Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

This is the BEST recipe for Overnight Cinnamon Rolls ever! Soft, tender, and oozing with cinnamon flavor, no one would guess these cinnamon rolls are made with a few healthy swaps! Still just as delicious as the classic Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll, this recipe for Homemade Cinnamon Rolls is also super easy to make. 

Pair these Overnight Cinnamon Rolls with Overnight Breakfast Casserole and Oven Baked Bacon for a breakfast menu worthy of holiday entertaining.

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

The first time I baked cinnamon rolls for my family, my husband, who is a devoted Cinnabon fan, declared he would take my Healthy Cinnamon Rolls any day over Cinnabon’s!

I call that success!

Little did he know that I made a few healthy swaps when preparing these Cinnamon Rolls. In fact, my recipe for Homemade Cinnamon Rolls creates a cinnamon roll that only has 250 calories and 4 gram of fat per roll! Compare that to a Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll that has a whooping 830 calories and 36 grams of fat per roll!

While saving a few calories here and there is all well and good, it really does not matter if the taste is compromised–I mean we are talking cinnamon rolls here, they are suppose to be decadent!

But these Homemade Cinnamon Rolls still taste incredibly rich and decadent! From the yeasty homemade dough, to the warming spices, to the cream cheese glaze, this cinnamon roll recipe satisfies! NO one will guess these are dare I say, Healthy Cinnamon Rolls!

In fact, these Cinnamon Rolls are now my family’s Christmas morning tradition. My entire family looks forward to devouring a warm, gooey cinnamon roll after presents have been opened. And I love that I can prep these Cinnamon Rolls the night before–making Christmas morning that much more enjoyable.

Key Swaps for Healthy Cinnamon Rolls

• Cinnamon Roll Dough: Instead of using a bread dough made with lots of butter and eggs, a simple bread dough recipe is all you need for really good cinnamon rolls. In place of all-purpose bleached flour in the bread dough, I use whole white wheat flour, but all purpose, unbleached flour can also be used.
• Butter: Instead of sticks of butter, only a mere 3 tablespoons of butter are needed to make these Cinnamon Rolls. The butter is used in just the right spots so that you still have that rich butter flavor.
• Sugar: I choose to use coconut sugar for a rich tastes. But brown sugar or evaporated cane sugar work just as well. The coconut sugar does not give off any taste of coconut flavor when baked in these cinnamon rolls. 
• Spices: A pinch of cloves along with cinnamon, adds just the right amount of warmth to these Cinnamon Rolls.

How to Make Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

What I truly love about this recipe is the fact that these cinnamon rolls can be made the night before and baked in the morning. Making this recipe for Overnight Cinnamon Rolls perfect for holiday mornings, entertaining, or a lazy weekend.

Step One: Prepare Cinnamon Roll Dough

The first step to making Cinnamon Rolls is to start by making a bread dough. I use a fat free bread dough recipe that I find has the perfectly yeasty taste and fluffy texture, but your favorite bread dough recipe can be used instead. In fact, you can even use store bought bread dough to make this recipe easier.

Step Two: Prepare the Filling

The filling for these cinnamon rolls is as simple as mixing together brown sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Remember not to skimp on the cloves–that tiny addition adds so much flavor these Cinnamon Rolls.

Step Three: Prepare the Cinnamon Rolls

Once the doll has doubled in size, punch the dough down and roll the dough out to a 9×13 rectangle. Then brush the dough evenly with melted butter. I use 1 tablespoon of melted butter at this time, but you can use up to 2 tablespoons if desired.

Sprinkle the sugar mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the sides.

Roll the cinnamon roll dough up lengthwise and then cut the dough into thirds.

Cut each third into thirds again, leaving a total of 9 cinnamon rolls. Arrange the cinnamon rolls into a 9×9 baking dish that has been buttered.

Place cinnamon rolls into a greased baking pan. And then let rise for 30 minutes at room temperature. By giving the Cinnamon Rolls just 30 minutes to rise at room temperature before going into the fridge for a slow rise overnight, they will reach achieve a perfect rise and shape. Once risen, cover with plastic wrap, and then refrigerate overnight.

Step Four: Bake the Cinnamon Rolls

In morning, remove cinnamon rolls from fridge and let come to room temperature anywhere from 30-60 minutes (while oven is preheating.)

Brush cinnamon rolls with remaining tablespoon melted butter. And then bake the cinnamon rolls until they lightly browned and the centers are cooked through.

Step Five: Glaze the Cinnamon Rolls

While the Cinnamon Rolls are baking, mix together the cream cheese, powdered sugar and lemon juice. I often times prepare the glaze the night before as well to make my morning that much easier.

To prepare glaze in advance, whisk together the ingredients and place in air tight container in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, remove the glaze from the fridge while the cinnamon rolls bake. Give the glaze a good whisk, adding a teaspoon or two of milk if needed to reach the consistency desired. And then glaze the warm rolls with cream cheese frosting.

And then sit down with a homemade latte or cup of mulled cider and enjoy these healthy, yet decadent tasting Cinnamon Rolls.

FAQS and Tips for Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Do you have to prepare these Cinnamon Rolls the Night Before?

Absolutely NOT! I love the ease or preparing in advance, but you can make these cinnamon rolls at any time of the day. To make these cinnamon rolls immediately, let dough rise for one hour after cutting and placing in pan and then bake as directed.

What is the best way to reheat baked cinnamon rolls?

If you have cinnamon rolls leftover, store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. To reheat cinnamon rolls, preheat oven to  300 degree oven  and bake for 10-15 minutes until warmed through or in the microwave for 45 seconds.

Can you freeze Cinnamon Rolls?

Yes, you can freeze Homemade Cinnamon Rolls. Prepare dough as directed. Roll up dough with sugar mixture and cut into 9 rolls. Place in tin pie pan and cover tightly with a layer of plastic wrap and foil. Freeze for 30 days.

Allow dough to defrost 24 hours in refrigerator. Bring dough out of fridge and let rise for 1 hour before baking as directed.

To Make Dairy-Free Cinnamon Rolls

The dough for these homemade Cinnamon Rolls is already dairy free. To adjust the filling to make it dairy free, use a vegan butter spread, like Earth Balance, in place of the butter. To make the glaze dairy free, omit the cream cheese and use dairy free milk. The glaze will be thinner, but absolutely delicious.

To make these Cinnamon Rolls vegan friendly, use maple syrup in place of the honey in the cinnamon roll dough. Follow dairy free modifications for filling and topping.

More Overnight Breakfast Recipes

• Overnight French Toast Casserole
• Overnight Ham and Egg Casserole
• Slow Cooker Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal
• Overnight Oats
• Overnight Breakfast Casserole

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

An easy cinnamon roll that is prepped the night before and ready to be baked to perfection in the morning. Made with whole white wheat flour, less butter, and less sugar, these Healthier Cinnamon Rolls, are still as delicious as the classic.

4.75 from 8 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 11 hours 40 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 12 hours 5 minutes

Servings: 9

Calories: 250kcal

Author: Kristen Chidsey

Ingredients

For the Cinnamon Roll Bread Dough

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon yeast
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 1/2 cups whole white wheat flour

For the Filling for Cinnamon Rolls

• 1/3 cup coconut sugar or granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

For the Cinnamon Roll Frosting

• 1/2-1 cup sifted powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons cream cheese softenened
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon milk

For Assembling Cinnamon Rolls

• 3 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

For the Dough

• Make the dough. Stir the yeast and honey into the water and let sit for 5 minutes, until yeast is a bit foamy. Mix together the salt and flour and then add to the yeast mixture. I like to do this in my kitchen stand mixer with a dough hook, so that it can also knead the dough for me (for about 3 minutes.) If not, just knead by hand until the dough forms a smooth ball.
• Cover the dough and let rise for 1 hour in warm place.
  

For the Cinnamon Rolls

• Roll dough out to 9x12 rectangle. 
• Brush dough with 1 tablespoon melted butter.
• Mix together sugar, cinnamon and cloves and sprinkle evenly over dough. 
• Roll up lenghtwise. 
• Cut dough into thirds, then each section into thirds again, for a total of 9 cinnamon rolls. 
• Grease a 8x8 baking dish with 1 tablespoon melted butter. 
• Place rolls evenly spaced apart in baking dish and cover with towel and let rise 30 minutes.
  
• Cover cinnamon rolls very tightly with plastic wrap and place in fridge overnight. 
• In morning, removed cinnamon rolls from fridge while oven is preheating. If you have a full hour to let the cinnamon rolls come to temperature, that is best, but the rolls will still be able to be baked as soon as your oven preheats.
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush the rolls with remaining tablespoon of melted butter and bake for 23-27 minutes, or until just golden.

For the Cream Cheese Glaze

• Make the glaze by mixing together the cream cheese, lemon juice and milk. Add 1/2 cup powdered sugar and whisk until smooth, adding up to 1/2 cup more powdered sugar to make your glaze as thick as desired. 
• Spread over warm cinnamon rolls and serve. 

Notes

Active prep time is only 10 minutes. 

To Prepare Cinnamon Rolls Immediately: Prepare rolls as directed. Let dough rise for one hour after cutting and placing in pan and then bake as directed.

To Reheat Cinnamon Rolls: If you have cinnamon rolls leftover, store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. To reheat cinnamon rolls, preheat oven to  300 degree oven  and bake for 10-15 minutes until warmed through or in the microwave for 45 seconds.

To Freeze Cinnamon Rolls: Prepare dough as directed. Roll up dough with sugar mixture and cut into 9 rolls. Place in tin pie pan and cover tightly with a layer of plastic wrap and foil. Freeze for 30 days. Allow dough to defrost 24 hours in refrigerator. Bring dough out of fridge and let rise for 1 hour before baking as directed.

To Make Dairy-Free Cinnamon Rolls: Use a vegan butter spread, like Earth Balance, in place of the butter. To make the glaze dairy free, omit the cream cheese and use dairy free milk. The glaze will be thinner, but absolutely delicious.

Nutrition Facts

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

Amount Per Serving

Calories 250 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Fat 4g6%

Saturated Fat 3g19%

Cholesterol 13mg4%

Sodium 58mg3%

Potassium 74mg2%

Carbohydrates 47g16%

Fiber 5g21%

Sugar 12g13%

Protein 7g14%

Vitamin A 160IU3%

Vitamin C 0.2mg0%

Calcium 40mg4%

Iron 1.1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

I would love to know how you enjoy this recipe!Snap a picture and tag #amindfullmom on Instagram or Facebook - I would love to see!

This recipe has been adapted from Giada De Laurentiis Hazelnut Cinnamon Rolls.