Make Ahead Maple Cinnamon Rolls are perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas morning. A soft cinnamon rolls with a maple glaze, these rolls are easy to make ahead of time to easy the stress of the holidays.
You all know my love of cinnamon rolls, I have at least 10 sweet roll recipes on my site. And they all start with this basic sweet yeast dough.
They’re amazing to serve to company, however, they are time intensive and not what you want to be spending all your time doing on Thanksgiving morning. Or even the night before.
How To Freeze Yeast Doughs
It’s easy to make the dough up ahead of time and freeze for later. You want to remove as much air as possible, so a vaccum system or zipclose freezer bags are best for this.
The night before you’re ready to make the rolls, take the dough out of the freezer and place it in a large bowl, cover loosely with a towel and refrigerate overnight.
It will thaw overnight in the fridge and be ready to bake in the morning. Your guests can wake up to warm cinnamon rolls in the morning with minimal work from you.
So go ahead and make the dough today for warm cinnamon rolls in several weeks during the holidays.
Are cinnamon rolls a holiday tradition at your house? How do you save time and money when hosting company? Let me know in the comments.
Make Ahead Maple Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 1 cup very warm milk 115 F, I use whole milk.
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup butter well softened almost melting.
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 4 cups all purpose flour
For the Cinnamon Filling
- ½ cup of butter softened
- 1½ cups of brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon
For the Maple Glaze
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 2 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon maple extract if desired
Instructions
- Make the sweet yeast dough as directed in the recipe through the first rise.
- In a large bowl, stir together the yeast and milk until dissolved. Beat in the sugar, butter, salt and eggs until well combined. Add the flour, one cup at a time, stirring until incorporated. The dough will be shaggy and still sticky.
- Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and knead 5-6 minutes until smooth and elastic. Or if you use a mixer, knead 4-5 minutes.
- When dough is needed place in a FoodSaver® bag and vacuum seal according to instructions. Place the sealed bag in the freezer.
- The night before you're ready to make the rolls, take the dough out of the freezer and place it in a large bowl, cover loosely with a towel and refrigerate overnight. It will thaw overnight in the fridge and be ready to bake in the morning.
- The next morning take the dough out and let come to room temperature. Meanwhile, stir together the brown sugar and cinnamon for the filling.
- Divide the dough in half and work with one half of the dough at a time. Roll the dough into a 12 x 18 inch rectangle. Be patient with the dough.
- Spread ½ of the butter (1/4 cup) on the rectangle. Spread it to the edges, leaving 1 inch section bare on one of the 12 inch sides. Sprinkle ½ of the brown sugar filling on top. Roll up tightly starting with the 12 inch side. Cut into 1-1.5 inch sections with dental floss or a very sharp knife. Place 3 inches apart in a greased baking dish. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough.
- Cover and let rise until double, 20-30 minutes. Time will vary based on how warm the room is. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bake the rolls for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown on top.
- To make the maple glaze, heat the butter and maple syrup in a saucepan over low heat until the butter is melted and mixture is warm. Do not let it boil. Whisk in the powdered sugar and maple extract if desired until smooth. Spoon over warm cinnamon rolls.
Notes
Nutrition
You can make all of these delicious cinnamon rolls with the frozen dough recipe!
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