These hot cross cinnamon rolls are soft, spiced, and generously citrus-glazed. Can’t decide between hot cross buns or cinnamon rolls? You found the best of both worlds!
This is a seriously easy, soft, flavorful hot cross cinnamon roll recipe. The rich, buttery dough is seasoned with orange zest, allspice, and currants, and the vanilla-orange glaze is the perfect balance! The inside and the outside of the rolls are moist and bursting with cinnamon sugar. There are no gimmicks, no unnecessary steps—just a whole lot of flavor.
Perfect for Easter brunch, or any time you want a special treat, these cinnamon rolls are a stunning centerpiece. Round out your spread with more springtime flavors by making a cream cheese swirl carrot coffee cake, keep it soft and fluffy with blueberry buttermilk drop biscuits, and finish with some lemon poppy seed muffins! Don’t forget my invite!
Table of contents
Why you will love this recipe:
- Fluffy and tender texture. This dough is enriched, which gives these rolls a soft and tender texture. The added fat from the milk, butter, and eggs gives the dough a finer crumb structure and richer flavor.
- Perfectly spiced buns! Using the perfect amount of allspice and orange zest gives these buns an unmatched flavor!
- Never dry. These cinnamon rolls stay moist from the generous amount of butter, sugar, and egg in the dough. Then that soft dough mingles with the buttery cinnamon sugar filling and orange glaze for an extra moist roll where every bite is like the middle.
Professional Tips
- Let the dough rest! Thankfully, we are using instant yeast for this recipe so we don’t have to wait as long to get these rolls into our bellies, but that doesn’t mean we can skip the rest/rise times completely. These are important steps to a recipe to allow the dough to puff up, the gluten to relax and the flavors to meld. Be patient!
- Always measure your flour correctly. I swear by the scoop-and-sweep method, which goes like this: First, use a spoon to fluff up the flour a bit in its container, so it’s not all packed down. Then, use that spoon to add flour to a dry measuring cup. Use the handle of the spoon to sweep the top of the flour flat with the top of the measuring cup. When you measure flour correctly, you end up with light and airy baked goods!
- Use room temperature butter. Because the dough is soft and tender, we don’t want cold butter tearing into the dough as we spread it on top.
Ingredients
- All Purpose Flour: I prefer to use all-purpose flour in the majority of my bread recipes because it has the perfect amount of gluten for developing a strong network but remaining tender and soft.
- Sugar: I use sugar here for flavor, caramelization of the crust and also an easy, readily accessible food supply for the yeast!
- Instant Yeast: The great thing about instant yeast is you just add it to the dough with all the other ingredients. No blooming, no waiting, and faster rise times! You can also use active dry yeast but you’ll need to wait a little longer for each rise.
- Kosher Salt
- Whole Milk
- Butter: Unsalted butter allows you to control the flavor of the dough while still adding all the buttery goodness!
- Whole Eggs
- Orange: Zest the orange right into the sugar. Doing so will allow the sugar to catch the oils the orange releases when zested. The orange juice will also add a nice flavor to the icing!
- Currants and Raisins: You can use either currants or black raisins. Golden raisins can also be used.
- Dark Brown Sugar: I use dark brown sugar for the filling but you could certainly use light brown to an equally delightful effect.
- Spices: I use a combination of ground cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg in the brown sugar spiced filling
- Confectioners’ Sugar
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds a beautiful flavor itself but it also boosts the flavor of other ingredients around it like brown sugar.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Try a new icing. These rolls would be absolutely delightful with my favorite cream cheese frosting!
- Lean into caramel. Like the bridge between overnight cinnamon rolls and pecan sticky buns, there are caramel cinnamon rolls! Spread some easy salted caramel sauce on the bottom of the greased baking dish before adding the rolls, then drizzle some caramel sauce into the frosting for extra impact!
- Mix up your fruit and nuts: In addition to the cinnamon sugar filling, add in your favorite fruit compote like apple ginger compote or cherry preserves. Make sure your additions are thick enough so your dough doesn’t get too wet! Or roll up your favorite toasted nuts inside for a crunchy surprise! You can also try golden raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped figs.
- Go traditional. If you love soft, rich cinnamon rolls, you might want to try my sourdough cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting. Or for a nostalgic flavor, try my cereal milk cinnamon rolls! If it’s autumn, you have to try my brown butter pumpkin cinnamon rolls, and if it’s Christmastime this is my chocolate cinnamon roll wreath! Yes, we might have a small obsession.
How to Serve
- These buns are best enjoyed fresh on the day they are made but can be reheated in a warm oven the next day.
- A pan of these rolls makes an incredible hostess gift. Let them cool completely, and then transfer to a decorative tin. Give them an extra glaze drizzle before serving!
How to Make Hot Cross Cinnamon Rolls
Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below!
Make the Dough:
Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, sugar, yeast, salt, allspice, and nutmeg until well combined.
Step 2: In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, or in a microwave, warm the milk and melt the butter until the mixture reaches 110°-115°F. Pour the warm milk mixture into the flour mixture along with the eggs.
Step 3: Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment and mix until incorporated and no lumps remain. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 3-4 minutes. The dough should be smooth, elastic, and slightly sticky. If kneading by hand, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes.
Step 4: Add the orange zest, raisins, and cranberries. Knead until evenly distributed.
Step 5: Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm spot for 30-45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Since we’re using instant yeast, you could also skip proofing the first time, and do the final proof for 1 hour. However, I like to proof twice for the best texture!
Make the Filling & Assemble:
Step 6: While the dough proofs, mix together the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl until a paste forms. Set aside.
Step 7: Prepare your work surface: Generously flour the counter, turn out the dough, and roll it into a 20×14-inch rectangle using a rolling pin.
Try to keep the dough as rectangular as possible, pressing outward to maintain sharp corners. If the dough shrinks back or resists rolling, let it rest for 5 minutes, then continue. Use your fingers to help spread and hold the dough in place while rolling if needed.
Step 8: Using an offset spatula, spread the softened butter evenly over the dough, all the way to the edges. Evenly sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture on top.
Step 9: Starting at the long side closest to you, tightly roll up the dough into a log. Pinch the seam to seal. Place the log seam-side down and use a serrated knife to gently saw it into 12 equal rolls.
For the cleanest cuts, use unflavored dental floss! Slip a piece under the rolled dough, cross the ends over the top, and pull to slice. This prevents squishing the rolls. A serrated knife also works, but use a gentle sawing motion to avoid pressing down.
Step 10: Grease a 13×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. Arrange the rolls about 2 inches apart, offsetting them slightly. Cover with plastic wrap and place back in a warm spot to proof for 20-30 minutes, or until puffy.
Overnight Option: If you want to make them overnight cinnamon rolls, I recommend using active dry yeast instead of instant. You’ll need to bloom the yeast first, but using instant yeast will result in over-proofed rolls by morning. If you only have instant yeast, skip the first rise and go straight into rolling the dough. Refrigerate overnight. You might need to let them sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes in that case.
Bake and Ice:
Step 11: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 22-28 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. At 20 minutes, begin checking for doneness to prevent overbaking. A toothpick or cake tester should come out clean without dough. Cinnamon is fine! Remove from the oven and place the pan on a cooling rack.
The rolls are fully baked when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 185°F.
Step 12: In a small bowl, whisk together 1 cup powdered sugar, ¼ cup orange juice, and ½ teaspoon vanilla until smooth.
Step 13: Spread the icing over the warm rolls. Allow them to cool completely.
Step 14: In the same bowl, whisk together the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons orange juice, and ¼ teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag (or a resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped) and pipe cross shapes on top of the fully-cooled rolls.
This deviates from my hot cross buns recipe, which uses a traditional sweet dough for the crosses that you pipe and bake on top!
Frequently Asked Questions
Like most cinnamon roll recipes, these rolls are best served the day they are made, but if you have any leftovers, you can store them, covered tightly with plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to 2 days. If you want to reheat them, I would recommend doing so in the microwave for a few seconds, as heating them in the oven will likely melt the icing off the rolls.
You can freeze the baked, un-iced, cinnamon rolls. They will still be a little dry upon reheating but certainly preferable to refrigerating. Allow to thaw, uncovered, at room temperature. Then, warm in a 325°F oven until warmed through. Prepare icing and ice before serving.
There is too much yeast in this recipe to prepare the dough too far in advance of baking. The process can be slowed by proofing at each stage in the refrigerator and then stored overnight in the freezer. Bake when fully proofed even if still frozen. Isn’t yeast magical?!
Yes, use a wooden spoon for initial mixing. Afterwards, knead by hand until the dough stretches rather than tears. It is a sticky dough so resist the urge to add more flour or expect it to behave like a brioche bread dough.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below! I love hearing from you and your comments make my day!
Hot Cross Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the rolls:
- 4 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast, 1 package
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup milk
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup dried cranberries, currants or more raisins
For the filling:
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
For the icing:
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, divided
- ¼ cup orange juice, more as needed
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla, divided
Instructions
Make the Dough:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, sugar, yeast, salt, allspice, and nutmeg until well combined.
- In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, or in a microwave, warm the milk and melt the butter until the mixture reaches 110°-115°F. Pour the warm milk mixture into the flour mixture along with the eggs.
- Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment and mix until incorporated and no lumps remain. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 3-4 minutes. The dough should be smooth, elastic, and slightly sticky. If kneading by hand, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes.
- Add the orange zest, raisins, and cranberries. Knead until evenly distributed.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm spot for 30-45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Make the Filling & Assemble:
- While the dough proofs, mix together the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl until a paste forms. Set aside.
- Prepare your work surface: Generously flour the counter, turn out the dough, and roll it into a 20×14-inch rectangle using a rolling pin.
- Using an offset spatula, spread the softened butter evenly over the dough, all the way to the edges. Evenly sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture on top.
- Starting at the long side closest to you, tightly roll up the dough into a log. Pinch the seam to seal. Place the log seam-side down and use a serrated knife to gently saw it into 12 equal rolls.
- Grease a 13×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. Arrange the rolls about 2 inches apart, offsetting them slightly. Cover with plastic wrap and place back in a warm spot to proof for 20-30 minutes, or until puffy.
Bake and Ice:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 22-28 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. At 20 minutes, begin checking for doneness to prevent overbaking. A toothpick or cake tester should come out clean without dough. Cinnamon is fine! Remove from the oven and place the pan on a cooling rack.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1 cup powdered sugar, ¼ cup orange juice, and ½ teaspoon vanilla until smooth.
- Spread the icing over the warm rolls. Allow them to cool completely.
- In the same bowl, whisk together the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons orange juice, and ¼ teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag (or a resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped) and pipe cross shapes on top of the fully-cooled rolls.
Notes
- Technique – The rolls are fully baked when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 185°F.
- Variations – You can also try golden raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped figs.
- Storage – Cinnamon rolls are stored best tightly wrapped at room temperature, though they can also be refrigerated. They are best the day they are baked.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef tested recipe. Check out our other delicious, chef-developed brunch recipes!
Sounds great. I think I will be buying the ingredients to make these buns. Thank-you.
Sandie, Yay! I hope you enjoy!