Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls

With brown butter cream cheese frosting.

It’s TIIIIIIIIME! My very first Christmas recipe is HERE. Few things capture the magic of the holiday season better than warm, gooey cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning. This year, I’ve upgraded them with an even more festive twist – gingerbread! Impossibly soft and fluffy with a swirl of brown sugar, molasses, and gingerbread spices and topped with tangy brown butter cream cheese frosting, these rolls are truly the ideal holiday indulgence that can be enjoyed on any cozy winter morning.

This recipe uses a simple brioche dough and is easily kneaded in a stand mixer. After mixing up the dough, we’ll let it proof before filling the buns and rolling them up (I’ve got a trick to achieve the perfect spiral) and proofing them a second time. The best part? The second proof can be done in the fridge the night before, so all you have to do the next day is take them out and bake. Feel free to prep these ahead of time on Christmas Eve!

Both the dough and the filling are rich with gingerbread flavor, and the addition of brown butter in the cream cheese frosting takes things to the next festive level. These rolls are truly a Christmas miracle, and I can’t wait for you to try them!

Ingredients:

For the dough:

• 1 1/4 cup (300g) lukewarm milk

• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast

• 1/4 cup (50g, 4 tablespoons divided) granulated sugar

• 2 large eggs, room temperature

• 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, room temperature

• 2 tablespoons (43g) molasses

• 5 cups (600g) all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon ground ginger

• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

• 1/3 cup (79g) heavy cream (for pouring over the rolls)

For the filling:

• 1/2 cup (100g) dark brown sugar

• 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened

• 3 tablespoons (63g) molasses

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 2 teaspoons ground ginger

• 1/2 tsp ground ground nutmeg

• 1/4 tsp ground ground allspice

• 1/4 tsp ground ground cloves

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the brown butter cream cheese frosting:

• 6 tablespoons (84g) unsalted butter

• 4 ounces (113g) cream cheese, room temperature

• 1 1/2 cups (180g) powdered sugar

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

• 2 tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

We’ll start by proofing our yeast. In a small bowl, combine the warm milk, the yeast, and two tablespoons of the sugar. Stir and set aside for 10 minutes until foamy.

Mix the dry ingredients. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, and spices and mix on low to combine.

When the yeast is done proofing, add the eggs and molasses and whisk to combine. Pour into the bowl of the stand mixer with the dry ingredients and mix on low. Once combined, increase the speed to medium and mix for ten minutes.

After ten minutes, slowly add the butter one tablespoon at a time. Mix for an additional five minutes until the dough is smooth and supple and passes the windowpane test: rip off a small portion of the dough, stretch it thin, and hold it up to a light source. If light shines through the piece of dough and you can stretch it without ripping, the gluten is sufficiently developed and you’ve built up enough dough strength.

The dough will be sticky – that’s okay. Use a bowl scraper or your hands to transfer the dough to a clean, greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof in a warm place (like a turned off oven with the light on) for one to one and a half hours until doubled in size.

When the dough has proofed, it’s time to work on our filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the dark brown sugar, butter, molasses, salt, spices, and vanilla.

Roll out the proofed dough into a roughly 9x12 inch rectangle. Spread the filling over the dough in an even layer. Now, here’s my trick for perfectly spiraled cinnamon rolls: instead of rolling the dough into a log and then cutting them, use a ruler and a pizza cutter to cut 1 inch strips from the rolled out dough (don’t roll it into a log) and roll the buns up individually, about 9-12 rolls depending on size.

Place the rolls in to a 9x13 greased baking dish, cover, and allow to proof in a warm place for about an hour, until puffy and doubled in size. If you want to go for the overnight option, simply cover in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 8-12 hours and bake as directed the next morning. If the rolls aren’t quite doubled in size, allow to proof at room temperature for an additional 30 minutes to an hour the next morning.

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Drizzle the rolls in heavy cream. This helps the rolls retain moisture in the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly golden brown.

While the rolls bake, prepare your brown butter cream cheese frosting. Brown your butter by first slicing it into tablespoon sized pieces (you don’t need to soften it or even bring it to room temperature — straight from the fridge is fine), and then melting it over medium heat in a saucepan. Whisk the butter continuously, about 5-8 minutes, until you see brown specks at the bottom of the pan and the butter develops a nutty aroma and a deep caramel hue. As soon as it reaches a deep golden brown color, immediately transfer to a heat safe bowl. Now, we need to cool the butter with an ice bath. Fill a larger bowl with ice water and place the bowl with the brown butter in it over the ice water bowl, and whisk vigorously until the butter has cooled and is a spreadable, semi-solid texture and is paler and fluffy. Alternatively, you can brown the butter the night before and simply refrigerate it. The next day, microwave it for 10 seconds until spreadable.

In a large bowl, combine the cooled brown butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, milk or heavy cream, and salt. Use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to whip until fluffy.

Once they’re out of the oven, allow the rolls to cool in the pan for ten minutes. Then spread as much cream cheese frosting (it’s truly addictive, so I like a lot) as you’d like over the rolls. Serve warm and enjoy!