No Yeast Required Cinnamon Rolls are pillowy, sweet, and require no yeast to make them! Easy, tender, and so satisfying.
Today I spent a grey and drizzly afternoon whipping up a recipe from In Jennie’s Kitchen that’s been burning a hole in my back pocket for a few weeks now — dense, gooey, mouthwatering no yeast required cinnamon rolls!
I am obsessed over this recipe! I’ve baked with yeast several times in the past year, and the recipes have turned out well, more or less, but sometimes I just don’t have the time or patience to deal with it, ya’ know?
Homemade cinnamon rolls without the hassle of making sure the milk’s the right temperature? The yeast is activating? The dough has doubled in size?
They exists, my friends, and here’s how you make them:
Start by combining the cinnamon roll filling ingredients in a medium-size mixing bowl: brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, salt & butter.
Mix it up with s whisk until combined.
In a larger bowl, combine flour, more sugar, and salt, plus the leavening agents that let us ditch that pesky yeast.
Baking powder and baking soda.
Whisk together more butter with buttermilk, then pour the mixture into the dry ingredients.
Stir with a stiff spoon or spatula just until the dough comes together. If you over-mix, you will have hard cinnamon rolls, and we can’t have that.
Gently knead the dough into a ball, then divide into two halves.
Turn each half onto a flat, floured surface, then press on half the filling mixture.
Roll the dough up like a log, then pinch the top seam shut. This is the part where I noticed the biggest difference between a yeast-required vs. non-yeast-required cinnamon roll dough. This dough is MUCH easier to handle. Not as sticky, and more firm.
Slice, slice, baby!
Oh yeah!
The recipe says to place the cinnamon rolls into a greased 11×8″ pan. I seemed to have misplaced mine sometime in the last month, so I spit the rolls between 8×8″ and 6×4″ non stick sprayed pans. Now pop those puppies in a piping hot oven.
In the quick 15 minutes they take to bake, whip up some cream cheese icing.
Mash together powdered sugar and cream cheese with a fork, then drizzle in buttermilk and whisk until smooth.
Next take those GORGEOUS, bubbly, golden-brown rolls out of the oven, (ahhh!)
and pretend you live in a world where Grandmas still place hot pies on their windowsills to cool. Place yours on a wooden stool in front of the open back-porch door instead…
Then breeeeeathe in the Heavenly, sweet aroma that’s swirling around your kitchen.
Now spread the cream cheese icing over the top and spread into an even layer.
I can’t remember the last time I was this excited about a recipe! I just can’t get over how much easier these were than cinnamon rolls made with yeast-required dough. So rich and scrumptious too!
Here are the differences between yeast-required & no yeast-required cinnamon rolls, in my experience/opinion:
- No yeast dough is much more firm and cooperative than sticky, yeast-required dough – which makes it much easier to handle, roll out and cut.
- The texture of a baked no yeast roll is more dense than a yeast-required roll. Not better or worse, just different. Allllmost like a heavy pancake?!
- I saved HOURS in the kitchen by ditching the yeast!
Now YES, there is definitely something to be said about baking with yeast. It’s very rewarding, and I’m not giving it up for good.
BUT, if you get a craving for warm, fresh cinnamon rolls that needs to be squashed NOW, then you need to make these!
Ingredients
For the Cinnamon Filling:
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
For the Cinnamon Roll Dough:
- 2-1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for rolling out dough
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 5 Tablespoons butter, melted and divided
For the Icing:
- 3 oz cream cheese, softened
- 4 Tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425. Combine filling ingredients in a small bowl, then mix with a fork until well blended.
- In a another, larger bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk together buttermilk and 4 Tablespoons melted butter in a separate bowl, then pour into the middle of the dry ingredients. Stir together until dough just comes together (do not overmix.) Kneed slightly with your hands until the dough forms into a ball, then slice it in half.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll each half into a 12x8" rectangle (think slightly longer than a sheet of paper.) Press half the filling mixture into the center, leaving 1/4" of the dough clear on all 4 sides, then roll like a sausage. Pinch together seam, trim ends and cut into 8 slices. Repeat with the other dough half, then place rolls in a non-stick sprayed 11x8" pan, or an 8x8 and 6x4" pan. Brush cinnamon rolls with remaining Tablespoon of melted butter and bake for 15 minutes, or until tops are golden brown.
- Meanwhile, to make the icing, mash together softened cream cheese and powdered sugar with a fork until smooth. Whisk in buttermilk, 1 Tablespoon at a time, until creamy. Drizzle onto hot cinnamon rolls and spread evenly.
Notes
- From In Jennie's Kitchen
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Did you forget the eggs?
I loved this recipe! I made them for my father-in-law for Christmas and now for his birthday… made with rave reviews! Thank you for sharing this awesome recipe!
I left the dough in the fridge for two days and cooked them Christmas morning. I put them in a 8″ cake pan and covered it with plastic wrap and aluminum foil. They seemed to need double the baking time to get brown on top, but I think that will be different for each oven. I also mixed the icing while they were baking. They tasted great and puffed up a lot.
Merry Christmas! Soooo mine didn’t turn out anything like yours. I think it’s because I used whole wheat flour (it’s all I had and I didn’t want to run out to the store on Christmas Eve). Could that be the reason why mine turned out ugly? Haven’t tasted them yet, so I’m unsure as to whether they taste decent or not…here’s hoping they do!
Can you leave this overnight before baking them in the morning? I want to be able to pop them in the oven first thing while my kiddos are unwrapping presents.
Hi Marie! Unfortunately I’m not sure – I’ve never tried! Will you let us know if you try it, and how it went?
Will do!
I am thinking of making these on Thanksgiving morning. Do you think I could make them ahead of time and just bake them Thanksgiving morning?
I’m not sure – I’ve never tried! I’d think they’d be ok since they don’t rise, but again, I can’t be 100% sure. Will you let us know if you give it a try? I’d love to add a note to the recipe!
Hi! I love your blog and recipes! I made these tonight and they don’t look as pretty as yours but they sure smell good!
I had trouble with the dough it was very moist and very hard to roll out. I had to use a ton of flour.. I’m still learning how to work with these types of recipes that involve dough… I was wondering if u had any suggestions of what I could be doing wrong? I would love for this recipe to be easier for me to make bc this is def something I want to make frequently!! :)
Thank you!!
Jen
I might try popping the dough in the fridge to firm up a bit before rolling it if you run into this issue again!
Thank you! They came out excellent regardless everyone loved them! :)
These looks soo yummy! Do you have to use buttermilk or can you use regular milk or almond milk??
Ooo, I’m not sure about that. Let me know how it turns out – that would make this recipe even easier!
I’m 4 months pregnant and woke up with a serious craving for donuts (I’m pretty sure I had a dream about them), but didn’t feel like going out, so I made these with what I had on hand. OMG. Thank you for this recipe! I used regular milk instead of buttermilk and a couple of those cinnamon cream cheese Laughing Cow wedges in place of the plain cream cheese. Also, I got to the very end and realized I didn’t have any powdered sugar! NOOO! What’s the point without the icing?! But a quick Google search later, and I was whipping up my own in the blender. It worked!
I’m going back for more…and a big glass of ice cold milk!
I totally enjoy reading comments, but truly prefer the ones where folks have actually tried the recipes – so much more helpful. I’ve made these twice now, with the second batch definitely turning out better. The filling is to die for – could eat it right out of the bowl – – okay, actually I did. I was more careful the second time to roll them up a bit tighter, and both times found I had to bake them a bit longer than the 15 minutes. I adjusted the recipe to make 24 rolls – – delicious, delicious, delicious! Iowa Girl you rock – – I love trying your recipes!!
I made these this morning for father’s day and veganized them. They were so easy and tasty. I was happy to make a recipe that did not take 3 hours :)
I made these and put them in the refrigerator over night. They turned out great the next morning. I am almost sure you could freeze them and use them whenever as well. LOVE this recipe! Thanks.
Can i store the dough overnight?
I have never tried it, but others have with good results!