Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls

Why have a normal cinnamon rolls when you could take them to the next level and add some apple pie flair? I’ve taken cinnamon rolls with that signature gooey cinnamon center and added apple pie filling. Then, we take it up another level with a caramel cream cheese frosting. I originally made these as a test batch and asked my coworkers to critique them and give me things to improve…… they had no recommendations – they’re THAT good! In fact, one of them said “Kelli, you can’t surpass perfection”. So let’s get to it.

Ingredients:
Rolls:
1 cup milk
2/3 cup sugar
2 packets instant yeast
1/2 cup butter, softened- cut into 4 pieces
2 large eggs
4 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
Cinnamon filling:
1 stick butter, room temp
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp cinammon
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream, warm (to pour over the rolls)
Apple filling:
5-6 apples, peeled, cored, and diced
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinammon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
Caramel cream cheese frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup caramel (topping or dipping sauce works)
1 tsp vanilla extract

First we need to prep the dough. Warm the milk to about 100 °F and whisk 2 tbsp and the yeast into the milk. Cover the mixture and let sit until foamy on top, about 5 minutes.

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Beat the remaining sugar and butter into the yeast mixture on medium speed. The butter will break up but not fully mix in.

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Add the eggs and salt. Beat on medium speed until well combined.

On low speed, add the flour in 1 cup at a time. Beat until the dough is mixed well and pulls away from the bowl, then beat an additional 3 minutes on low. You can also knead for 3 minutes by hand.

Now it’s time for the first rise. Lightly grease a large boil with either oil or cooking spray, making sure the whole bowl is coated. Place the dough in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap, foil, or a towel. Allow to raise for 2 hours or until doubled in size.

While the dough rises, prep the apple pie mixture. Peel, core, and dice 5-6 apples.

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In a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, brown sugar, nutmeg, vanilla, and flour. Mix often to disperse heat and combine. Apples will soften, and you will notice the ‘juice’ start to build and thicken until you have a nice apple pie filling. Set aside to cool.

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Next, you can make the cinnamon filling. Beat together the butter, cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt until soft and well combined. If you want a lot of cinnamon filling, you can double or 1.5x this recipe.

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When your two hours is up, unwrap the dough and punch down to release some of the air. Roll out the dough into a large rectangle (about 12×18 inches).

Spread the cinnamon filling evenly across the dough, leaving just a bit of an opening at the edges to make sealing easier. On top of the the cinnamon filing, spread the apple pie filling and spread for even coverage.

Tightly fold over the bottom edge and begin rolling the dough into one big ‘log’. It’s okay if the apples start to move a bit and spill over, the extra ‘goo’ will only help the flavor.

With a sharp knife, cut the log into about 12 rolls of even size. Place the rolls into a greased 9×13 inch pan. Cover again with plastic wrap, tinfoil, or a towel and allow to rise again for about an hour.

You can either make the icing while the rolls rise or while they bake. For the icing, cream together the butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until thoroughly combined. Lastly, pour in the caramel and beat until well incorporated and icing is fluffy and smooth. Unfortunately, I got carried away and did not take a picture of the finished icing, or even after the powdered sugar was added, but this is what the butter and cream cheese should look like when beaten together and fluffy.

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Once the rolls have risen, warm the heavy cream in the microwave. 15-30 seconds is fine, you just don’t want to inhibit the dough rising with cold cream. Pour the cream over the cinnamon rolls and bake them at 350°F for about 25-28 minutes or until golden brown.

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Let the rolls cool a bit and then ice them and enjoy! The icing recipe will make more than enough to cover the cinnamon buns evenly. I prefer to serve some on the side so that every bite can be loaded with icing, but if you don’t need extra icing you can always cut the recipe in half.

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