dough will firm up a little bit during the kneading process. Add 2/3 cup golden raisins and mix on medium high for one more minute. Grease a bowl with olive oil while the dough kneads.
6 When the dough is finished kneading, wet your hands and scrape the dough from the sides of the bowl. Then, plop it into your greased bowl. You'll see that it has firmed up quite a bit. It will still be sticky. Give it a few turns to coat it in oil and cover it with a clean, dry tea towel. Rise 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
For the filling:
7 After the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and quickly form it into a ball while still in the bowl. Generously flour a clean work surface and plop your dough on top. Let it sit for five minutes. While it is resting, peel and dice your apple. This is also a good time to grease your 9x13 baking pan. For easy clean up, you can also line your pan with parchment paper; just make sure to butter it well.
8 Sprinkle some flour on top of the dough, and with a floured rolling pin roll out the dough to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thickness. The dough will be10 inches long by 20 inches wide (or around there, it does not have to be perfect).
9 Spread 1 stick of softened butter over your dough using your hands.
10 Add your fillings. Sprinkle 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar over the butter layer. This will be a thick coat of sugar. (NOTE: If you like extra gooey rolls, swap the white sugar with 1 cup packed brown sugar. Mix the 1 stick of softened butter with 1 cup of packed brown sugar in a bowl before spreading it on the dough.)
Sprinkle cinnamon on top. You do not have to measure the cinnamon, just sprinkle enough to coat the sugar. Add as much cinnamon as you want.
Sprinkle your diced apple on top of the sugar layer.
11 Beginning at the long end closest to you, roll the dough tightly into a log, pushing it away from you. You do not need to stretch the dough, just make sure there are no air pockets between the layers of the roll. Once it is rolled, wet your hands and use them to wet one side of the dough where the seam is. Then pinch the log closed.
12 Using floss or a thin string, wrap the floss around the underside of the dough. Take a strand in each hand and bring the strands to meet at the top of the log. Cross them, and then pull the strings away from each other. This will slice the log into a neat pinwheel.
Start by cutting off the uneven ends so all of your rolls are uniform (Bake these ends in a separate dish as scooby snacks for the chef!).
Repeat this process every 1-1.5 inches until you have 12 cinnamon rolls. (You will technically have 14 rolls total, including the sliced off ends).
Place the cinnamon rolls in the buttered baking dish, cover it with a clean, dry tea towel, and let them rise for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
13 When your rolls are done rising, pour the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk over the rolls. This will keep them soft as they bake in the oven and help make the edges sugar-crispy and not dry-crusty.
Insert a thermometer into the middle of a cinnamon roll that is in the center of the dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the thermometer reads 180 degrees F. **
For the icing:
14 Mix together 4 tbsp melted butter, 1 cup sour cream, and 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar in a bowl until creamy. Start with 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, and if you want the icing less tangy, add another half cup of sugar. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla, mix, and set aside. ***
15 When your cinnamon rolls are done, remove any foil you may have placed on the rolls, and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before you pour on the icing. Enjoy!
NOTES:
* See pictures above to see the texture the dough should have along the way.
** If your rolls begin to brown more than slightly, cover them with a piece of aluminum foil. I cover my rolls at around the 23-minute mark.
*** You can play around with extracts here. Maple extract or orange extract pair perfectly with cinnamon rolls!)
Have you made these cinnamon rolls? Let me know what you think!