Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Rolls With Cream Cheese Frosting

Homemade and requiring no yeast, these sourdough apple cinnamon rolls will warm up your fall kitchen with delicious smells and fill your belly with a satisfying treat!

Nothing warms the belly or soul quite like cinnamon rolls.

You might laugh at that statement, but there is something special about making and sharing a delicious treat. For as long as I can remember as a young adult, I have loved making cinnamon rolls for a crowd.

When I was in my early twenties, I worked at an apple orchard farm store. Mrs. Negley, an older woman, was my sweet co-worker.

From time to time, she would generously bring in a sheet pan of her famous and homemade cinnamon rolls. Her secret was mashed potatoes in the dough to make it soft and yummy.

Her generosity to spend time making such a treat for co-workers always struck me and encouraged me to do the same in my life. Sharing food with others can often warm and encourage the soul beyond belief.

(And besides, my family does not need to eat 14 cinnamon rolls in one sitting!)

Fast forward about ten years, and I still enjoy making cinnamon rolls as a family on special occasions.

Although my ingredient list does not include mashed potatoes, I have adapted my recipe over the years to incorporate sourdough and, more recently, apples! Apples are a wonderful addition to cinnamon rolls, especially in the fall season.

Apple Cinnamon Roll Ingredients & Substitutions

You will need…

Finally, icing and frosting variations are unlimited — like this cream cheese frosting or this coconut cream frosting. Cinnamon rolls without icing are also delicious if you want a lower sugar option or don’t have time.

How To Make Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Rolls

1. Prepare the dough ingredients.

2. Leave dough overnight in a buttered bowl and cover with a wet towel. (This allows the dough to ferment and sour.)

3. Roll the dough out onto a floured surface and press into a 15” by 10” rectangle, roughly.

4. Spread butter, and then coconut sugar, cinnamon, and apples onto the rolled out dough.

5. Roll up the rectangle.

6. Cut the long roll into approximately 14 rolls.

7. Place rolls in a greased baking dish. Place wet towel loosely over rolls.

8. Let rise in a warm area of your kitchen for 4 to 6 hours.

9. Bake cinnamon rolls.

10. Allow to cool and frost with the desired frosting recipe. Or, serve warm as-is!

11. Enjoy with your family and bless another family with a few to enjoy.

Recipe Tips

• Make sure your sourdough starter has been fed in the last 4 to 8 hours. The starter should be bubbly when you prepare the dough.
• When you cover the dough with a wet towel, make sure the towel is very wet, though not soaking. One of the purposes of the wet towel is to prevent the dough from drying out and thus getting crusty before baking, which would be undesirable and create a harder crust.
• Apples can be shredded or cut into small 1/2 inch chunks. I prefer cutting the apples into small chunks to create more texture in each bite.
• If you’d like to use whole grain flour… I recommend trying whole wheat pastry flour, whole-grain spelt, or whole-grain einkorn. These are the lightest whole grain flours.
• This recipe works well with two different time frames. If you start the process in the evening, the dough can ferment and rise overnight. The cinnamon rolls can be assembled and baked in the morning. However, the assembled rolls do need an additional 4 hours of rising time, so this recipe will not work well for an early breakfast.
• Alternately, make the dough the morning of the first day. Allow to rise for 8 hours. Form cinnamon rolls, and allow to rise overnight. Bake in a preheated oven first thing in the morning.

3.71 from 24 votes

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Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Rolls

Soul-warming and belly-filling, these sourdough apple cinnamon rolls are fluffy, soft, and generously slathered with homemade cream cheese frosting. No yeast required!

Course Breads, Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Souring Time 18 hours

Servings 14 cinnamon rolls

Calories 383 kcal

Author Melissa Posey

Ingredients

Dough Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sourdough starter fed 4 to 8 hours before so it is bubbly and active
• 3 cups flour of choice white flour works best, but all-purpose spelt or einkorn will also work well
• 1/2 cup grass-fed butter melted and cooled
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1 tablespoon raw apple cider vinegar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup pure water
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Filling Ingredients

• 1/4 cup grass-fed butter softened
• 1 cup coconut sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 apples peeled and chopped up into 1/2-inch pieces (alternative: shred apples with a shredder)

Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

• 8 ounces organic cream cheese room temperature
• 1/2 cup grass-fed butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup

Instructions

Making & Souring The Dough

1. Add apple cider vinegar, coconut sugar, and sourdough starter to the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Whisk to combine.
2. Add melted butter. Whisk to combine.
3. Add the eggs. Whisk to combine.
4. Switch to the dough hook on the stand mixer.
5. Add flour, water, and salt. Continue mixing with the dough hook until the dough forms into a sticky dough ball, about 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape dough into a greased glass or ceramic bowl.
7. Cover loosely with a wet towel and set in a warm location for 8 to 12 hours.

Making The Filling & Assembling The Rolls

1. Line (2) 10-inch cast iron pans with parchment paper. Or, line (2) 9- by 9-inch square baking pans with parchment paper. You can grease the pans instead with butter, but parchment paper will make it easier to clean up after baking.

2. Using a pastry cloth or clean countertop, sprinkle surface area with flour to prevent sticking of dough.
3. Punch down soured dough slightly to deflate.
4. Pour dough onto the lightly floured surface and spread out slightly to continue deflating dough from air pockets that developed.
5. Lightly flour a rolling pin. Roll out dough into a rectangle roughly 15- by 10-inches. You may use your hands to gently shape dough into a rectangle. The corners can be tricky to make into right angles as the dough is very forgiving and likes to move as you work!
6. Spread the softened butter generously over the entire rectangle of dough.
7. Sprinkle cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg over the entire surface of dough, minus a half inch around the edge.
8. Sprinkle the cut up apple pieces over the entire surface of dough, minus a half inch around the edge.
9. Working with the long side of the dough, tightly roll up the dough into a long roll. The apples and cinnamon mixture like to fall out as you do this, so work carefully.
10. Using a sharp knife, or dental floss, cut cinnamon rolls into 1-inch rings, approximately. You will have about 14 rolls this way. If you would like not as many rolls, cut thicker rolls.
11. Arrange cinnamon rolls carefully in baking dish or cast iron pan and cover loosely with  a wet dish towel.
12. Allow to rise 4 to 6 hours in a warm location of your home.
13. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
14. Bake cinnamon rolls for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Making The Frosting

1. Allow the cinnamon rolls to cool just a bit, and prepare the frosting!
2. Place all frosting ingredients in a stand mixer with whisk attachment: cream cheese, butter, and maple syrup.
3. Beat on high until the mixture is well mixed and smooth in texture.
4. Place frosting in the refrigerator briefly if the frosting is too runny, stirring and checking it regularly, until a spreadable consistency is achieved.
5. Frost cinnamon rolls generously. Serve warm.
6. Storage: Due to the cream cheese frosting, cinnamon rolls should preferable be kept in the fridge after cooled down, and will keep several days. Make sure to cover them so they don't dry out!

Recipe Notes

Make sure your sourdough starter has been fed in the last 4 to 8 hours. The starter should be bubbly when you prepare the dough.

When you cover the dough with a wet towel, make sure the towel is very wet, though not soaking. One of the purposes of the wet towel is prevent the dough from drying out, and thus getting crusty before baking, which would be undesirable and create a harder crust.

If you'd like to use whole grain flour, I recommend trying whole wheat pastry flour, whole grain spelt, or whole grain einkorn. These are the lightest whole grain flours.

This recipe works well with two different time frames. If you start the process in the evening, the dough can ferment and rise overnight. The cinnamon rolls can be assembled and baked in the morning. However, the assembled rolls do need an additional 4 hours rising time, so this recipe will not work well for an early breakfast.

Alternately, make the dough the morning of the first day. Allow to rise for 8 hours. Form cinnamon rolls, and allow to rise overnight. Bake in preheated oven first thing in the morning.

Nutrition Facts

Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Rolls

Amount Per Serving

Calories 383 Calories from Fat 207

% Daily Value*

Fat 23g35%

Saturated Fat 14g88%

Cholesterol 85mg28%

Sodium 319mg14%

Potassium 165mg5%

Carbohydrates 41g14%

Fiber 4g17%

Sugar 16g18%

Protein 6g12%

Vitamin A 772IU15%

Vitamin C 1mg1%

Calcium 47mg5%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Looking for other fall treats?

• Pumpkin Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls With Cream Cheese Frosting
• Sourdough Einkorn Cinnamon Rolls
• Grain-Free Apple Pie Shortbread Bars With Crumb Topping
• Soaked Pumpkin Muffins With Cream Cheese Filling
• Paleo Sugar Cookies With Pumpkin Glaze (easy fall gluten-free dessert!)
• Overnight Pumpkin Chia Seed Pudding (Soaked)
• Spontaneously Fermented Sparkling Apple Cider {fall’s easiest ferment!}
• Probiotic Apple Panna Cotta w/Caramel Apple Drizzle

What are your favorite fall traditions? Will you try these sourdough apple cinnamon rolls?

Looking for More Sourdough Recipes? Try These!

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• Pumpkin Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls w/Cream Cheese Frosting
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