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Overnight Cinnamon Roll Bread with Chai Frosting. Homemade cinnamon rolls are always impressive, but switching things up and turning your rolls into a beautiful bread keeps things simple and easy, yet every bite is still just as delicious. And the chai frosting…it’s as good as it sounds, not too sweet and spiced just right. And when drizzled over this swirly cinnamon bread, it melts into every nook and cranny. I let the dough rise overnight in the fridge and bake it up in the morning. Perfect for a holiday breakfast or as a weekend morning treat.
Sharing a special recipe today straight from Half Baked Harvest Super Simple and in partnership with Williams-Sonoma. This overnight cinnamon roll bread is a go-to holiday breakfast. This is the easiest to bake up and everyone LOVES them! If you’re in need of a delicious breakfast for your family this holiday season, make it this cinnamon roll bread.
To make the bread…
Make a very basic, everyday bread dough that uses instant yeast to speed up the rising times. Let the dough rise a bit, then roll it out and sprinkle with a brown sugar cinnamon mix. I like to use brown sugar for a nice depth of flavor. And I also like to go heavy on the cinnamon…of course.
Roll the dough, cut into 6 giant rolls and place in a loaf pan to rise. Next, you have two options. You can do a quick rise or you can let the rolls rise overnight in the fridge. I love to make these a day or two ahead and let them rise in the fridge. That way, in morning, all I have to do is bake and frost.
For the frosting, I made something extra special…a Chai spiced cream cheese frosting.
Chai spices, cream cheese, and plenty of vanilla. Simple, easy, and so delicious!
My favorite products to create this cinnamon roll bread.
This is my go-to loaf pan.
My very favorite stand mixer.
And my trusty cooling rack.
Lastly, enter for a chance to win all of my favorite kitchen products here.
If you make this overnight cinnamon roll bread with chai frosting, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Overnight Cinnamon Roll Bread with Chai Frosting
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 892 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm whole milk
- 1 packet instant dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 3½ to 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons very softened salted butter, plus more for greasing
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
Chai Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon
Instructions
- 1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine the milk, yeast, honey, eggs, butter, 3½ cups of flour, and the salt. Beat until the flour is completely incorporated, 4 to 5 minutes. If the dough seems sticky, add the remaining ½ cup of flour.2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 hour.3. Make the rolls. Butter a 9x5-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon and set aside.4. When the dough has doubled in size, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface, punch it down, and roll it into a ball using your hands. Roll the dough into a rectangle (approximately 12 x 18 inches).5. Spread the softened butter over the dough and sprinkle it with the cinnamon sugar. Starting with the edge of dough closest to you, roll the dough into a log, keeping it tight as you go. Pinch along the edges of the log to seal it.6. Cut the log into 6 rolls and place them cut side up in the prepared pan. Cover and let rise 45 minutes to 1 hour in a warm place or up to overnight in the fridge. Bring the dough to room temperature before baking.7. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until browned on top, 30 to 35 minutes. If the bread is browning too quickly, cover it with foil. Let cool 5 minutes before turning it out onto a rack.8. Make the frosting. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a medium bowl with an electric hand mixer, beat together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until fluffy. Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and cardamom until combined.9. Spread the frosting over the warm bread. Serve immediately. Store any leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
This post was originally published on December 13, 2019
I was craving cinnamon rolls around 7pm tonight and the time put into these bad boys is SOOOOOO incredibly worth it! ?????? I obviously couldn’t wait overnight to make then eat them haha, so I only let them rise the second time for an hour. The only things I changed was cutting them in half from how it was originally written (I wanted more for the week) and I didn’t have cardamom so I used nutmeg instead. This *literally* tastes like an eggnog chai latte as a cinnamon roll. My husband is going to flip in the morning! Can’t wait to have this again tomorrow morning with a cup of hot coffee!
You did it again, Tieghan!
YES!! I am so glad this turned out so well for you Kaley! Thank you for trying this! And this and a cup of coffee… YUM! xTieghan
My milk is sour 🙁 do you think I can use heavy cream? We’re getting a hurricane tonight, we need yummy cinnamon rolls tomorrow!!
Hey Megan,
Yes heavy cream is fine to use! Stay safe:) I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Do I let these come to room temp with or without the plastic wrap?
Hey Rachel,
I would keep these covered in the fridge. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These are fabulous! I love to cook but baking not so much. Because I love so many of your recipes
I decided to give these a try. . I’m so glad I did. I have made them twice in the last week because my son says are the best dessert he’s ever had. Not to mention how amazing these look and smell right out of the oven. They’re absolutely delicious and just so darn pretty!
Aw I am so happy to hear that! Thank you Sanja! xTieghan
I just made these for the 3rd time today- they are my new favorite way to tell people how much I care about them. 🙂
My Dad, a cinnamon roll aficionado, is smitten with this recipe, which says a lot because he’s set in his ways and loves my mom’s no-fills classic.
The spices in the frosting elevate these rolls- adding warmth and elegance without being boastful. You hit the cream cheese ratio perfectly- it adds depth to the flavor without alienating buttercream purests
THANK YOU for working so hard to create and test these recipes so the rest of us can take the guesswork out of deliciousness.
Amazing!! I am so glad this turned out so well for you, Cassandra! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
Hello.
Can you sub in GF flour to make them gluten free? Would I need to add Xanthan gum?
Hi Carly,
You can just use an equal amount of GF flour. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These absolutely hit the spot! And the fact you can make them the night before was even better! I will definitely make these again!!!!
Thank you so much Beth!! xTieghan
Hi! I made the cinnamon rolls a little bit ago with the baking time listed, they were very not done in the middle–still delicious but I maybe want them a little more done 🙂 I am about to retry again, any tips on how to gauge the cooking time better, does it ever take longer than the 35 minutes?
Hi Peyton,
All ovens do differ a bit so cook according to your oven. If they are not done, just keep baking. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Wholly Moly!! These were delicious! The best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever had. Good reviews from all who ate them. Will make again.
That is amazing to hear! Thank you so much for trying these, Lisa!! xTieghan
I loved this! I chickened out and cut them smaller (15 rolls) and put into a 13×9. Baked for 30 minutes after bringing to room temperature. They just looked like they were going to get too huge for the loaf pan. Next time, I’ll definitely try it in the loaf pan, because that is what attracted me to this recipe in the first time.
My husband doesn’t like glaze on cinnamon rolls (I know, right??!! But, I love him anyway! ?) so I didn’t make the glaze. Instead, I put a bit of the spices for the glaze into the brown sugar mixture. OMG. It is delightful!
This dough is delicious and so totally easy to work with. I did add the full 4 cups of flour and the dough was silky smooth without being heavy or dense.
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
Hi Chris! I am so glad these turned out so well for you! Also, love that you chose a brown sugar mixture too! Thank you so much! xTieghan
These were pretty good! I think next time i would roll them out thicker because the rolls weren’t quite as fluffy as I like. And I would also make them less tall like normal cinnamon rolls and bake in a baking pan vs bread pan so the icing is distributed more evenly rather than just on the top. I also didn’t have salted butter so they came out sweeter than I like, but overall they turned out good!
Thank you so much Stephanie! I am really glad you enjoyed these! xTieghan
made these this morning! definitely planning on making them the night before in the future, but my family LOVED them! so easy and way better than our usual store-bought cinnamon rolls. didn’t realize they would rise so much but definitely not complaining about the jumbo rolls we ended up with.
Thank you so much Emily!! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you! Please let me know if there are any questions I can help with! xTieghan
Hi question: I put them in over night and didn’t realize you were supposed to cover with plastic wrap. I brought them to room temperature or so I thought for an hour. They are still not completely cooked. How long do you leave yours out from the fridge if you make them overnight? When I made them outright it was perfect. Now there are tough pieces from being exposed overnight, and they are needing to be covered with tin foil to prevent over baking the top. Any suggestions? It takes a lot to do in the morning, so I’d like to perfect over night prep.
Hey Summer, yes it is important to cover the rolls overnight or they risk becoming very dried out and tough while baking. Make sure to cover the rolls overnight next time, then leave them on the counter 30 minutes prior to baking to come to room temp. This should work perfectly for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
The spiral up look is definitely unique. Will that naturally happen in the loaf pan, or did you do anything special to get them to raise upwards like the picture?
Hi Danni! That should naturally happen when you put them into the loaf pan! Just make sure to follow all directions ? I hope you love these! xTieghan
I made these and as the recipe said, I put them in the fridge overnight and brought them back to room temp before baking…. but they shrunk in the fridge! They turned out wrinkly, tough and not fluffy. If you are making these the night before I would highly recommend leaving them out to proof and don’t put them in the fridge.
Hi Reva! I am sorry this recipe did not turn out as expected, but I did not have this problem.. Is there anything that could have gone wrong while making these? xTieghan