Bake up a little love this Valentine's Day with Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls!
Cinnamon rolls are one of our favorite breakfast pastries, especially for the holidays. This Valentine's Day, I highly recommend giving this Red Velvet Cinnamon Roll recipe a try! They red velvet rolls are packed with a cinnamon sugar filling and topped with a rich homemade cream cheese frosting. The cinnamon rolls are easy to make, taste amazing, and are a cute breakfast OR dessert idea for Valentine's Day.
These Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls are a great dessert to share with your family or with friends this Valentine's Day. Here's what you'll need:
- red food coloring - food coloring is what gives these cinnamon rolls their name. You can use liquid or gel food coloring.
- milk: for best results, I recommend using whole or 2% milk. The milk gives the dough a better texture, and needs to be warm (not hot) so that it combines well with the yeast for quicker rising.
- active dry yeast - this yeast makes the dough light and fluffy! This is one ingredient you CAN'T skip out on.
- cocoa powder - a good quality unsweetened cocoa powder will add the best flavor to the cinnamon rolls.
- sugar- both brown and white sugar are used in this recipe. The white sugar is used in the dough for sweetness, and the brown sugar in the filling creates that iconic ooey gooey center!
- sprinkles - optional, but holiday sprinkles always add a fun and festive touch to cinnamon rolls!
(Specific measurements and full recipe instructions are found below)
You will also need a hand/stand mixer, mixing bowls, rolling pin, 9x13 baking dish, and parchment paper.
Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer to make the red velvet cinnamon roll dough. Knead the dough until nice and smooth. Put the dough back into the mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Leave the dough to rise in a warm place for 1-1½ hours, or when doubled in size.
Punch the dough down, and then roll it to about ½ inch thickness on a floured surface. Coat the entire surface with softened butter, then generously sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mix over the top.
Roll the dough into one large log. Slice the log into 12 equal pieces. For easy cutting, I recommend using thread or unflavored dental floss. It sounds odd, but it totally works. Loop the thread around the dough, cross the ends, and then pull tight. Easy as that!
Place rolls into a greased 9x13 baking dish lined with parchment paper and then cover with plastic wrap. Let the rolls rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
Bake the cinnamon rolls for 35-40 minutes. They should be lightly browned, and the filling will be gooey and bubbly. Allow the rolls to cool for a little bit in the pan while preparing the cream cheese frosting.
Spread the frosting over the cinnamon rolls while they're still warm so that it melts a bit. I highly recommend serving immediately while they're fresh from the oven.
To make the Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls a bit more festive, top the rolls with Valentine sprinkles! The rolls are light, fluffy, and taste amazing! They make a perfect Valentine's Day breakfast or dessert.
Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls
Servings: 12
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 35-40 minutes
Dough Ingredients:
- 1 cup warm milk (heated to 100°F)
- 6 Tbsp butter, melted
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 ½ tsp instant dry yeast
- 1 Tbsp red food coloring
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 5 Tbsp butter, softened
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp cinnamon
Frosting Ingredients:
- ¼ cup butter, softened
- ½ cup cream cheese, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp milk
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Line a greased baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine warm milk, melted butter, sugar, yeast, red food coloring, and salt until well combined.
- Add eggs and mix until incorporated.
- Sift flour and cocoa powder together, then add to the mixture.
- Knead the dough until smooth.
- Place the dough back into the mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
- Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 1-1.5 hours until doubled (or more) in size.
- Punch the dough down, and then roll it out on a floured surface (½ inch thickness).
- Spread softened butter over the dough, making sure to cover from edge to edge.
- Mix cinnamon and brown sugar together and spread mixture evenly over the dough.
- Roll the dough into a log and slice into 12 equal portions. Use a thread for clean cuts.
- Place rolls into the baking dish and cover with plastic wrap. Let the rolls rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
- Bake the rolls for 35-40 minutes.
- While the rolls are baking, make the frosting: Add cream cheese and butter to a mixing bowl and beat with a hand mixer until well combined. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk beat until light and fluffy. If the icing is too thick, add more milk a tablespoon at a time. If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar.
- Frost the cinnamon rolls while they're still warm. Serve immediately.
Storage and Reheating:
- Refrigerate baked cinnamon rolls in an airtight container.
- Reheat a cinnamon roll in the microwave for 1 minute, or in a toaster oven for 2 minutes.
- Make Ahead after slicing and placing the rolls in the baking dish, cover and refrigerate them. Before baking, let the rolls warm up to room temperature for about an hour. Bake as directed.
These Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls are a decadent treat that's perfect for Valentine's Day (and beyond) and are always a crowd pleaser. If you decide to give this recipe a try, I'd love to hear all about it! Please share your creations on Instagram, Facebook, or leave a comment/photo on the project pin on Pinterest!
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