apple pie cinnamon rolls
October is hands down my favorite month to develop recipes, and these apple pie cinnamon rolls with maple cream cheese frosting are definitely a new favorite. Apples, maple, and cinnamon are 3 of the quintessential flavors of the fall months and these rolls wrap those flavors up perfectly. This was my first time making cinnamon rolls from scratch, and while they are time consuming, they are so worth the extra effort.
THE 4 PARTS TO THE APPLE PIE CINNAMON ROLLS
THE DOUGH
I honestly was intimidated by making homemade cinnamon rolls from scratch. It felt time consuming and complicated. While it *is* indeed more time consuming, homemade dough is so superior to store bought. You can use store bought for these to cut corners and save time! Just make sure to read the directions on the packaging for baking instructions as it may differ than what I have written. The base of these is made with bread flour, these keeps them light and fluffy – the perfect texture. I used Ambitious Kitchen’s recipe for the dough portion of these apple pie cinnamon rolls.
THE APPLE PIE MIXTURE
This is essentially a super simple homemade apple sauce recipe. Just 5 ingredients – peeled apples, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and water. Bringing this to a simmer and having the apples soften, makes it easily spreadable onto your dough. This is the part that gives these cinnamon rolls a little twist.
THE BROWN SUGAR MIXTURE
A classic filling for a cinnamon roll – softened butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar. I used a dark brown sugar here, but you can use light brown sugar as well. The difference between light and brown sugar is the amount of molasses that they contain.
THE MAPLE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
A simple yet delicious addition to these apple pie cinnamon rolls. Only 4 ingredients – cream cheese, a little bit of butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Because there is softened butter in this, you’ll want to let those rolls cool a bit before adding the frosting to the cinnamon rolls.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, that’s okay! You can knead the dough with your hands. This obviously is a bit more work, but it goes by quickly. There’s also something semi-therapeutic about kneading dough. If doing this by hand, just make sure you have a generously floured surface area. You may need to continue to add a little bit of flour as you go to avoid it sticking. Kneading by hand should take about 8-9 minutes!
Let me know if you make these, xoxo
Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer (not needed but nice to have)
- 1 thermometer to test temperature of milk
- 1 Rolling Pin or wine bottle
- 1 food scale easiest way to measure presicely in baking.
Ingredients
FOR THE ROLLS
- 3/4 cup (180g) warm whole milk (heated to 110 degrees F)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons quick rise or active yeast 1/4-ounce package yeast*
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk at room temperature
- 1/4 cup butter, melted (salted)
- 3 cups (360g) bread flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
FOR THE APPLE PIE FILLING
- 3 peeled and chopped apples
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/3 cup white sugar
FOR THE BROWN SUGAR MIXTURE
- 2/3 cup dark brown sugar you can use light brown sugar also
- 1.5 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup butter softened
FOR THE MAPLE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- 1 brick of cream cheese
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- First thing's first, take out your butter, cream cheese, and eggs and let sit at room temperature. You want your butter fully softened and your eggs at room temperature before starting your dough.
- Start your apple mixture – peel and chop your apples into small cubes and place into a small sauce pan. Add in your white sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and water. Cover and bring to a simmer on the stove. Let these simmer for about 30 minutes. If the water evaporates, add a little bit more. You want these apples soft enough to roughly mash at the end.
- Warm your milk to about 110 degrees F. Melt 1/4 cup of butter. You can do this on the stove or in a microwave. In a large bowl start the dough. Add the warm milk to a large bowl and sprinkle in active yeast on top. Add in your sugar, egg, egg yolk, and melted butter. Next stir in the flour and salt and mix together with a wooden spoon until the dough forms.
- Here you’ll use a stand mixer and knead with the hook for 8 minutes on medium. If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can knead with your hands it will just take a little longer. Sprinkle some flour down generously on your countertop and begin to knead for about 9-10 minutes.
- Transfer your dough ball to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel, and let rest for 1 hour until dough has doubled in size. Double check your apples for doneness and smash roughly with a fork or potato masher. Remove from heat and let cool in a bowl.
- Make your butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon mixture but adding SOFTENED butter to a bowl with cinnamon and brown sugar, mix together really well and set aside until dough is done rising.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Once dough has rested, sprinkle flour on a surface and roll out your dough to about a 14×9 inch rectangle. Lather with your butter and brown sugar mixture. Top with your apple mixture and spread evenly on top of the brown sugar and butter. Gently press the apples into the dough to make sure they stay in place when you roll.
- Roll your dough tightly. Using floss or a serrated knife, cut rolls into about 1 inch slices. Place in a sprayed pan. I used a 9-inch round Le Crueset. I did about 6 at a time because they do expand. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 1 hour.
- Pour about 1/3 cup of cream in between each cinnamon roll. Bake for about 25-35 minutes. Depending on your oven, just keep on an eye on these. They should be golden brown, but you don't want them overcooked because you want them a *little* bit doughy.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes before topping with maple frosting. Enjoy!
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