The best cinnamon roll… in cookie form! Here’s how to make this fall treat

We all love a cinnamon roll, but a cinnamon roll cookie is next level!

Cinnamon rolls are a fall-favorite. But—forget the forks! This recipe bakes them up in cookie form. These soft, flavorful cookies are drizzled with cream cheese icing and baked with a beautiful cinnamon sugar swirl.

Baker Khara Westergard turned the cinnamon roll on its side for an extra sweet and handheld treat. It’s her favorite soft sugar cookie recipe, smothered in cinnamon roll filling and covered with cream cheese icing.

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

“My big soft sugar cookie recipe smothered in cinnamon roll filling, rolled up & cut just like a cinnamon roll. Covered with cream cheese frosting, you get all the cinnamon roll goodness as handheld perfection.” -Khara Westergard

Combine dry ingredients well, & set aside:

• 1 lb. 9 oz. Cake Flour (or use all-purpose flour & minus. 3.2 oz. Then sub 3.2 oz. Corn starch)
• 3 1/4 t. Baking Powder
• 1 1/2 t. Salt (minus 1/4 t. if working with salted butter)

In a separate bowl with an electric mixer, start wet batter by creaming together until light & fluffy:

• 8 oz. (1 C.) Unsalted Butter – cool but slightly soft
• 16 oz. (2 C.) White Sugar

Add the following one at a time to wet batter, beating well:

• 2 XL Eggs
• 1 T. Vanilla Extract (quality matters)
• 8 oz. (1 C.) Sour Cream

Fold wet & dry ingredients together until just combined. Do not overwork the dough.

Chill covered 30-60 minutes.

Mix filling ingredients together:

• 4 oz. (1/2 C.) Salted Butter – melted
• 12 oz. (1 1/2 C. Packed) Light Brown Sugar
• 6 Tbsp. Cinnamon (adjust as desired – I LIKE a cinnamon forward cinnamon roll. This isn’t just a sweet roll)

Roll out half of the dough at a time on a floured or sprayed parchment that fits on a sheet pan. Chill again if too soft. Apply filling evenly & roll up the dough. Use thread or unflavored dental floss to wrap around the roll, cross at the top and pull to slice through for each cookie. Bake on clean ungreased parchment at 350° for 11 minutes.

Cool cookies before adding cream cheese frosting (below). Warm it until it runs off a spoon nicely. A microwave warms it quick. With a spoon, apply a thin layer to keep swirl visible, or drizzle for stripes that let the swirl shine through.

Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS

• 8 oz. (1 C.) SALTED Sweet Cream Butter – Room temperature
• 1/4 tsp. + 2 pinches (1/16 tsp.) Salt
• 2 – 8 oz. Pkgs (16 oz.) Full Fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 2 lb. (8 C. Fluffed) Powdered Sugar (C&H brand is best) *
• 1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract *

METHOD

1. Beat butter & salt until fully softened. Add Cream cheese & beat until smooth. Add powdered sugar about 1/2 at a time & beat until light & fluffy after each addition. Add vanilla & beat well. Scrape bowl & beat again.
2. Store well covered in the fridge or freezer.

* I adjust the powdered sugar down to 24 oz. (6 C. Fluffed) for some items. Macarons for example. It just depends on the sweetness level of the item you pair with. I also adjust the Vanilla down to 2 tsp. when using less sugar.

By Balsamic Baker

Find more from Khara on Instagram, @balsamicbaker.