Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls (with cream cheese frosting)
This sourdough cinnamon rolls recipe has no business being this delicious! Not only do they taste amazing but they’re made with wholesome ingredients and simplified steps. Plus they’re topped with a delicious cream cheese frosting.
Any skill level of baker can make this recipe, you don’t have to be a pro! You can make this recipe same day or overnight, it’s customizable to your schedule!
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Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Recipe Inspiration
Now that I’ve had my sourdough starter for an entire year I wanted to create a cinnamon roll recipe. I’ve seen so many versions online but many use grams for measuring ingredients or overcomplicated steps.
After doing a little research and talking with my sourdough friends, I decided to create a super simple recipe that anyone could follow. Each bite is full of pillowy dough and a cinnamon sugar swirl. My husband says they’re the best he’s ever had every time I make them!
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
- Soft and delicious cinnamon rolls
- The easiest sourdough cinnamon roll recipe on the internet
- They turn out like a bakery made them
- Low sugar content so they aren’t too sweet
Important Things You Need To Know
This recipe doesn’t include stretch and folds due to the kneading for 3 minutes after the dough bulk ferments. This is an uncommon way of doing cinnamon rolls but it works very well for this recipe.
Starter Disclaimer: If your dough is sticky and hard to handle, your starter is more hydrated than the 50% hydration I recommend. Be sure to feed it a 2:1 ratio of flour to water 4-12 hours before making this recipe to ensure the starter is thick and not runny. It needs to be active and bubbly.
If you choose to feed your starter a different way before baking please note that there may be differences in your dough and the finished product.
Tips for Easy Preparation
- Follow each step of this recipe, don’t cut anything short
- Choose the overnight baking timeline for a simplified process
How to Make Ahead
If you would like to wake up and bake the cinnamon rolls fresh, see the overnight sample baking timeline shared below. I do this all the time! If you prefer already baked cinnamon rolls in the morning follow the same day sample baking timeline.
Ingredients
Cinnamon Rolls
- 1/2 cup fed sourdough starter
- 8 Tbsp cold butter
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp raw honey
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/3 cup milk or cream to brush tops before baking
Filling
- 1/4 cup ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup pure cane sugar
- 6 Tbsp softened butter (not melted)
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
- 3 tsp raw honey
- 3 Tbsp milk
Kitchen Tools You’ll Need
- large glass mixing bowl
- cheese grater
- baking sheet
- unbleached parchment paper
- hand mixer
- small mixing bowls
- measuring cups and spoons
Step by Step Instructions
First, add sourdough starter, butter grated with a cheese grater, flour, water, salt, and honey to a large bowl and mix until combined.
Second, cover bowl with a lid or kitchen towel and let bulk ferment on the counter at room temperature for 6-8 hours (dough needs to double in size).
Third, after bulk ferment, uncover dough and sprinkle baking soda and baking powder over dough.
Forth, knead in the baking soda and baking powder by hand (or electric mixer) for 3 minutes.
Fifth, preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sixth, make the filling by combining cane sugar, cinnamon, and softened butter in a bowl until evenly combined. Set aside.
Seventh, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle approximately 10″ x 20″.
Eighth, with a butter knife evenly spread filling over the entire rectangle.
Ninth, starting at the shorter 10″ side of the rectangle begin to roll the dough into a log. Pinch the seam together with your hands and slice the log into 1.5 to 2 inch cinnamon rolls.
At this time you can either continue the recipe or cover the baking sheet and pop them in the fridge until the morning to bake.
Tenth, place cinnamon rolls on a baking sheet (lined with parchment or lightly greased with butter) just barely touching, brush the tops with 1/3 cup milk or cream and bake for 20-25 minutes.
During this time of baking make the frosting by adding cream cheese, honey, and milk into a bowl and mixing with a hand mixer until evenly combined.
Eleventh, let cinnamon rolls cool 2-5 minutes, add frosting, and enjoy!
Same Day Sample Baking Timeline
12 pm – mix dough
12 pm – 6 pm – bulk ferment
6 pm – add baking soda + baking powder and knead
6:03 pm – preheat oven + make filling
6:08 pm – roll out dough, shape, slice, brush with milk
6:25 pm – bake cinnamon rolls + make frosting
6:45 pm – enjoy!
Overnight Sample Baking Timeline
Friday 12 pm – mix dough
12 pm – 6 pm – bulk ferment
6 pm – add baking soda + baking powder and knead
6:03 pm – preheat oven + make filling + make frosting
6:08 pm – roll out dough, shape, slice, brush with milk
6:25 pm – place in the fridge overnight
Saturday 7 am – preheat oven and get sheet pan out of fridge
7:10 am – bake cinnamon rolls
7:30 am – enjoy!
Storage
Store baked, unfrosted cinnamon rolls in an air tight container for up to 4 days at room temperature. Be sure to store cream cheese frosting in the fridge and frost them only when you’re ready to eat.
Freezing
You can freeze raw cinnamon rolls or baked cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months in the freezer. Be sure to wrap them individually in parchment and place them in an air-tight container.
How to Serve
Serve sourdough cinnamon rolls by themselves, with a side of bacon, homemade hashbrowns, or a bowl of fruit!
Recipe FAQ
What does fed sourdough starter mean?
Fed sourdough starter is when your sourdough has been fed with flour and water 4-12 hours before use. This makes the starter active and helps your dough rise.
Can you use sourdough discard for cinnamon rolls?
You can use sourdough discard but it will take much longer for the cinnamon rolls to rise. If you choose to do this please note the texture will not be the same as if you used fed starter.
I don’t have a cheese grater for the butter, what can I use instead?
If you don’t have a cheese grater you can use a fork to cut the butter into the flour until pea sized pieces form.
Why didn’t my sourdough cinnamon rolls rise?
They didn’t have enough time during the bulk ferment. Give the dough a few extra hours, to ensure it doubles in size.
Is it cheaper to make sourdough cinnamon rolls at home?
Yes! It is 100 times cheaper to make them at home rather than buying them. Not to mention the gut benefits and use of wholesome ingredients.
More Sourdough Breakfast Recipes
- Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls (Less Sugar, Simple Steps)
- Easy Sourdough Pumpkin Scones with Chocolate Chips
- Sourdough Chocolate Chip Scones From Scratch
- Sourdough Cream Cheese Apple Danish Recipe From Scratch
Recipe
Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Recipe From Scratch
Ingredients
Cinnamon Rolls
- 1/2 cup fed sourdough starter
- 8 Tbsp cold butter
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp raw honey
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/3 cup milk or cream to brush tops before baking
Filling
- 1/4 cup ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup pure cane sugar
- 6 Tbsp softened butter not melted
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 3 tsp raw honey
- 3 Tbsp milk
Instructions
- BEFORE YOU GET STARTED: Feed your starter 4-12 hours before starting this recipe. I recommend feeding it a 2:1 ratio of unbleached flour to filtered water to get the same results as I do when you make this recipe. Example: Feed 1 cup flour + 1/2 cup water and let the starter sit on the counter at room temperature until it's bubbly and has grow in the jar. Your starter needs to be active, bubbly, and a thicker consistency to begin this recipe.
- Add sourdough starter, butter grated with a cheese grater, flour, water, salt, and honey to a large bowl and mix until combined.
- Cover bowl with a lid or kitchen towel and let bulk ferment on the counter at room temperature for 6-8 hours (dough needs to double in size).
- After bulk ferment, uncover dough and sprinkle baking soda and baking powder over dough.
- Knead in the baking soda and baking powder by hand (or electric mixer) for 3 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Make the filling by combining cane sugar, cinnamon, and softened butter in a bowl until evenly combined. Set aside.
- Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle approximately 10" x 20".
- With a butter knife evenly spread filling over the entire rectangle.
- Starting at the shorter 10" side of the rectangle begin to roll the dough into a log. Pinch the seam together with your hands and slice the log into 1.5 to 2 inch cinnamon rolls.
- At this time you can either continue the recipe or cover the baking sheet and pop them in the fridge until the morning to bake.
- Place cinnamon rolls on a baking sheet (lined with parchment or lightly greased with butter) just barely touching
- Brush the tops with 1/3 cup milk or cream and bake for 20-25 minutes.
- During this time of baking make the frosting by adding cream cheese, honey, and milk into a bowl and mixing with a hand mixer until evenly combined.
- Let cinnamon rolls cool 2-5 minutes, add frosting, and enjoy!
Notes
- Make sure your starter is active! BEFORE YOU GET STARTED: Feed your starter 4-12 hours before starting this recipe. I recommend feeding it a 2:1 ratio of unbleached flour to filtered water to get the same results as I do when you make this recipe. Example: Feed 1 cup flour + 1/2 cup water and let the starter sit on the counter at room temperature until it’s bubbly and has grow in the jar. Your starter needs to be active, bubbly, and a thicker consistency to begin this recipe.
- Let the dough bulk ferment for 12 hours. It is important to let your dough bulk ferment for the full 12 hours. It should double in size and have air bubbles in it.
- Place the dough in a warm spot to rise. For both the bulk ferment and the second rise after shaping, your dough needs to be at room temperature in a non-drafty place.
- If your dough doesn’t look like it’s doing anything halfway through the rises, you need to place it in a slightly warmer area.
- This can be in a turned-off oven with the light on and oven door open, or you can slightly warm the oven to about 75-80 degrees Fahrenheit, then turn it off and place your dough inside with the door shut.
- Never leave the oven on, even on the keep warm setting, with fermenting dough inside. Your dough, for both rises, needs to double.
- If your dough doesn’t double even in the warmer area, there is a problem with your starter. It is too weak to ferment the dough even in a warm environment.
- To fix this, you will want to leave your starter out on the counter for 2 days and feed it every 12 hours at a 2:1 ratio of unbleached flour to filtered water.
- For example, 1 cup unbleached flour + 1/2 cup filtered (or bottled) water.
- Make sure you’re using unbleached flour and filtered or bottled water to do this. If you don’t, it will affect your starter strength. Reverse osmosis water (or any water that uses salt in the filter) can make the starter weak.
- This will strengthen the cultures in your starter to give you fluffy baked bread and treats. After the 2 days, you can go back to feeding it like usual (once a week if stored in the fridge or once a day if stored on the counter). Be sure to use the 2:1 ratio feeding from here on out.