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Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls are soft and buttery cinnamon rolls with a subtle chew from the sourdough that are filled with cinnamon and sugar then topped off with a vanilla glaze.

The last few months I haven’t been using my sourdough starter as much because it’s been so hot. I took it out about once a month in the summer to use, just to feed it, and to make something out of it.

Now that the weather is cooling off again I plan on using it 2-3 times a month. I’ve been looking for recipes that I can make on the weekends when I came across these Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls. They looked so yummy and I thought it would be a nice breakfast treat.

Since there isn’t any yeast in these it takes them quite a while to rise. You also need to choose a day when you are home because you’ll need to stretch and fold the dough once an hour while it’s rising. That’s why I like to make these on the weekend.

Ingredients:

sourdough starter
milk
eggs
butter
flour
sugar
vanilla
salt
brown sugar
cinnamon
powdered sugar

To make the dough combine the sourdough starter, milk, egg, butter, flour, and sugar. Mix on low speed, using a dough hook, in a stand mixer for 2-3 minutes or until a sticky dough has formed.
Add the salt on top of the salt and cover for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes mix the dough in the stand mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and knead the dough for 2-3 minutes or until it is smooth and tacky.
Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm area for 4 hours. During this time you will need to stretch the dough and fold it once every hour.
Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for the filling in a medium bowl. Mix until the mixture resembles wet sand. Set aside.
Turn your dough onto a lightly floured work space and gently deflate it. Gently roll the dough into a 14 inch by 20 inch rectangle. If you can’t get that exact measurement just get close.
Spread the filling evenly over top of the dough leaving a half inch edge along one of the short sides.
Starting with the filling covered short edge, roll the dough into a tight log. Make sure your roll isn’t loose or you will lose your filling.
Cut the log into twelve 1 1/2 inch slices. Press them into a lightly greased 9 x 13 baking dish.
Cover the pan and allow the rolls to rise until they are puffy, 2-3 hours. You can also put them in the refrigerator, covered, overnight if you want to bake them the next morning. Just take them out an hour before you want to bake them.
When ready to bake preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool completely.
To make the icing whisk together the icing ingredients until smooth. Pour over top of the cinnamon rolls and use a butter knife to smooth over top of them.

This recipe was really a labor of love. I ended up making them one day and then putting them in the refrigerator overnight so that I was able to bake them the next morning.

I put the in the oven as my husband was waking up and he immediately smelled them. He came into the oven and asked what was baking. When I told him it was cinnamon rolls he was super excited. I couldn’t wait to try them either especially since they smelled amazing.

How do you stretch and fold?

If you have never stretched and folded before it’s easy to do. Pull the dough upwards and fold over top of itself, like you are folding it in half after stretching it. Then turn the bowl a quarter turn. Let the dough rest and rise for another hour and repeat.

I don’t have a sourdough starter. How can I start one and how long does it take?

If you want to start a sourdough starter it takes between 5 and 7 days. This means that you need to give yourself at least a week before you can start baking with it. Check out my recipe on How to Start a Sourdough Starter.

Can I substitute a different type of flour in this recipe?

If you’d like you can use half all purpose flour and half whole wheat flour. If you want to give your cinnamon rolls a nutty flavor you can replace 1 cup of all purpose flour with a nut flour such as almond flour, hazelnut flour, or pecan flour.

My starter has been in the refrigerator and it isn’t ready to bake with. Is there anything I can do besides feeding it and letting it sit for a few hours?

If your starter isn’t quite ready you can add one teaspoon of instant yeast to your dough. Instead of taking 4-5 hours of time to rise your dough will rise in around 3 hours the first rise with 2 or 3 rounds of stretching and folding and 1-2 hours during the second rise.

Can I add other spices to the filling?

Yes! I like to add a hint of nutmeg and ginger as well as the cinnamon to my filling. You can also add a pinch of apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice, cardamom, or even cloves.

When I pulled them out of the oven it smelled with fresh, sweet bread and tons of cinnamon. We had a hard time waiting the 15-20 minutes until I could frost them.

I actually made half vanilla icing and half cream cheese frosting for our rolls. I have a hard time eating a cinnamon roll without the cream cheese frosting.

I made a pot of coffee while we were waiting. Once they were frosted we sat down to breakfast with fresh coffee and the cinnamon rolls. I won’t tell you how many we ate but I can tell you they were sweet, chewy, and totally worth the wait.

If you’ve tried my Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on: