Adorable buttery Cinnamon Roll Cookies made with fresh orange zest and warm cinnamon, they’re completely irresistible!
This recipe was developed in partnership with Kerrygold USA. Thank you for continuing to support the brands that make Lion’s Bread possible.
What are Cinnamon Roll Cookies?
Orange Cinnamon Roll Cookies look like mini cinnamon rolls! These cookies remind me of the Orange Cinnamon Rolls that my brother and sister and I used to eat when I was a kid, very nostalgic, very delicious. Those same flavors that I love so much, but in a tiny cookie!
These charming little cookies are perfect to give as gifts, and look adorable in a cookie gift boxes during the holidays.
Instead of a yeasted dough, I’ve made them from a rich buttery cream cheese dough that’s filled with a cinnamon and brown sugar mixture. The orange zest infused dough is rolled up into a log, then sliced into rounds, and baked! When the cookies have cooled, drizzle on the orange glaze, and let it set for at least 30 minutes.
The dough freezes so nicely, so feel free to roll them, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. When you’re ready to bake, just pull them out, slice, and bake on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Want more COOKIE recipes? Check out:
Pink Lemonade Thumbprint Cookies
Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
How to make Orange Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Start by mixing the dough in a stand mixer. You can also use a handheld mixer. Once all of the dry ingredients have been incorporated, pour the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough tightly, and refrigerate for at least an hour. The dough really needs time to firm up and chill. The chilled dough is so much easier to roll out. Meanwhile, make the cinnamon and brown sugar filling. Combine melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Whisk to combine thoroughly, set aside.
Remove the cold dough from the fridge, and cut it in half. Roll one piece out on a well-floured work surface to a 14″ x 12″ rectangle, about 1/4″ thickness. Spread half of the filling mixture on the dough in an even layer. With the long edge facing you, roll the dough up tightly into a log.
TIP: if the dough becomes sticky or warm at any point, just wrap it in plastic wrap and place it back in the fridge for another 15 minutes to firm back up. Don’t skip this step. it will make handling the dough SO much easier.
Use floss to Slice these cookies
Use regular dental floss (not the minty kind!) to slice 1/4-inch cookies. I love using dental floss to slice these cookies because it creates nice and clean cuts without squishing the dough down and ruining the shape and pattern of the cinnamon roll cookies.
Place the cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet, and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F. Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, orange zest, orange juice, cream, and pinch of kosher salt. Whisk really well until smooth, then place the glaze in a disposable piping bag or a zip top bag.
Let the cookies cool before you glaze them so that the glaze doesn’t just melt in. Pipe, drizzle, or spoon the glaze on – there’s no wrong way to do this, I promise! Let the glaze set for at least 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- salted butter – I always always always use Kerrygold grass-fed Irish Butter. I like to use the salted butter here because the extra saltiness is the perfect counter to the sweetness of hte filling and glaze, and enhances the flavor of the cookies.
- cream cheese – Use full-fat cream cheese for the best results in baking.
- eggs -For the most consistent results, use AA large organic eggs here. Organic eggs are usually richer, as you can see by the color of their vibrant yellow yolks.
- pure vanilla extract – I only use pure vanilla extract in my bakes, because the flavor it adds is unparalleled and worth the investment in my opinion.
- fresh orange zest – Make sure to wash your oranges well before zesting to remove any pesticides, dust, or dirt.
- ground cinnamon – Make sure that your ground spices are fresh and fragrant. It makes all the difference in the world in flavor when spices are fresh!
- kosher salt – I always use Morton’s kosher salt, because I love the salinity and flavor that it adds.
- brown sugar – Use dark brown sugar because the added molasses in the sugar adds rich caramel notes that pair really well with the cinnamon and orange flavors.
- unbleached all purpose flour – I recommend using unbleached all purpose flour for these cinnamon roll cookies, and would not substitute whole meal flours here.
Substitutions
There are so many ways that you can customize these cookies! Swap out the cinnamon for your favorite spices, like cardamom, ginger, or allspice. You can absolutely leave out the orange zest if it’s not your thing. Instead, you could add almond extract or vanilla bean. Another option is to fill them with a chocolate hazelnut spread, or a thick fruit jam. Get creative, and make them your own!
The Tools I Use
Stand Mixer – This KitchenAid stand mixer is such a work horse, and an absolute staple in my kitchen.
Rolling Pin – this one!
Floss – I like to use unflavored dental floss to cut these cinnamon roll cookies. The floss works really well to get a clean cut, without squishing the dough down, so that the cookies stay nice and round.
Small offset spatula – this little tool gets so much use, and is absolutely essential when I’m baking!
parchment paper – can’t bake without it! I love this brand, because it gives me professional consistent results every time.
disposable piping bags – these Wilton piping bags are amazing and very easy to find.
How to Store
The beauty of these cookies is that once the glaze is set, they can be stored at room temperature for up to 4 days, and they’re still totally delicious. This makes them ideal for holiday gifts, or cookie boxes! Another option is to freeze the log of dough. When you’re ready to bake them, just pull it out of the freezer, let it soften slightly at room temperature for about 20 minutes, then slice and bake!
I can’t wait to see all of your takes on these Orange Cinnamon Roll Cookies. Remember to tag me in your pictures so that I can see what you’re baking from the blog, @lions.bread
Want to save this recipe for later? Just tap the “P” on any of the images to save it to your favorite Pinterest Boards.
-LeAnne
Orange Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Ingredients
the dough
- 1 cup Kerrygold Salted Butter 2 sticks at room temperature, 226 g
- 4 oz Cream Cheese room temperature 113 g
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar white 150 g
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar 100 g
- 1 tablespoon Orange juice fresh
- 1 tablespoon Orange zest
- 2 large organic eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour 360 g 360 g
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 ¼ teaspoon Baking powder
filling
- 8 tablespoons Kerrygold Salted Butter melted, 113 g
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar 50 g
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar 100 g
glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar 130 g
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
- pinch of kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 2 teaspoons fresh orange juice
Instructions
- nstructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer, combine the room temperature butter, cream cheese and the sugars. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is lighter in color and a bit airy, this should take about 3 minutes.
- Add the orange zest, juice, eggs, and vanilla extract to the bowl. Beat on medium/high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until well combined. The mixture might look a little bit curdled, but it’s fine, just keep mixing.
- Add the unbleached flour, baking powder, and kosher salt to the bowl. Mix on low speed until the flour is completely combined, and there are no streaks of flour, about 1-2 minutes. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl, with a rubber spatula.
- Pour the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and press down so it makes a rectangle shape. Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour.
- Meanwhile make the filling. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and ground cinnamon. Use a small whisk or a fork to make sure that the cinnamon is evenly incorporated.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place the chilled dough on a well floured worksurface. Cut the dough in half using a sharp chefs knife. Roll the dough out to a large rectangle, about 14”x12”, 1/4” thickness. Make sure to flour the top of the dough and your rolling pin well so that the dough doesn’t stick.
- Pour half of the cinnamon filling mixture on top of the dough, and use a small offset spatula to spread the feeling out into and even layer. With the long side of the dough facing you, use your hands to roll the dough up into a tight log. If the dough has gotten warm, or even slightly sticky, wrap it in plastic wrap and put it back in the freezer, or fridge, for about 15 minutes to firm up. Otherwise, use regular dental floss to slice 1/4 inch cookies.
- Place the round cookies on the baking sheet, spacing them at least 2 inches between each cookie - they will spread out. Bake for 15 minutes, rotating the pan 180° halfway through. When the cookies are still hot from the oven, use a large round biscuit cutter, or mason jar lid, to scootch the cookies back into a perfectly round shape, as sometimes they lose their round shape while they bake.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the glaze. In a small mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, cream, orange zest, orange juice, and pinch of salt. Whisk until the glaze is completely smooth. Pour the glaze into a disposable piping bag, or a zip top bag. Cut a small opening in the corner of the bag, and pipe the glaze onto the cookies once they have cooled. Allow the glaze set for at least 20 minutes. Enjoy!
- These orange cinnamon roll cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
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