These Mini Soft Cinnamon Rolls (Bite Size for Kids) are the perfect festive sweet bread to serve on special holidays or parties! These rolls are pillowy, soft, delicious, and so cute!
This recipe makes 24 fluffy mini cinnamon rolls. I find this to be the perfect size to keep that soft and gooey center! Anything smaller will end up too dry. Ready to make these for your next special breakfast? I am sure your little ones will love and this will be your new go-to cinnamon roll recipe!
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Table of Contents
Reasons to Love These Mini Cinnamon Rolls
- Mini size: Perfect smaller size for littles! Why make giant cinnamon rolls and always have leftovers that will be tossed into the trash? Make this cute mini version the perfect sweet treat for littles, and adults can have as many servings as they wish! Win win!
- Perfect texture: Soft, pillowy, and has the perfect amount of sweetness.
- Healthier than store-bought: Homemade dough is always a better alternative as it does not contain any additives or preservatives as store-bought ready-to-bake pastries.
- Can be made ahead of time: After the cinnamon rolls are filled, rolled, and cut, cover them with plastic wrap and refrigerate them for 8-12 hours. The next day, preheat the oven and let the rolls rise at room temperature for 45 to 60 minutes. Proceed to bake as directed.
Ingredients to Make the Best Easy Mini Cinnamon Rolls
Dough:
- Milk: Whole milk gives the best results, it adds moisture and helps create a tender and soft texture. Warm it up for 30 seconds in the microwave until about 100F (37C). Do not overheat as it can kill the yeast. We will use milk in the dough and some more to pour over the rolls before baking.
- Yeast: I use active dry yeast in this recipe. It is activated with warm milk and sugar as a starter to this easy dough. You can find it in small packages in the baking section of grocery stores.
- Sugar: I use granulated sugar to activate the yeast mixture.
- Butter: Melted butter is added to the dough. I use regular butter. If using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt to the dough.
- Egg: I like making enriched dough, therefore I use one large egg at room temperature.
- Flour: Bread flour or all-purpose flour works in this recipe.
Filling:
- Butter: softened at room temperature.
- Brown Sugar: I prefer to use light brown sugar. You can also make your own, mixing granulated sugar with a bit of molasses. You can also use coconut sugar or turbinado sugar. Be aware that the color of the rolls will change a bit with the darker-colored sugar types.
- Cinnamon: used in the filling mixture.
Easy Frosting:
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
Tools Needed
Step-by-Step Instructions
Preparing The Dough
- In a large bowl of a stand mixer, add the warm milk, active dry yeast, and sugar. Mix and wait 5 minutes until some bubbles form on top of the milk and it becomes foamy. This is a very important step, if your yeast does not foam after 5-10 minutes, it is probably old and no longer active. Make sure to re-do the process with fresher, dry, active yeast.
- Add the egg and melted butter. Turn the stand mixer on low (using the dough hook).
- Slowly add the flour, using a slow setting of 2-3. Once all the flour is in, increase the speed to 5 and let the mixer work kneading the dough for 8-10 minutes.
- Grease a large bowl with melted butter, transfer the dough, and cover it with plastic wrap. Allow it to rest in a warm place for 1-2 hours (It will depend on how warm your house is). You need to wait until it has doubled in size.
- Decompress the dough using a rolling pin, roll it out on a lightly floured surface, shaping it as a 24×14 large rectangle.
- Preheat the oven to 100F (37C) for the second dough rise, while you finish preparing the rolls.
Assembling the little cinnamon rolls
- Spread the softened butter on the rolled-out dough.
- Mix the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the mixture on top, pressing and spreading with your hands to ensure the rolls are evenly covered.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut out 24 strips of dough and roll them up (see reference pictures).
- Grease a 9×13 baking dish, distribute the mini rolls evenly, and cover with aluminum foil.
- Turn OFF the oven, place the baking dish inside, and let the rolls rise for 30-45 minutes.
- Remove the rolls from the oven.
- Set the oven temperature to 356F (180C). Remove the aluminum foil, add the milk between the rolls, and bake for 22 minutes in the preheated oven until they are light golden brown.
Making the simple frosting
- Whisk powdered sugar and milk until a thick white paste is formed.
- Spread the frosting over the cinnamon rolls and serve warm.
Tips to bake the Best Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
- Do not overbake the rolls or they will be too dry!
- Make sure to add the milk in between the rolls before baking, this will ensure the ultimate softness.
- Bake these mini cinnamon rolls in a ceramic baking pan or on a light-colored aluminum baking sheet. Aluminum pans bake more gently and attract less heat, resulting in softer rolls. If you use a dark colored baking sheet it will result in dryer rolls with a darker crust.
- Use the assisted rise method, utilizing a warm oven preheated at 100F (37C) for the 2nd rise. This will ensure that your rolls will always rise and puff beautifully. Make sure to turn off the oven before placing the rolls inside to rise.
- When rolling out the dough, make sure to keep the same thickness throughout. The middle tends to be thicker!
- Add the frosting while the cinnamon rolls are still warm, this will allow it to perfectly melt over them!
Storage Instructions
Baked Cinnamon Rolls
Room Temperature: You can store these homemade mini cinnamon rolls at room temperature for up to 3 days. Make sure to keep them inside an airtight container or ziplock.
Fridge: Store the mini cinnamon rolls for 3-5 days in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap, or inside a ziplock bag or airtight container. Reheat in the microwave for 10 to 20 seconds before enjoying! Make sure to eat them warm, once cooled, they will tend to harden.
Freezer: Store the mini cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months in the freezer. Cover with plastic wrap, then wrap with aluminum foil or use a freezer Ziploc bag. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator, or reheat in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds before enjoying!
Raw Cinnamon Rolls
Fridge: Place the shaped cinnamon rolls in a greased baking pan. Grease on the side of the plastic wrap and cover the rolls with the greased side down to prevent sticking. Store up to 12 hours in the fridge. Once ready to bake, remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let them rise in a warm place (counter, microwave, or oven with lights on or preheated to 100F). Then, bake according to instructions.
Freezer: I have tried freezing these raw mini cinnamon rolls, but the second rise was not effective. Therefore, I don’t recommend freezing.
Serving Suggestions and Substitutions
Frosting: You can use this simple sugar frosting or simply dust some powdered sugar on top. A cream cheese version is also great!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can also knead by hand for about 10 minutes. Make sure to lightly flour the kneading surface to keep it from sticking, but don’t add too much or the rolls will be dense.
Here are a couple of reasons why the rolls might not have risen: Milk too hot, killing the yeast. Expired or old yeast. Not having a warm place for the dough to rise properly, the oven should be slightly warm.
Yes, you can. Simply turn on the oven lights to provide warmth, or turn the oven to 100F (37C), turn it off, then place the rolls to rise.
Yes, you can follow the same steps. Instead of using a pizza slicer to cut the mini version, roll the dough into a log and cut it into 8 equal parts. Pour milk over and bake a little longer, for 30 minutes.
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🥣Recipe
Mini Soft Cinnamon Rolls (Bite Size for Kids)
Equipment
- 1 Stand mixer with dough hook
- 1 Bowl
- 1 9x13in baking pan
- 1 Pizza Cutter
- 1 Rolling Pin
Ingredients
Dough
- 255 ml milk warm
- 7 g active dry yeast
- 20 g sugar
- 1 egg
- 90 g butter melted
- 480 g all-purpose flour or bread flour
Filling
- 100 g brown sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 85 g butter
Frosting
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
Instructions
Preparing the dough
- In a large bowl of a stand mixer, add the warm milk, yeast and sugar. Mix and wait 5 minutes until some bubbles form on top ofthe milk and it becomes foamy. This is a very important step, if your yeastdoes not foam after 5-10 minutes, it is probably old and no longer active. Make sure to re-do the process with fresher dry active yeast.
- Add the egg and melted butter. Turn the stand mixer on low (using the dough hook).
- Slowly add the flour, using a slow setting of 2-3. Once all the flour is in, increase the speed to 5 and let the mixer work kneading the dough for 8-10 minutes.
- Grease a large bowl with melted butter, transfer the dough, and cover it with plastic wrap. Allow it to rest in a warm place for 1-2 hours. It will depend on how warm your house is. You need to wait until it has doubled in size.
- Decompress the dough, using a rolling pin, roll it out on a lightly floured surface shaping it as a 24×14 large rectangle.
- Preheat the oven to 100F (37C) for the second dough rise, while you finish preparing the rolls.
Assembling the little cinnamon rolls
- Spread the softened butter on the rolled-out dough.
- Mix the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the mixture on top, pressing and spreading with your hands to ensure the rolls are evenly covered.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut out 24 strips of doughand roll them up (see reference pictures).
- Grease a 9×13 baking dish, distribute the mini rolls evenly and cover with aluminum foil.
- Turn OFF the oven, place the baking dish inside andlet them rise for 30 minutes.
- Remove the rolls from the oven.
- Set the oven temperature to 356F (180C). Remove the aluminum foil, add the milk between the rolls and bake for 22 minutes in the preheated oven until they are light golden brown.
Making the simple frosting
- Whisk powdered sugar and milk until a thick white paste is formed.
- Spread the frosting over the cinnamon rolls andserve warm.
Notes
- Do not overbake the rolls or they will be too dry!
- Make sure to add the milk in between the rolls before baking; this will ensure the ultimate softness.
- Bake these mini cinnamon rolls in a ceramic baking pan or a light-colored aluminum baking sheet. Aluminum pans bake more gently and attract less heat, resulting in softer rolls. If you use a dark-colored baking sheet, it will result in dryer rolls with a darker crust.
- Use the assisted rise method, utilizing a warm oven preheated at 100F(37C) for the 2nd This will ensure that your rolls will always rise and puff beautifully. Make sure to turn off the oven before placing the rolls inside to rise.
- When rolling out the dough, make sure to keep the same thickness throughout. The middle tends to be thicker!
- Add the frosting while the cinnamon rolls are still warm; this will allow it to melt over them perfectly!
Nutrition
Meal Planning Bundle
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These are so good! My first time making cinnamon rolls and turned out delicious. Love the mini size 😍