Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls
Complete with a cinnamon-coffee filling and a cappuccino glaze, these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls are a great way to start the day!
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If I had my way, every day would start with a cappuccino and a cinnamon roll. And not just any cappuccino. It needs to be one of those giant cappuccinos in the mug that’s larger than the palm of your hand. And not just any cinnamon roll. It needs to be a giant cinnamon roll that’s larger than…well…the palm of your hand. You see where I’m going here, right? Two hands. One for the cappuccino. One for the cinnamon roll.
Using a good cappuccino as inspiration, these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls are a totally legit way to start the day! And if that day happens to be a chilly fall or winter day? All the better!
I’ve been a sucker for coffee-flavored desserts for as long as I can remember. In fact, I liked coffee desserts before I ever liked actual coffee. Coffee ice cream probably ranks as my favorite ice cream flavor – right behind a good vanilla bean ice cream. Well, let’s add these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls to the list of desserts…err, breakfasts…that I absolutely love. (And if we’re being honest with ourselves, a cinnamon roll is really just a socially acceptable way of eating dessert for breakfast, right?)
Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls
Cappuccino Cinnamon RollsFor this recipe, I started with my go-to cinnamon rolls. I’m not gonna lie – these cinnamon rolls are huge. As in HUGE. As in you’ll need 2 sheet pans to bake 8 cinnamon rolls. (You could certainly make them smaller if you wanted…) This cinnamon roll recipe first appeared as Maple Glazed Cinnamon Rolls several years ago. Since then, this has been my go-to recipe when making traditional yeasted cinnamon rolls. (If yeast scares you, then try this Cinnamon Rolls without Yeast recipe – it uses baking powder and baking soda as the leavener.)
The next step was fairly simple – although it used an ingredient I haven’t purchased in years. Instant coffee. I’m not an instant coffee kinda guy. If you enjoy instant coffee, then go for it! (My sister-in-law was recently telling me how instant coffee is incredibly popular in underdeveloped countries as it doesn’t require electricity.) But instant coffee is the key for giving these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls a good coffee flavor. (I used 4 tsp of instant coffee for this batch of cinnamon rolls – it produces a strong coffee flavor in the filling. You could certainly adjust based on your preferences.)
Once the coffee filling was done, the rolls were off to the oven. And let me tell ya – the house smelled amazing while these were baking! But I still had one more trick up my sleeve for these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls. And that trick involved another ingredient that I’ve never used – instant cappuccino mix. Come to think of it, I might’ve had a can of the powdered cappuccino mix in my dorm room back in college. I don’t remember. Either way, I was looking for a way to bring that classic cappuccino flavor to these treats – and cappuccino mix is perfect for that! Just add a bit into the glaze and you’ve got what might be my favorite cinnamon roll glaze of all time!
All together, these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls were a huge hit around here! I first made a batch of these way back during the holiday season last year when Laura’s family was visiting. Since then, I’ve made at least 3 more batches of these cinnamon rolls. If you enjoy a good cappuccino, then put these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls on your baking list! They are a tasty way to start your day. In fact, Laura added these cinnamon rolls to her list of “things that would make a bakery famous.” Happy baking!
Did you bake a batch of these Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls at home? Leave a comment, or better yet snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog). I’d love to see your version!
Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the Rolls
- 1 cup milk
- 1 Tbsp active dry yeast
- 3¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter room temperature
For the Filling
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tsp instant coffee granules
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
For the Glaze
- 1½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 4 tsp instant cappuccino mix
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2-3 Tbsp milk
Instructions
For the Rolls
- Using either microwave or small saucepan, heat milk until warm. (Note: The milk should only be lukewarm, not hot.)
- Stir yeast into warm milk; let stand for 5 minutes.
- Using a large bowl, add the flour, sugar and salt; stir until well combined.
- Add eggs and milk/yeast mixture; stir until well combined.
- Add butter; stir until well combined. Knead dough for about 10 min, or until very smooth. (If using a countertop mixer, gradually increase speed to medium and mix for 4-5 minutes.)
- Grease a large bowl with butter or oil. Place dough in bowl and cover with towel. Let sit in warm spot until doubled in size (~1 hour).
- Fold dough several times and then let sit for 15 more minutes (covered).
For the Filling
- Meanwhile, using a small bowl, make the filling by whisking together brown sugar, cinnamon and coffee granules. Set mixture aside. (Note: The butter will be used later.)
- Working on a well-floured countertop, roll the dough into a large rectangle approximately 12”x14”.
- Brush the top of the dough with the melted butter. Sprinkle the filling mixture evenly on top of butter, leaving a ½” border on all sides.
- Roll dough into a cylinder and press edges to seal.
- Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 8 pieces.
- Place rolls cut-side down onto a greased baking pan leaving a lot of growing room between them. (Note: I used 2 baking pans for 8 rolls.) Flatten each roll slightly by pressing gently with the palm of your hand.
- Cover pans lightly and leave in warm spot until approximately doubled in size. (~40 minutes).
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Bake rolls until golden brown and puffed up (~15-20 minutes).
For the Glaze
- Using a small bowl, add all of the glaze ingredients; beat until smooth. Brush glaze over rolls before serving.
Looking for more cinnamon roll recipes? Check out these other favorites, too:
will be making this soon for the rolls / filling and glaze cam i use almond milk and vegan butter as am dairy free i never had cappuccino cinnamon rolls befperfect for my birthday next sunday and after office snacks love your recipes as always brightens up my day everyday after work will dm you if i make this and let you know how it goes Thanks Ramya
Hey Ramya! Yes, you may absolutely use whichever substitutions you prefer for your diet. I haven’t tried baking with vegan butter, but I hope it works! These cinnamon rolls are amazing…definitely a family favorite here!
I want one for breakfast right now. These cinnamon rolls look totally mouthwatering, David!
Thanks so much, Marissa! I wish I had one of these for breakfast right now, too!
I’m totally going to try this—love the coffee flavor idea! I keep Medaglia D’oro instant espresso on hand for baking (great in chocolate things), but wonder if I should decrease the amount since it’s espresso? I’ll share a tip I discovered a couple of years ago. By incorporating a tangzhong technique, cinnamon rolls will last for days (handy if you have a small household and can’t eat them all up in one day). King Arthur has a tangzhong formula that you can incorporate into most any yeast bread recipe. It’s super easy and keeps yeasted bread from drying out quickly.
Hmmm…that’s a good question, Kim! I will say that the amount of instant coffee in this recipe produced a strong coffee-flavored filling. You could drop it back by say a teaspoon and see what happens!
And thanks for the reminder about the tangzhong style of baking – I’ve never done that with cinnamon rolls, but I have done it with traditional loaves of bread. Great idea! Of course, we never have the problem of cinnamon rolls sitting around too long here. Haha! Either way, I hope you enjoy this recipe…it’s definitely a family favorite!!
Say what?! Coffee and vanilla are you favourite ice cream flavours? I totally thought that was lavender one haha.
Jokes apart, coffee is one of my favourite flavours, too. Recently – dulce de leche and coffee combination. I (or you) should totally make cinnamon coffee dulce de leche rolls…or actually lavender. Imagine lavender sugar, honey, and butter? Mmmm…
In a meantime, let’s enjoy these cappuccino rolls because they look fantastic!
Haha – fooled you on the ice cream flavors, Ben! 🙂
Seriously, though, I do love coffee desserts, and these cinnamon rolls are right up there on the top of my list. Of course, cinnamon rolls are a breakfast item…but I eat them for breakfast AND dessert!
You’ve done it again! Wow, I need to make these ASAP! They look incredible — I gotta start my mornings with a coffee nowadays, so these cinnamon rolls would absolutely fit the bill.
Haha – thanks, Michelle! These cinnamon rolls turned out SO well. I’d say they rank among my all-time favorite desserts…err, breakfasts…err, whatever cinnamon rolls count as. 🙂
Okay, these are totally amazing!!! But just to be clear, I’ll still need a cappuccino along with these cappuccino cinnamon rolls! I like the idea of one in each hand! This is a perfect way to start the day 🙂
Oh, I definitely still need a cappuccino with this cinnamon rolls, Kathy! You can’t replace the morning coffee/cappuccino! 🙂 Thanks so much!
Wow, these look like they came from a (very good) professional bakery! I wish I had one right now as I sip on my morning coffee!
Oh man, these cinnamon rolls, Frank. They’re amazing! They’re as big as your face…in a good way. 🙂 And the coffee flavor? SO tasty!
When I’m having my morning coffee I often think that something is missing. Just having it on its own is a shame. I like a big mug of coffee like yourself. Now that I’ve seen what I should be having with my coffee, I’m drooling! That glaze in itself is a great and delicious idea. Nice one David!
Haha – a morning cup of coffee without a cinnamon roll just makes that mug of coffee look so lonely! I say give that mug a friend…in the form of one of these cappuccino cinnamon rolls! 🙂
Holy cappuccino cinnamon tolls!!! I just cannot! Coffee IN the filling!!! Cappuccino IN the glaze!!!! Aaaahhh! I cannot be on your blog before I eat! I cannot! This is what my dreams are made of! Am gonna go scrounge up breakfast now….
Haha – there is so much coffee goodness going on with these rolls, Shashi! This is seriously one of my favorite cinnamon roll recipes…and I LOVE making cinnamon rolls. 🙂 I hope your breakfast is as good as one of these!
OMG that thing looks really good
Haha – thanks, Raymund! I agree with you. (And it tastes just as good as it looks, too!)
I don’t have nor do I know what instant cappuccino mix is. Could I just use 4 tsp. of instant coffee granules instead?
Hey Monika! Cappuccino mix is a powdered mixture – think hot cocoa, but it’s cappuccino instead. Here’s an Amazon link just to show what it is: https://amzn.to/3nNWtau If you don’t want to use that, I would recommend making the glaze just like the instructions, but instead of 2-3 Tbsp of milk, I would recommend 2-3 Tbsp of strongly brewed coffee. I hope this helps!!