Bake The Best Frozen Cinnamon Rolls Using This Hack
If your family enjoys cinnamon rolls, you’ve gotta try this easy hack to take them from frozen to next level gooey!
Cinnamon rolls are a beloved breakfast treat just about anyone enjoys!
My family’s love of eating cinnamon rolls runs deep, except for the part of baking them from scratch. I usually bake these simple cheater homemade cinnamon rolls by defrosting and using frozen Rhodes white bread as a shortcut, and it yields yummy results without a ton of effort. They do, in my opinion, have that homemade taste and texture!
Horray for another frozen cinnamon roll hack to try!
Collin’s sister Marley recently shared with our team that she bakes the best frozen Rhodes cinnamon rolls by adding heavy whipping cream to the bottom of the pan with the thaw, rise, and bake cinnamon rolls found in the freezer section of the grocery store.
I was intrigued and had to test this frozen cinnamon roll tip for myself!
Verdict: I love these fluffy gooey cinnamon rolls and I think you will too!
As if cinnamon rolls couldn’t get any better, I can confirm that by adding whipping cream and vanilla extract to the bottom yields a rich and delicious cinnamon roll experience. The bottom is soft, gooey, yet caramelized, and has that amazing fluffy texture of homemade from scratch cinnamon rolls.
I love that these don’t turn out dry at all, and are over the top yum!
Tips for pulling off the best frozen cinnamon rolls:
- Make sure to buy these thaw and rise cinnamon rolls in the bag in the freezer section. Rhodes also makes a ready to bake tray of cinnamon rolls, but those are different from what I’m using in this recipe.
- The key to fluffy rolls will be to let them rise overnight in the fridge and then let them rise on the counter for another 1-2 hours. You’ll see how they puff up nicely and trust me it will be worth the wait!
- Cover your rolls for the first 20 minutes of baking with foil so that the tops won’t dry out. Then remove the foil and let the top brown slightly to perfection.
- Leftovers can stay good in the fridge for up to 5-7 days, covered.
Frozen Cinnamon Rolls Hack
yield: 12 SERVINGS
prep time: 8 HOURS 20 MINUTES
cook time: 35 MINUTES
total time: 8 HOURS 55 MINUTES
This easy tip for making convenient frozen cinnamon rolls extra gooey works perfectly!
Ingredients
Directions
1
Grease a 9x13 baking pan.
2
Place all 12 cinnamon rolls spaced evenly apart in the pan.
3
Mix the cream and vanilla extract and pour into the bottom of the pan.
4
Cover and place the rolls in the fridge overnight.
5
In the morning, remove the cinnamon rolls from the fridge and let them rise for about 1.5-2 hours until they are fluffy.
6
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the covered cinnamon rolls into the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15-18 minutes until slightly browned.
7
Remove from the oven and spread the frosting that comes in the bag on top of the cinnamon rolls. Enjoy!
Here’s what Marley, Collin’s sister, says about this frozen cinnamon rolls hack:
“I swear these are the best cinnamon rolls and I love how easy they are to make for a crowd. To take them over the top, I have finished them in a cast iron pan on the stove and those are the absolute best ever! It kind of caramelizes the bottom of the rolls and OMG!”
Enjoy friends!
Read the rest of our easy and clever baking and cooking tips!
I love Rhodes Cinnamon rolls and have made the for years. I have not heard of adding cream and vanilla. Can’t wait to try it out this weekend! Thanks for the tip.
What does Marley’s comment about finishing in cast iron on top of the stove mean, specifically?
Does she take them out of the 9×13 and place in a cast iron skillet, or does she bake in skillet and then heat briefly on top of the stove??
I think it’s the first thing you said “she takes them out of the 9×13 and place in a cast iron skillet”
and honestly the cast iron would be a good way to reheat as well for leftovers yum…
I fix these with a package of vanilla cook and serve pudding sprinkled on top with a stick of melted butter. Thaw in refrigerator overnight and rise on the counter like the above recipe. I think I may try adding the whipping cream & vanilla also. We LOVE these!
WOW sounds pretty epic! Thanks for sharing!
That is very similar to another coffee cake recipe my mom would make. Something about the pudding, butter and cream makes these rolls delectable!
This is a great recipe that has been used many times… sooo good!!
Do you think these could be frozen again after they are baked? Now that I’m an empty nester I would only need a few at a time and would like to freeze 1/2 of them for a later date. Can’t wait to try them.
I do actually. That sounds like a smart idea!
I’m going to try these in my 9×13 cast iron pan and see how they come out. Thanks for the idea
Great idea!
My MIL pours heavy cream over the top of her homemade cinnamon rolls and they turn out so soft and pillowy. Yum!
Wow and Wow!! Used your hack for the cinnamon and the orange freezer rolls and they were wonderful! Thanks.
Yay! That is so great to hear!
Could whole milk work in place of heavy cream?
To substitute heavy whipping cream, you can use 3 Tablespoons of melted butter and 2/3 cups of milk.
I’ve used it in a pinch and it works but it isn’t as fluffy it’s just moist, not soupy but I would rather use milk than make plain cinnamon rolls any day.
How much heavy cream and vanilla? It doesn’t say! I’m really wanting to try this but wanna do it right.
So sorry for the trouble, Hannah! You’ll need 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract for this recipe. Hope you enjoy! 💞
These rolls were awful. Soggy and wet in the bottom. Looked and tasted like they weren’t done. Period. I even cook them longer than the initial 20 minutes and went to 30 minutes longer. Still wet and soggy I followed the directions completely as far as though whipping cream and vanilla. What could I have done wrong. I also checked the temp on my oven and it was at 350 degrees
Oh darn! That is so sad. I wonder if they were still too frozen maybe before putting in the oven? Thats the only thing I could think of? 🤔🤔 should be soft and fluffy dough, so leaving out longer may have helped. So sorry that happened 🥲
These rolls were awful. Soggy and wet in the bottom. Looked and tasted like they weren’t done. Period. I even cook them longer than the initial 20 minutes and went to 30 minutes longer. Still wet and soggy I followed the directions completely as far as though whipping cream and vanilla. What could I have done wrong. I also checked the temp on my oven and it was at 350 degrees
My mom found a recipe years ago that used frozen bread dough, and she fixed in a bundt cake pan. It used cook and serve pudding along with butter, nuts, and cinnamon sugar. Talk about a fancy monkey bread! The cinnamon rolls sound heavenly, and I will make them over the holidays.
That sounds interesting. We’ve done it with the dough, butter, and cinnamon sugar but the cook and serve pudding sounds really good! I’m gonna have to try that with my kids. I’ll bet you can do any flavor too!
When I make the monkey bread, I mix the butterscotch cook and serve pudding with 3/4 cup brown sugar and sprinkle it on top of the rolls. Then drizzle the melted butter overall and stick in the oven overnight to raise. In the morning cook as directed. If you set the Rhodes rolls, (in the bag) on the counter for 30 minutes, they will become partly thawed and it’s easier to cut them in half before putting in the Bundt pan. By cutting then in half, the pudding mixture is more evenly distributed as they raise.
These are delicious made them for Christmas morning and not one was left. So easy
Oh yay! Love that! Merry Christmas Michele. ❤️🎄
Thanks so much for sharing this tip! I will definitely have to give it a try! 🙂
You’re welcome, Marcella! Hoping you love how they turn out! 💓
I use just enough cream to cover the bottom of the pan then pour a little vanilla, a sprinkle of cinnamon and an even sprinkle of brown sugar. Then put the rolls in. I like to use a clear Pyrex pan so I can see the bottom and bake until they are good and brown.
That sounds delicious, Darla! Thanks for sharing how you prepare yours! 🥰
I did these a little differently. I let the rolls rise then added the whipping cream. I then melted a stick of butter and 1 cup of brown sugar in a sauce pan and added this to the rolls. I added chopped pecans over the top and baked for 20 minutes @ 350 degrees! Soft sticky pecan rolls!
Yum! That sounds delectable! Thanks for sharing how you made yours, Barbara!❤️
I made this today! I let the rolls rise on my pre-heating oven. That helped them get bigger faster.
Thanks for sharing that helpful tip, Jennifer! Hoping you enjoyed these cinnamon rolls! 💞
Do you let them thaw first before putting in the refrigerator overnight, or do you just put them in the refrigerator frozen/right out of the bag?
You can just place them in there frozen out of the bag.