These sourdough cinnamon rolls have a fluffy brioche dough filled with cinnamon sugar and pecans, then topped with tangy cream cheese frosting! Best of all, you can prep them the night before and then just pop them in the oven first thing in the morning for breakfast for a lazy holiday morning!
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Why You'll Love These Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
- Soft and fluffy sourdough brioche dough
- Filled with cinnamon sugar and pecans
- Topped with light cream cheese frosting
- Rise overnight so they're easy to just pop in the oven for breakfast
- Perfect for a cozy winter morning or holiday brunch!
You might also like these pumpkin cinnamon rolls or these blood orange sweet rolls!
Ingredient Notes
You only need a few ingredients to make these fluffy sourdough cinnamon rolls with cream cheese glaze!
Sourdough Starter - I love making everything with sourdough starter and these cinnamon rolls are no exception! It adds just the right amount of tangy flavor to the dough! Don’t have a sourdough starter? Never fear! Just check out my Sourdough Guide for all my tips and tricks!
Butter - For extra flavor I like to substitute brown butter! If you've never made brown butter before, you can check out this post with all my tips for how to make brown butter!
Whole Milk - The whole milk helps keep the brioche dough tender, but you can substitute skim milk or water if you prefer.
Vanilla Bean Paste - I like using vanilla bean paste because it has a much stronger, richer flavor! However, you can easily substitute pure vanilla extract.
Pecans - This recipe works best with plain, unsalted, dry roasted pecans! You could also substitute toasted walnuts or just leave out the nuts all together.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sourdough starter, sugar, salt, vanilla bean paste, eggs, butter, and, milk) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass (5-10 minutes).
The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of milk. If the dough is too sticky, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
While the dough is rising prepare the filling. In a medium bowl, combine the softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Mix together until it forms a thick paste. Set aside.
Grease the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside.
Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll into a large 13x15 inch rectangle. Try to make the edges as even as possible. If the dough keeps shrinking back as you roll it out, cover and let it rest for 5-10 minutes to help the gluten relax before rolling again.
Spread the cinnamon sugar filling in an even layer over the top of dough, leaving about an inch of space at the top of the long end (this helps to seal the log). Then spread the finely chopped pecans over top of the cinnamon sugar filling.
Beginning at the long end, roll up tightly and pinch to seal. If desired, trim about ½ inch off of each end so that the log is 12 inches long.
For even slices, measure the dough and score the top at even intervals (about 1 inch apart).
Then using a very sharp serrated knife, or unflavored dental floss, cut the log into 12 1-inch pieces. [To cut with dental floss, break off a long piece and carefully slide underneath the dough. Then pull the ends of the floss and cross over the top. Pull gently to slice cleanly through the dough.]
Arrange the sourdough cinnamon rolls in the greased baking dish.
Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise overnight (8-16 hours). The next morning, remove from the fridge at let rise at room temperature for 1-2 hours before baking. The dough should be light and fluffy.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake the sourdough cinnamon rolls for 20-30 minutes or until they are golden brown and cooked through. The filling will be bubbly.
Remove from the oven and let cool slightly while you make the glaze.
Spread the cheese frosting over the warm sourdough cinnamon rolls and enjoy!
Tip: only frost the cinnamon rolls you're planning to eat right away and keep the extra frosting in the fridge!
Sourdough Tips & Tricks
If you've never baked with sourdough before, it can be a little tricky. But don't worry, I have a full Sourdough Starter Guide all about making and maintaining a sourdough starter! I also have a full guide on different types of flour you can use to make sourdough and of course a guide on how to make a Beginner Homemade Sourdough Loaf. Below are a few quick tips and key terms you need to know.
- Sourdough Starter - A culture of wild yeast and bacteria that leavens and flavors sourdough bread. I use what's called a "liquid starter" versus a stiff starter. This means the starter is made with equal parts flour and water and should be a consistency similar to cake batter.
- Sourdough Discard - The portion of your starter that is discarded when feeding your starter (can be used in tons of recipes like sourdough discard blueberry muffins or sourdough pancakes).
- Ripe Starter - A starter that's ready to be used in baking. Your starter is ripe roughly 6 hours after feeding and will have doubled in size, have lots of visible bubbles, and a fresh acidic aroma.
Weigh your ingredients! For all my sourdough recipes, I measure the ingredients in grams because it's much more accurate! I highly recommend getting a kitchen scale if you don't already have one! However, I have included alternate US customary measurements for your convenience.
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If your oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all breads and baked goods! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Easy sourdough recipes for beginners! If you've never made sourdough bread before, I recommend starting with some simple, no-fuss recipes like my sourdough naan or sourdough bagels! But if you're already a pro, I have a ton of fun sourdough recipes you can try!
Recipe FAQ's
These sourdough cinnamon rolls are best eaten immediately, but you can cover and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. They can be stored either frosted or unfrosted!
Pop in the microwave for about 30 seconds and they'll taste like they just came out of the oven!
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
Cinnamon Sugar Filling
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- ½ cup pecans, finely chopped (optional)
Cream Cheese Icing
- 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- 2-4 tablespoons milk , more or less for desired consistency
Instructions
Dough
- Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sourdough starter, sugar, salt, vanilla bean paste, eggs, butter, and, milk) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass (5-10 minutes).
- The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of milk. If the dough is too sticky, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
Filling
- While the dough is rising prepare the filling. In a medium bowl, combine the softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Mix together until it forms a thick paste. Set aside.
Assembly
- Grease the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll into a large 13x15 inch rectangle. Try to make the edges as even as possible. If the dough keeps shrinking back as you roll it out, cover and let it rest for 5-10 minutes to help the gluten relax before rolling again.
- Spread the cinnamon sugar filling in an even layer over the top of dough, leaving about an inch of space at the top of the long end (this helps to seal the log). Then spread the finely chopped pecans over top of the cinnamon sugar filling.
- Beginning at the long end, roll up tightly and pinch to seal. If desired, trim about ½ inch off of each end so that the log is 12 inches long.
- For even slices, measure the dough and score the top at even intervals (about 1 inch apart).
- Then using a very sharp serrated knife, or unflavored dental floss, cut the log into 12 1-inch pieces. [To cut with dental floss, break off a long piece and carefully slide underneath the dough. Then pull the ends of the floss and cross over the top. Pull gently to slice cleanly through the dough.]
- Arrange the sourdough cinnamon rolls in the greased baking dish.
- Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise overnight (8-16 hours). The next morning, remove from the fridge at let rise at room temperature for 1-2 hours before baking. The dough should be light and fluffy.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake the sourdough cinnamon rolls for 20-30 minutes or until they are golden brown and cooked through. The filling will be bubbly.
- Remove from the oven and let cool slightly while you make the glaze.
Cream Cheese Icing
- While the rolls are baking, beat the room temperature cream cheese and butter until smooth and there are no lumps. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until fully combined.
- Add in 1-2 tablespoons of milk or cream a little bit at a time until you reach your desired spreading consistency. I like thick icing so I only add about 1 tablespoon of milk, but if you want a thinner more pourable icing you may have to add 3-4 tablespoons of milk.
- Spread the cheese frosting over the warm sourdough cinnamon rolls and enjoy! Tip: only frost the cinnamon rolls you're planning to eat right away and keep the extra frosting in the fridge!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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Maria says
They are delicious!
Randi says
Loved this recipe! The rolls come out just oh so soft and perfectly gooey in the middle. Cinnamon rolls have been my pregnancy craving and none have been satisfying before these. I like very little frosting so I only made half of that and added a touch more of vanilla since I'm a vanilla monster.