Name: Cinnamon Roll Cookies Recipe
Prep time: 140 min
Cook time: 40 min
Ingredients: 2 ¼ cups flour; ½ tsp baking powder; ½ tsp salt; 1 ½ pieces sticks butter (softened); ¾ cup granulated sugar; 1 piece egg; 1 tsp vanilla; ¼ cup brown sugar; 1 tbsp cinnamon; 2 tbsp melted butter; 1 cup powdered sugar; 3 tbsp milk; ½ tsp vanilla extract

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Who doesn’t love the flavor of cinnamon rolls? This recipe for Cinnamon Roll Cookies gives you all the cinnamon sweetness of the classic breakfast bread and turns it into a pretty, swirled cookie. With a touch of a sweet icing glaze, Cinnamon Roll Cookies look great on a holiday cookie plate and they taste just as good as they look.

While some people love rich, decadent desserts and cookies, there are many people in the world who don’t care for treats that are overly sweet. These people will turn down a fudgy brownie and pick up a plain, unfrosted sugar cookie. These are the kinds of folks who will enjoy this recipe for Cinnamon Roll Cookies.

These cookies have a perfect balance of sweetness. They are not too soft and not too crisp. They hit the spot in so many different ways.

Close-up shot of Cinnamon Roll Cookies on the table.

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Cinnamon Roll Cookies Recipe

If you are looking for a new cookie for the holiday cookie exchange, or just want to try something new to serve with afternoon tea, this recipe is a great one to try. The cookies bake up into pretty little wafers that everyone will want to try.

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Prep Time 2 hrs 20 mins

Cook Time 40 mins

Cuisine American

Servings cookies

Equipment

Bowl
Electric Mixer
Spoon
cup
Knife
Baking Sheet
Oven
parchment paper
teaspoon
Wire Rack
stirrer

Ingredients

Cookie Dough Ingredients:

2 ¼ cups flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ½ pieces sticks butter softened
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 piece egg
1 tsp vanilla

Filling Ingredients:

¼ cup brown sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp melted butter

Glaze Ingredients:

1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp milk
½ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, blend together the softened butter with the ¾ cup of granulated sugar. Combine these together and blend for about a minute, or until the mixture is light and fluffy. Crack the egg into the bowl and beat it again for another thirty seconds. Add the vanilla and beat it one final time.
In a separate, smaller bowl, measure out the flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then level it with a knife to get an accurate measurement. Do not overdo the flour by scooping out the flour with the measuring cup or packing it in the cup.
Too much flour will lead to a heavy, tough cookie. Add the baking powder and the salt and then, stir the mixture to fully incorporate the ingredients.
With the electric mixer running at medium speed, add the flour mixture, a little at a time, to the butter and egg mixture. Keep mixing until the mixture begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl and starts to look like playdough. Turn off the mixture and use a wooden spoon to work any dry flour into the mixture.
You may end up actually using your hands for this.
To create the filling for your cookies, put the brown sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl and stir until they are combined.
Press the dough into a ball once everything is combined. Set the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut it in half. Use a floured rolling pin to gently roll the dough into a rectangle that is about nine inches by twelve inches.
We used a sheet of floured parchment to assist in clean up.
Spoon about half of the melted butter onto the rolled out dough, using the back of a spoon to spread it around. Spoon about half of the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture onto the butter and spread it in an even layer.
Starting with the long side, roll up the dough into a log. If it cracks a bit, that is okay, just press the dough back together. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
If you are using floured parchment, you may be able to use the parchment to assist with rolling up the dough log. Roll it as tightly as you can.
Repeat this process with the other piece of dough. You will have two dough logs when you are finished. Place the dough logs on a baking sheet and place them in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
After the dough has chilled, use a sharp knife to cut the dough logs into half inch thick slices. Place these slices on an ungreased baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake the cinnamon roll cookies in the oven for about 10 minutes. When they are lightly browned just on the edges, remove them from the oven. Use the back of a teaspoon to slightly squash the cookies.
Let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. When the cookies are fully cooled, you can glaze them.
Stir up the glaze mixture by stirring together the milk and the powdered sugar a little at a time. Add the vanilla extract.
Drizzle the glaze over the cookies and let them sit out for fifteen to twenty minutes to allow the glaze to harden.
Store cookies tightly covered at room temperature for up to five days.