1Add 1 cup of warm milk (about 110°F) into a large glass bowl.
2Add 1 packet or 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast to the warm milk.
3Let the yeast and milk sit for about 5 minutes until it looks foamy.
4Add 1/3 cup of melted and cooled salted butter to the mixture.
5Add 1/2 cup of sugar.
6Add two room temperature eggs, breaking them up as you add them.
7Add 1 teaspoon of salt.
8Add 4 cups of bread flour, making sure to fluff it up before scooping to avoid packing.
9Cover the bowl with a towel and let it sit for another 5 minutes to soak up the liquid.
10Attach a dough hook to your mixer and knead the mixture on low for about 5 minutes until the dough is stretchy and soft.
11Spray the bowl with some oil.
12Toss the dough into the oiled bowl.
13Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rise until it doubles in size.
14While the dough rises, prepare the filling: combine 1/2 cup of softened butter, 2 tablespoons of cinnamon, and 1 cup of packed brown sugar in a bowl.
15Mix the filling ingredients until they are combined and cohesive.
16Lightly dust your work surface with flour.
17Roll out the risen dough into a large rectangle.
18Spread the filling evenly over the entire surface of the rolled-out dough.
19Roll up the dough into a tight log.
20Take a sharp knife and cut the log into 12 rolls.
21Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish using the softened butter wrapper.
22Place the cut cinnamon rolls, swirl side up, into the prepared baking dish.
23Cover the dish with a paper towel and let the rolls rise while the oven preheats to 375°F.
24Once the oven is preheated and the rolls have risen, pour 1/2 cup of heavy cream over the rolls.
25Bake the cinnamon rolls in the oven for 25 minutes.
26While the rolls bake, prepare the frosting: combine 1 stick of softened butter and 1 brick of softened cream cheese in a bowl.
27Beat the butter and cream cheese with a hand mixer until combined.
28Add 1/2 teaspoon of maple extract (or a squirt of maple syrup) and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the frosting mixture.
29Add about 2 cups of powdered sugar to the frosting mixture.
30Beat the frosting until it's well combined and smooth.
31Once the cinnamon rolls have cooled for a bit after baking, spread the prepared frosting evenly on top.
Ingredients
1 cup warm milk
1 packet yeast
2.25 teaspoons yeast
0.33 cup salted butter, melted and cooled
0.5 cup sugar
2 room temperature eggs
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups bread flour
0.5 cup softened butter (for filling)
2 tablespoons cinnamon (for filling)
1 cup packed brown sugar (for filling)
oil (for bowl)
1 stick softened butter (for frosting)
1 brick softened cream cheese (for frosting)
0.5 teaspoon maple extract (for frosting)
squirt maple syrup (for frosting)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (for frosting)
2 cups powdered sugar (for frosting)
0.5 cup heavy cream
Equipment
large glass bowlmeasuring cupsmeasuring spoonswhiskstand mixerpaddle attachmentdough hook attachmentkitchen towelspatularolling pinsharp knife9x13 inch baking dishovenhand mixeroven mittsforkplate
Tips
A key to a good copycat recipe is more salt and sugar than you ever thought possible.
When adding flour, make sure to scoop it around and fluff it up before scooping it, as you don't want to pack the flour into the cup.
Maple extract is the secret ingredient for the frosting.
A good mom lets her kids lick the beaters, and a great one turns them off first.