How to Make Cinnamon Rolls (Easy Homemade Recipe)

Pour 1 cup of warm milk into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. You want it right around 110 to 115F, warm enough to wake up the yeast but not so hot that it kills it. A thermometer takes the guesswork out. Sprinkle 2 1/4 teaspoons of instant yeast over the top.

Add 1 large room-temperature egg, 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon of melted butter, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Whisk everything together until it looks smooth and a little foamy. That foam means the yeast is alive and doing its job.

Add 3 cups of all-purpose flour and stir it in with a firm spatula or a wooden spoon until it comes together into a shaggy dough. Measure the flour carefully, spooned into the cup and leveled off, so you don't pack in too much. Add a little more flour, about a tablespoon at a time, until the dough stops sticking to the sides of the bowl.

Knead by hand for about 3 minutes. The dough will feel slightly sticky the whole time, and that's fine. The real test is poking it with a clean, dry finger. If it doesn't stick to your finger, you've added enough flour. Cover the bowl and let it rise in a warm spot until doubled, about 30 minutes in a 100F oven or an hour at room temperature.

Once the dough has doubled, turn it out onto a generously floured surface and sprinkle a little flour on top so your rolling pin glides instead of sticking. Roll it into an even rectangle, about 17 by 10 inches.

Take a second to straighten the edges and check the size as you go. A neat rectangle means even rolls with no wasted dough, and it makes the log easier to cut into uniform pieces later. Use a bench scraper to nudge the edges square.

Dot 6 tablespoons of softened butter across the whole rectangle. Dotting it out in little pieces first makes it far easier to spread evenly than trying to smear one big lump. Spread the butter all the way to the edges. It seems like a lot, and that's exactly what keeps these rolls so soft.

Stir together 1/4 cup of granulated sugar with 2 tablespoons of ground cinnamon, then sprinkle the entire mixture over the buttered dough. Be generous and use all of it, right out to the edges. This is the layer that gives you that gooey cinnamon swirl in every bite.

Starting from one of the long sides, roll the dough up into a tight log. Work in a back-and-forth typewriter motion across the length, keeping the roll snug as you go so the swirls hold their shape.

Brush away any loose flour on the back of the dough as you roll so the seam seals nicely. When you reach the end, gently push both ends of the log inward to even them out. A tight, uniform log is the secret to rolls that hold that pretty spiral.

Push the ends in one more time to make the log even, then slice it into 12 equal pieces. A bench scraper or food scraper cuts clean through without squishing the dough, though a sharp knife works too.

Try to keep each slice the same width so they rise and bake at the same rate. If you want to be precise, mark the log lightly before cutting so you can eyeball 12 even portions.

Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 by 13 casserole dish with about a tablespoon of butter. Arrange the rolls cut-side up in the dish, spacing them evenly so they have a little room to puff up and grow into each other.

Cover with plastic wrap and let them rise again, 20 to 30 minutes in a warm 100F oven or 50 to 60 minutes at room temperature, until they look puffed. Never go hotter than 100F for the rise, or you'll deactivate the yeast and the rolls won't rise properly.

While the rolls bake at 350F for 22 to 24 minutes, make the icing. Beat 4 tablespoons of softened butter with 4 ounces of softened cream cheese using an electric hand mixer until smooth. Then beat in 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla extract.

Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and keep mixing on high for 3 to 4 minutes, until the frosting turns light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl a couple of times so there are no lumps. Soft, room-temperature butter and cream cheese are what give you that silky, spreadable texture.

Let the baked rolls cool in the pan for about 15 minutes. You want them still warm but not hot, that sweet spot where the icing melts down into every crevice without sliding right off. Spread the cream cheese icing generously over the top with an offset spatula.

Some of it will melt into the swirls while the rest stays creamy on top, which is exactly what you want. Pull one apart and look at those soft, fluffy layers. Serve them warm and gooey, right when they melt in your mouth.