Easy Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

There's something magical about pulling a pan of warm, golden sourdough cinnamon rolls from the oven while the house is still quiet. The glaze drips down the sides, pooling in sweet little rivers between each roll.

These aren't your average Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls. They're soft, impossibly tender, and filled with that deep, tangy flavor only a naturally leavened dough can give you. No instant yeast here, just your bubbly sourdough starter doing all the work overnight while you sleep.

What You'll Love About These Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Flexible timing. You start the dough in the evening, let it rise overnight, and shape them in the morning. Or you can make them ahead and freeze them. Either way, the schedule works around your life.

Real sourdough flavor. This isn't a discard recipe (though you can adapt it). You're using active, bubbly starter, which means you get that authentic naturally leavened cinnamon rolls taste with a subtle tang that balances all the sweetness.

Bakery-quality texture. Soft, gooey centers with slightly golden edges. The kind of texture that makes people ask if you bought them from a fancy bakery.

Beginner-friendly. If you can feed your starter and use a stand mixer, you can make these. The dough is forgiving, and the instructions walk you through every step.

Jump to:

• What You'll Love About These Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
• Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Ingredients
• How to Make Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
• Smart Substitutions
• How to Store These Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
• Equipment For Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
• Top Tip
• Perfect Pairings
• FAQ
• Why This Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Deserves a Spot in Your Kitchen
• Related
• Pairing
• Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Ingredients

For the Sweet Dough

• 160 g (⅔ cup) milk, whole or 2%
• 28 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 large egg
• 100 g (½ cup) bubbly, active sourdough starter
• 24 g (2 tbsp) granulated sugar
• 300 g (2½ cups) King Arthur all-purpose flour
• 5 g (1 tsp) fine sea salt
• cooking spray or oil, for coating

For the Cinnamon-Sugar Filling

• 28 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter
• 100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 level tablespoon flour

For the Glaze

• 2 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
• ⅓ cup whipped cream cheese, room temperature
• ¼-½ cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 1-2 tablespoon milk

SEE RECIPE CARD FOR QUANTITE

How to Make Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Step 1: Mix the Dough

In the evening, melt your butter and combine it with the milk in a small bowl. Let it cool for a few minutes while you get everything else ready. You don't want it too hot, or it'll make the dough sticky and hard to handle.

Add the egg, sourdough starter, and sugar to your stand mixer bowl with the paddle attachment. Mix it together until combined. With the mixer running on low, slowly pour in that milk and butter mixture.

Now add your flour and salt. Mix it just until you have a rough, shaggy dough, about a minute. It'll look messy and sticky, and that's exactly right. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, cover it with a damp towel, and walk away for 30 minutes. This rest time helps the flour absorb the liquid.

After 30 minutes, switch to your dough hook and knead on medium-low speed (setting 2 or 3 on most mixers) for 6-8 minutes. The dough should become soft, smooth, and start pulling away from the sides of the bowl. If it's still super sticky, add just a tiny bit of flour, maybe a tablespoon at a time. But don't add too much - this dough is meant to be on the softer side.

Step 2: Let It Rise Overnight

Transfer your dough to a buttered medium bowl. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise overnight until it doubles in size. At room temperature (around 67-68°F), this usually takes 8-12 hours.

Here's a little trick: if you want extra fluffy rolls, do one round of stretch-and-folds about 30-60 minutes into the rise. Just grab one side of the dough, stretch it up, and fold it over to the opposite side. Rotate the bowl and repeat three more times. It adds some structure and helps with volume.

Step 3: Roll Out Your Dough

In the morning, line a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper. Lightly oil and flour your counter.

Turn the dough out onto your work surface and gently pat it into a rough rectangle. Let it rest for 10 minutes. This relaxes the gluten and makes rolling much easier.

Dust the top of the dough and your rolling pin with a bit of flour. Roll it into a 16x12-inch rectangle. If the dough fights back and keeps shrinking, let it rest another 5-10 minutes and try again.

Step 4: Add the Filling

Here's where you have two options. The newer method uses softened butter mixed right into the filling, which helps prevent leaking. The original method brushes melted butter on first.

Updated method (recommended): Mix 84 g (6 tbsp) softened butter with the sugar, cinnamon, and flour until you have a spreadable paste. Use an offset spatula to spread it evenly over the dough, leaving about a half-inch border along the edges.

Original method: Brush the dough with 28 g (2 tbsp) melted butter. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, and flour together and sprinkle it evenly over the butter, leaving that half-inch border. Use your hands to smooth it until it looks wet and sandy.

Step 5: Roll and Cut

Starting from the long 16-inch side, roll the dough up tightly into a log. Press gently as you go to keep it snug. When you reach the end, make sure the seam is on the bottom.

If your hands get sticky, just rub a little oil or flour on your fingertips. Use a bench scraper or oiled knife to mark the log into 2-inch segments, then cut through. You should get 8 beautiful rolls.

Step 6: Second Rise

Arrange your rolls in the lined springform pan. They don't need to touch yet - they'll puff up and fill in the gaps. Cover loosely and let them rest for 1-2 hours until they look puffy and soft.

If you're freezing or refrigerating, this is the time to do it. Just follow the timing notes from earlier.

Step 7: Bake

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Bake the rolls on the center rack for 35-40 minutes. Start checking at 30 minutes. The tops should be light golden, not too dark.

Here's something important: let them cool in the pan for 15 minutes after baking. This gives all that butter in the filling time to soak back into the rolls instead of pooling at the bottom. Then lift them out using the parchment paper and transfer to a wire rack.

Step 8: Make the Glaze

While the rolls cool slightly, make your glaze. Combine the softened butter, whipped cream cheese, and sifted powdered sugar in your stand mixer. Beat until smooth. Add milk, a tablespoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency. Some people like it thick and spreadable, others like it thin enough to drizzle.

Spread or drizzle the glaze over the warm rolls. They're best enjoyed while they're still a little warm, preferably on the day you bake them.

Smart Substitutions

Milk: You can use any milk you have. Whole milk makes them richer, but 2% works great too. Even oat milk or almond milk will work if you need dairy-free.

Butter: For dairy-free rolls, swap in coconut oil or vegan butter. The texture changes slightly, but they're still delicious.

Filling: Want to switch it up? Try adding a handful of chopped pecans or mini chocolate chips to the filling. Or replace half the Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls with cardamom for a Scandinavian twist.

Glaze: Not a cream cheese fan? Make a simple powdered sugar glaze with just powdered sugar, milk, and a splash of vanilla. Or skip the glaze completely and dust with powdered sugar.

How to Store These Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Room temperature: Keep them in an airtight container for up to 2 days. They're best on day one, but still good on day two if you warm them up slightly.

Refrigerator: They'll last 3-4 days in the fridge. Warm individual rolls in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds.

Freezer: Freeze baked rolls (with or without glaze) for up to 3 months. Wrap them tightly in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Thaw at room temperature and warm in a 300°F oven for about 10 minutes.

You can also freeze the unbaked, shaped rolls as mentioned earlier. This is my favorite method because you get that fresh-baked smell and texture whenever you want it.

Equipment For Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

• Stand mixer with paddle and dough hook attachments
• Medium bowl for the overnight rise
• 9-inch springform pan (makes removing the rolls super easy)
• Parchment paper
• Rolling pin
• Offset spatula for spreading the filling
• Bench scraper or oiled knife for cutting
• Wire rack for cooling
• Measuring tape if you want to be precise about that 16x12-inch rectangle

Perfect Pairings

These soft Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls are pretty amazing on their own, but here's what I like to serve alongside them:

Hot coffee or tea. The slight bitterness balances all that sweetness. I love mine with a strong black coffee or chai tea.

Fresh fruit. Sliced strawberries, blueberries, or orange segments add a bright, fresh contrast. It makes you feel like you're eating a balanced breakfast, even though you're basically having cake.

Scrambled eggs and bacon. If you want a full brunch spread, add some protein. The savory elements make the sweet Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls even better.

Maple sausage links. Sweet and savory together is always a winner. Plus it looks impressive when you're feeding guests.

FAQ

Why This Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Deserves a Spot in Your Kitchen

There's something deeply satisfying about making homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls from scratch. Yes, it takes time. But most of that time is just waiting while the dough does its thing. The actual hands-on work? Maybe 30 minutes total.

And the payoff is huge. You get rolls that taste like you drove to a fancy bakery, except they're warm from your own oven and filled with the kind of love and attention you can't buy. The long-fermented cinnamon rolls have this depth of flavor that makes regular Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls taste flat by comparison.

Plus, there's that moment when you pull them from the oven and your whole house smells like a cozy Sunday morning should smell. That's the kind of thing people remember.

Whether you're making these for a special brunch, a holiday breakfast, or just because it's Saturday and you deserve something wonderful, these Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls deliver. They're soft, gooey, perfectly sweet, and filled with that subtle sourdough tang that makes them absolutely irresistible.

So feed that starter, set your timer for tomorrow morning, and get ready for the kind of bakery-style Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls that'll have everyone asking for seconds. And thirds. And maybe one more for the road.

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Pairing

These are my favorite dishes to serve with Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls