The Best Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Recipe: Small Batch Recipe

Indulge in the how delightful these Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls are. They have the perfect balance of tangy sourdough and sweet cinnamon in every golden-brown bite. Bake a small batch of the best sourdough cinnamon rolls in your kitchen today!

Cinnamon rolls are one of those pastries that are perfect any time of day for any occasion. Whether breakfast, brunch, or dessert, they make a perfect treat! This recipe is great if you’re just wanting a sourdough cinnamon roll recipe that makes a smaller batch, or it could easily be doubled.

The thing I love most about sourdough cinnamon rolls are that they are a healthier alternative to traditional cinnamon rolls because of all the gut-healthy sourdough benefits. The dough is able to be slow proofed overnight, which allows the sourdough to ferment, which breaks down the gluten content of the bread. If you’re new to sourdough, once you start replacing traditional bread with sourdough recipes you may notice that you feel better and less bloated after eating them!

Not only do these cinnamon rolls have those healthy pro-biotics, but they also have the best golden brown crust yet are perfectly fluffy inside. These cinnamon rolls taste beautifully with a light cream cheese frosting and cup of hot coffee.

So, if I’ve convinced you to try out this recipe, follow along with the steps below. Let’s get to baking!

Ingredients

The dough ingredients are pretty similar to most cinnamon roll recipes, but I do have a special trick to create the most beautiful cinnamon layer.

• Sourdough Starter: Use a bubbly and active starter.
• Flour: I prefer all-purpose flour for these.
• Honey: This is the perfect sweetener for the dough.
• Buttermilk: There’s something magical about buttermilk in baked goods. It adds a little more depth to the flavor of the cinnamon buns.
• Salted Butter: Softened butter mixed with the cinnamon-sugar creates the best spreadable filling. When the cinnamon rolls are cut, the filling is perfectly even and holds together better when baking.
• Cinnamon & Brown Sugar
• Warm Water, Oil & Salt

Instructions

Prepare the Dough

Refer to my Baker’s Schedule when deciding if you’d like to bake these the same day or proof overnight to bake the next day.

1. Begin making the dough by combining the wet ingredients together in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium/low speed. These include the: active sourdough starter, honey, buttermilk, water, and oil.
2. Once combined, slowly add in flour and mix using your dough hook attachment on medium/low speed.
3. After the dough begins to pull from the sides of the bowl, continue kneading with the mixer for an additional 3-5 minutes. To test if enough flour has been added, the dough should tacky but not sticky. If it’s too sticky add 1/8 cup flour at a time and continue to mix.
4. Once kneaded, transfer the dough into a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise at room temperature or in a warm spot.
5. If you prefer to proof the dough overnight, once it has begun rising leave the dough covered and move to the fridge for 8-12 hours. This will allow the sourdough to have a longer bulk ferment. The longer the sourdough slow proofs, the more gluten content is reduced.
6. When ready to roll out the dough, remove from the refrigerator and set out for 1-hour before rolling out.
7. Once the dough has doubled in size, it’s fully proofed. You can also check the dough using the “poke” test.
8. Then, dump the dough out onto a floured work surface. Using a rolling pin roll the dough out into a large rectangle, roughly 12″ x 19″.

Prep the Cinnamon Filling

1. In a small bowl, mix the softened butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar with a fork or spoon.
2. Next, dollop the filling mixture on the rolled out dough, and spread out evenly with an offset spatula.
3. Leave a 1/2″ border around the sides of the dough to prevent too much leakage when cutting and baking.

Shaping the Cinnamon Rolls

1. Roll the dough up tightly along the long side of the rectangle.
2. Once rolled, begin cutting the dough into 8 equal parts with a string of floss or sharp knife.
3. Start in the middle, dividing the roll into two. Then continue to divide each piece in half and halved again to create 8 equal rolls.

Baking

1. Line a small pan with parchment paper, and arrange the cinnamon rolls on the pan. I like to use a 9″ round stoneware dish for mine.
2. Allow the cinnamon rolls to rise a second time for the final rise. I usually go with 1 hour, but the rise time can vary.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 min, the cinnamon rolls will have a golden brown color when they are done.

Frost

1. Finally, after the cinnamon rolls have cooled, top them with frosting!

Baker’s Schedule

Tips and Variations

When cutting the cinnamon rolls, I prefer to use floss. It seems to cut the dough the cleanest without flattening out the rolls. Just use whatever dental floss you’ve got.

The “poke” test is a great way to check if your sourdough dough has been proofed long enough. You should be able to press into the dough with your thumb, if the indentation should spring back slowly leaving a little indentation where you had poked. If it springs back too quickly or never springs back, the dough is either under or overproofed.

To store, place the cinnamon rolls in an airtight container, they should last for 3-4 days.

I hope you agree that these are the best Cinnamon Rolls! My other favorite sourdough recipes include:

Sourdough Discard Granola

Sourdough Brioche

Sourdough Waffles

Cheers, Rose!