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one baked cinnamon roll on cutting board.
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5 from 14 votes

Easy Cinnamon Rolls (10 min prep!)

Sinfully delicious and only 10 minutes of hands-on time (with a shortcut), these super easy cinnamon rolls are a huge treat for any occasion. Warm, fresh, sweet, buttery, nutty, make-ahead and semi-homemade.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
rise time (or overnight)1 hour
Total Time1 hour 35 minutes
Course: Breakfast, brunch, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings (change as needed): 12 rolls

Ingredients

  • 1 bread dough to make one loaf (I buy a challah dough, but any bread dough will do. Or make your own, Note 1)
  • 1/3 cup butter, softened (about 2/3 of a stick)
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar (light or dark brown sugar)
  • 3/4 cup pecan pieces (use more or less as you like); whole pecans are ok too.

Filling

  • 2 tablespoon soft butter (I use salted) unsalted butter is fine too
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

  • PREPARE PAN: Spray sides of a pyrex (or microwavable) 9 inch/23 cm round or 7x11 inch (18x28 cm) baking dish with oil. Note 2.
  • MAKE STICKY TOPPING:  Put butter and brown sugar in pan. Microwave, stirring once halfway through, until mixture is well blended and sugar dissolved, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle pecans evenly over mixture.
  • PREPARE DOUGH AND FILLING: Stretch dough into a 12 x 7 inch (30x18cm) rectangle. Spread butter evenly over the surface. Combine white sugar and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl, then sprinkle mixture evenly over the buttered dough.
  • MAKE THE BUNS: Starting at the longer side of the dough, roll it lengthwise into a log and pinch tightly to secure the cinnamon filling inside the dough. Cut log into 12 even slices. Place buns flat (cut side down) in pan. Note 4 - To make ahead the next morning. If not making ahead, let the cinnamon buns sit on top of a warm oven to rise for 1 to 1.5 hours to double in size.
  • HEAT OVEN to 350 degrees F /177C.
  • BAKE AND SERVE: Bake uncovered for 23-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes, then invert onto a plate or tray. I cover pan with a larger tray, then flip both over. Make sure to scrape any remaining sticky toffee onto the rolls! Serve warm. 

Notes

  1. To make your own dough, here's a recipe for white bread dough and another for challah (my favorite for this recipe). Ignore any seeds added.
  2. If you don't have the proper size pan that is also microwave safe, use a separate microwave-safe dish for the topping mixture, then our into into your baking pan. Alternatively, cook the brown sugar-butter mixture in small pot on medium-low heat on stove, then pour into pan. 
  3. Variation: Make chocolate orange cinnamon buns by adding 1 cup/170 grams chocolate chips and the zest of one orange to the filling. You can even glaze the buns with an orange glaze (icing sugar, orange juice and zest).
  4. To make ahead and bake the next morning. Once the dough is cut and placed into the pan, lightly spray the buns with oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap (leaving room for rising). Refrigerate overnight. The buns will rise in the fridge. In the morning, take them out of fridge and let them sit on top of a warm oven to come to room temperature for half hour before baking while you preheat the oven to 350F/177C. Bake for 23-25 minutes until golden brown. 
 
Nutrition values are estimates. 
Calories: 244kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 240mg | Potassium: 36mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 216IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 1mg