Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies
The perfect way to get that cinnamon roll fix without the hassle of actually making cinnamon rolls. Though cinnamon rolls will always be one of my favorite desserts, it always nice to have a simple twist in the recipe collection for when you're in a time crunch!
Ingredients
Method
For the Cookie Dough
- In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the room temperature butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. I like to do this with a rubber spatula and mix well until it’s smooth. You can also use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer.**Please see the "Notes" section below for more information on room temperature butter.
- Add the room temperature egg and vanilla extract and mix until very well combined.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and begin mixing slowly with your rubber spatula (or stand mixer/electric hand mixer). Mix until everything is just combined and remember to never over-mix the dough!
- Set the bowl of dough aside.
For the Cinnamon Roll Filling
- In a small bowl, combine all of the cinnamon filling ingredients and mix well.
- Place this bowl in the freezer for ~5-8 minutes until it’s very firm to the touch. You don't need to cover the bowl as it will only be in the freezer for a few minutes!
Assembly & Baking
- Once your filling is firm, spread half of the cookie dough out onto the bottom of the mixing bowl (I like to push the remaining cookie dough to the side of the bowl as opposed to taking it out and dirtying up another bowl but please do whatever is easiest for you!).
- Using a 1/2 tsp or 1 tsp, scoop out half of the firm cinnamon roll filling and place it all around the top of the spread out cookie dough. Once you have half of the cinnamon filling spread over the first half of the dough, spread the remaining dough overtop and press it down gently to really set the filling into place.
- Lastly, scoop the remaining half of the cinnamon filling on top of the dough. Make sure you spread out the cinnamon filling pieces to ensure that it's evenly distributed throughout each cookie once they are baked.
- To ensure that your cookies do not spread too much when baking, refrigerate the finished dough for 20-30 minutes before moving onto the next steps.
- Preheat your oven to 350℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (I use two baking sheets for this recipe as the cookies will spread out a bit while baking).
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and evenly scoop out 10-12 cookie dough balls. Roll them into neat circles, place them a few inches apart from one another on your baking sheet, and bake for 8-10 minutes or until they are just slightly golden on the edge. The baking time will vary depending on your oven so be sure to keep an eye on them!
- Optional: If you would like to give the cookies a more "perfect" circular shape, immediately reshape them using a large cup or a large circle cookie cutter the second they come out of the oven. Just move the large cup or cookie cutter in a circular motion around each cookie and it will easily form into a perfect circle! This must be done while the cookies are still hot!
- Allow the cookies to cool on a cooling rack before adding the frosting.
For the Frosting Swirl
- In a small bowl, mix together all of the frosting ingredients until smooth (since the cream cheese is cold, you may want to use a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer to make it easier).
- Add the frosting to a piping bag, cut a small piece off of the tip of the bag, then add the frosting to the cooled cookies in a swirl design to mimic cinnamon rolls.
Notes
- ROOM TEMP. BUTTER: Please keep in mind that you need to use room temperature butter when making this cookie dough! If your butter is too soft when making the dough, the dough itself will not be firm enough when going into the oven and your cookies will immediately spread out and become too thin.
- Do not quickly warm the butter up in the microwave to try and achieve “room temperature”. This will result in your butter being slightly too warm and you will be left with a very sticky dough that will not hold its shape in the oven.
- REFRIGERATION: Yes, this is a thin cookie recipe! If you would like to avoid too much spreading, please refrigerate the dough before baking. Just place the bowl of dough in the fridge for at least 20-30 minutes (or overnight) and the cookies will hold their shape for longer when placed in the hot oven.
- OVERNIGHT REFRIGERATION: If you would like to make the dough ahead of time, you can refrigerate the cookie dough overnight! If you choose this method, I recommend scooping your cookie dough balls out, placing them in a freezer bag, and then refrigerating. The cookie dough balls will be very cold and incredibly firm when you place them in the oven which will delay that spreading. Keep in mind, you may need to bake them for an extra minute or two if you choose this method.
- RE-SHAPING YOUR COOKIES: If you would like to give the cookies a more “perfect” circular shape, immediately reshape them using a large cup or a large circle cookie cutter the second they come out of the oven. Just move the large cup or cookie cutter in a circular motion around each cookie and it will easily form into a perfect circle! This must be done while the cookies are still hot!
- This small step will also result in thicker cookies as you are bringing the dough closer together as opposed to it being spread out.
- FLOUR & SUGAR RATIO: Though you may feel that this recipe needs more flour in order to not spread in the oven, I do not recommend adding more flour as that will change the overall taste and texture of the cookies once they have baked. Again, if you would like to achieve a slightly thicker cookie (they will still be thin as this is meant to be a thin cookie), please follow the refrigeration instructions above. By having an almost 1:1 ratio of flour and sugar in this recipe, you’re able to have that perfectly chewy texture which I find pairs incredibly well with the cinnamon filling and overall cinnamon roll taste.
- THE BEST BAKING SHEETS: When it comes to baking, the type of pan that you use is important!
- Light-Colored Stainless Steel Baking Pan: For this cookie recipe, I recommend using a light-colored stainless steel baking sheet (gray, white, cream, etc.).
- Baking Stones: If you use an incredibly thick baking stone, the cookies may spread out too much if your stone has been preheating in the oven. That being said, if you do not place your stone in the oven until your cookie dough balls are on it and ready to bake, then you should be fine! Keep in mind, the heat will take longer to reach the cookies through a baking stone so you may need to increase the baking time by a minute or two.
- Dark-Colored Baking Pans: I do not recommend using a dark-colored baking pan for your cookies as dark-colored pans absorb more heat than light-colored pans. This will result in your cookies browning too quickly on the bottom leading to burnt bottoms before the center of the cookie has baked.
Leave a Reply to Karen GrantCancel reply