Apple Cinnamon Rolls

Originally published October 30, 2020. Updated on 9/13/22.

Today’s post is kind of a matter of an idea starting somewhere, taking a few turns and eventually ending up kind of close to where it started.

Earlier this week, a friend of mine - Karine Charlebois (The FABULOUS, IMHO) - tagged me in a post.

She - and her kids - have long been a fan of my savoury lunch buns: Buffalo Chicken Buns & Reuben Buns (Sandwiches, but in cinnamon roll form!).

Both of these recipes were - obviously - inspired by traditional cinnamon buns*, but done up as a savoury version. They're great as a sandwich alternative!

Anyway, she'd taken the basic idea and made a pulled pork version that looked AMAZING. *Drool*

* Note: I don't actually have a recipe for regular cinnamon rolls posted, as it's something I eyeball (after making my base dough recipe). I DO have & Chai Cinnamon Rolls posted, though!

SO, last night as I was discussing my husband’s breakfast plans for the next few days with him, “Cinnamon buns” was among the choices I’d offered him.

At that moment, I happened to glance at the bag of Mutsu apples that we picked up at Ottawa St Farmer's Market last week, and I had an idea: gooey cinnamon rolls, but with apples chopped up into the filling. YES.

The "What would you like me to make for your breakfasts?" question was immediately revoked, and I informed him that I would be creating an apple cinnamon roll recipe for him.

... there were no objections lodged, LOL.

SO yes. Cinnamon buns -> my savoury buns -> my friend’s savoury buns -> cinnamon buns. Sort of.

Designing The Perfect Cinnamon Rolls

I started out with my base homemade dough recipe, which has been my go-to recipe for all of my variations on cinnamon roll recipe - just with tweaks applied, as necessary.

In this case, I only made a few small changes:

The Cinnamon Roll Dough

We didn’t have enough all purpose flour up in the kitchen, and I didn’t want to wake him up to go get some more from wherever he has it all stored in the basement, so the last ½ cup of our batch was whole wheat flour.

You can do the same, if you’d like - I wrote the recipe without that change made. It’s great either way, and it’s a small enough amount of whole wheat that it can be used interchangeably. Bread flour also works.

Additionally, I added a VERY small amount of cinnamon to the dough. I didn’t want the dough to be noticeably spicy, I just wanted to give it a subtle flavour boost.

The Filling

Cinnamon buns use cinnamon, obviously. My Chai buns used cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and nutmeg, and my buffalo chicken ones used... hot sauce.

So, you know, lots of room to play 🙂

In this case, I settled on using a mix of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, aiming for a sort of apple pie cinnamon rolls theme.

I debated using some ground ginger in there, but decided to stick with these 3. Feel free to use a premixed apple pie spice, if you prefer.

Beyond that, there’s the apples. I used 2 medium apples (well, small for Mutsu apples... but about an average “medium” for apples in general), unpeeled.

Feel free to peel the apples if you like, though. Mutsus are my go-to when it’s apple season, but I’ve also made this with Honeycrisp apples.

When I’m in the mood to use a tart apple, it’s usually Granny Smith apples. They have the added bonus of being easy to find in the grocery store, year round.

The Maple Glaze

I’d considered a few possibilities: Traditional vanilla, something caramel based - maybe a dark brown sugar glaze. Spice or no spice?

When it comes down to it, though, if there’s an opportunity to use maple syrup, I - basically an illustration of what would happen if a national stereotype gained sentience - will absolutely go with the maple syrup.

I don’t even know how many varieties of maple syrup I have in the house right now (it’s more than 5 for syrup alone, not counting butter, sugar, candy, etc!), but I ended up going with a basic maple syrup.

Actual maple syrup, please - the boiled sap that dripped out of maple trees. No extra sugars, corn syrup, flavourings, etc.

I’m still SHOOK from learning that some people use “maple syrup” as a generic for “any syrup that goes on pancakes”, so... sorry for the specifying. I feel I have a duty to, now!

How to Make Apple Cinnamon Buns

SO I’ve gotten some feedback about putting photos in the recipe card - that they mess it up for printing - so I’m going to put them here, for those interested.

This will just be an overview of the recipe, scroll through for the full recipe with ingredients, etc!

Make the Yeast Dough

Stir yeast and sugar into warm water, allow to stand for 10 minutes – it should get very bubbly.

In a large bowl - or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment - combine flour and salt. Pour in yeast mixture, stir well to combine.

Dump dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, knead until a elastic, soft dough forms, 5-10 minutes.

Note: OR: mix it in a stand mixer with a dough hook on low speed for 4-5 minutes or so - That's how I do it!

Once dough is fully kneaded, place in a greased bowl, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and allow to rise in a warm place for one hour, or until doubled in size.

Apple Filling, Assembly, & Baking

As the dough rises, mix together the sugar and spices in a small bowl, set this cinnamon mixture aside.

Once dough has doubled in size, chop the apples into small pieces.

Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface. Aim to make it a large rectangle, say 15 x 20 inch rectangle or so. You can use a rolling pin, or just spread the dough with your hands.

Use a pastry brush to spread melted butter all over the dough – you might not use it all, that’s ok.

Sprinkle about ⅔ of the cinnamon sugar mixture evenly over the melted butter, arrange the diced apples over the spiced sugar and butter.

Sprinkle most of the remaining sugar mixture over the apples, reserving 1-2 tablespoon of sugar.

Starting with one of the long sides, tightly roll the dough up.

Generously grease or spray a 9x 13″ baking pan. Pour any remaining butter in the bottom of the pan, spreading evenly before sprinkling with remaining sugar mixture.

Using a very sharp knife, slice the roll into 12 equal pieces. Carefully place each roll into the pan, spacing them evenly.

Cover pan with plastic wrap, allow to rise one more time – about 20-25 minutes.

As the dough rests, heat oven to 350F.

Once second rise is over, pop the pan in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown and perfect.

Allow to cool for a few minutes while you make the glaze:

Maple Syrup Glaze

Mix together softened butter, vanilla extract, maple syrup, and salt, until smooth.

Add about ½ cup of powdered sugar, whisking until smooth and scraping the sides of the bowl as you go.

Add remaining powdered sugar, about ¼ cup at a time, until you have a thick, paste. If it's not smooth, microwave for 15 seconds and stir well.

Drizzle or spread over the warm rolls, allowing the glaze to melt and ooze a little.

Note: If glaze has thickened, microwave for 15 seconds and stir again, immediately before drizzling.

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge and reheated the next day - and will keep for about 5 days or so.

More “Capital B” Baking Recipes

Does the smell of yeast proofing just make you happy? Oh, I love the smell of it.

Anyway, if you’re looking for more excuses to bake something that involves waiting for rise times, here are a few more recipes for yeast breads ad related items!

Basil, Roasted Red Pepper, & Asiago Bread Braid
Beer Pretzels & Jalapeno Jack Dip
Buffalo Chicken Buns
Chai Cinnamon Rolls
Everything Bagels
How to Make Bagels
Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Pretzel Bites
Maple Walnut Spiced Pumpkin Buns
Marble Rye Bagels
Paska - Ukrainian Easter Bread
Peanut Butter & Jelly Rolls
Persians Recipe
Reuben Buns
Rye Bagels with Caraway Seeds
Sauerkraut Balls - Pyrizhky
Seeded Whole Wheat Flax Bagels
Smoky Cheese Bagels
Spinach Hand Pies
Strawberry Orange Rolls
Za'atar Manakish (With Cheese!)

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