Fluffy Strawberry Cinnamon Rolls
These fluffy strawberry cinnamon rolls are soft, gooey, and topped with delicious strawberry-cream cheese icing. They are filled with a homemade strawberry filling, which can be made using frozen or fresh strawberries.
Wrapped in fluffy, lightly enriched dough, these dreamy rolls feature a homemade strawberry compote. They are simple to prepare, whether working by hand or using a stand mixer. I love making this recipe. The dough is such a dream to work with!
Bursting with natural strawberry flavor, this strawberry cinnamon roll recipe serves as the perfect weekend breakfast. These fruity homemade cinnamon rolls are a wonderful way to use frozen or fresh ripe strawberries.
Ingredients
Find the full list of ingredients in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. For these sweet strawberry rolls, you will need –
Cinnamon roll dough
- All-purpose flour. A strong all-purpose flour with a protein level of at least 11%.
- Yeast. Active dry yeast or instant dry yeast. The yeast used in this recipe can be instant yeast or active dried yeast. Instant yeast will rise faster than active dried yeast. Whichever one you use, it needs to be viable. Usually, the instant yeast sachets are pretty foolproof, but sometimes active dried yeast can lose viability.
- Granulated sugar – The dough itself doesn’t make overly sweet rolls, as the sweetness comes from the filling and topping.
- Large eggs
- Salt
- Whole milk
- Butter – Just enough to bring some richness to the buns. This can be salted or unsalted butter.
The strawberry filling
You could use a strawberry jam as the filling, but making your own strawberry filling from scratch makes it less sweet and much more flavorful.
- Fresh or frozen Strawberries – The taste of sweet strawberries really comes through in the filling.
- Lemon juice and salt – Lemon juice enhances the berry flavor.
- Granulated sugar – Sweetens the strawberries more.
- Cornstarch – Thickens the filling.
Cream cheese frosting
- Cream cheese – At room temperature
- Butter – Room temp too. This can be salted or unsalted butter.
- Vanilla extract or paste
- Powdered sugar
- A little of the strawberry mixture – Brings fresh strawberry flavor to the frosting.
Measurements
This recipe is written using grams as the primary measurement.
US measuring cup* equivalents are also included if you don’t have a scale. However, using a kitchen scale to measure grams will give the best and most consistent results *US cup sizes are smaller than metric cup sizes.
Baker’s Schedule
Here are two examples of baking schedules you can follow. Please feel free to change these times to suit your schedule.
Option 1 – Same day strawberry cinnamon rolls.
- 9:00 am – Mix the yeast, sugar, and warm milk. Add in the flour, eggs, and salt. Knead, add in butter, and knead for 10-15 minutes. Form into a smooth ball.
- 9:25 am – Place dough in a greased bowl and let the dough rise until doubled.
- 9:30 am – Make the strawberry filling. Cover and let it chill in the fridge until needed.
- 10:30 am – Roll dough into a rectangle. Spread on the filling, but keep two tablespoons separate for the frosting. Roll it up and slice. Place slices in the baking pan and let rise until doubled in size.
- 11:45 am – Bake for around 25 minutes until golden brown. Make the frosting while the rolls are baking.
- 12:15 pm – Frost the sweet rolls while slightly warm. Serve
Option 2- Overnight sweet rolls
- 7 pm – Mix the yeast, sugar, and warm milk. Add in the flour, eggs, and salt. Knead, add in butter, and knead for 10-15 minutes. Form into a smooth ball.
- 7:25 pm – Place dough in a greased bowl and wrap it tightly. Let it rise slowly overnight in the fridge (up to 16 hours.)
- 7:30 pm – Make the strawberry filling. Cover and let it chill in the fridge until needed.
- The following day, 8 am – Remove the dough from the fridge. Roll the dough into a rectangle. Spread on the filling, but keep two tablespoons separate for the frosting. Roll it up and slice. Place slices in the baking pan and let rise until doubled in size.
- 9:30 am– Bake for around 25 minutes. Make the frosting while the rolls are baking.
- 9:55 am – Frost the sweet rolls while still slightly warm. Serve.
The Method
The bread dough
- In a small saucepan, warm the milk to around 95-104°F / 35-40°C and pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle yeast and sugar over the milk. If using active dry yeast, let this sit for around 5-10 minutes until it becomes foamy; if using instant yeast, this step can be skipped.
- Add the flour, salt, and eggs to the milk mixture.
- Fit the stand mixer with a dough hook attachment and mix until a thick dough forms.
- Add in the softened butter, a few cubes at a time. Keep mixing on medium speed for around 10 minutes until the dough is soft and strong.
Kneading by hand
Alternatively, knead the dough by hand. Mix the dough with a wooden spoon until it forms a shaggy ball. Pull it onto a floured surface and knead a few cubes at a time in the butter.
Knead by hand for around 10 minutes until it becomes an elastic and smooth dough. If you need a break, take it. The dough responds well to resting time.
First rise
- Once kneaded, form the dough into a dough ball. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased large bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a damp dish towel.
- Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, around 1 to 1 ½ hours. The total time will depend on your room temperature.
- The dough can also be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to 16 hours.
Strawberry filling
- While the dough rises, make the filling, so it has time to chill before using it.
- Roughly chop the strawberries into pieces. Add the strawberries, cornstarch, sugar, lemon juice, and salt to a medium saucepan.
- Let the strawberries heat over low-medium heat until they start to break down. Use a wooden spoon to mash them up a bit as they warm.
- Once they have broken down more and released their juices, turn the heat to medium and let the mixture boil, stirring the whole time.
- As the mixture boils, it will thicken and become jelly-like. Let it boil for a full 2 minutes, continuously stirring.
- Remove from the heat, scrape into a bowl, and let it cool in the fridge until needed.
Shaping
- Grease or line a 9×13-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Punch down the risen dough, then pull it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top of the dough with some flour.
If the dough has come from the fridge, it will be very stiff. Let it warm up to room temperature for 10 minutes before rolling.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle measuring around 12×16 inches (30cmx40cm).
- Dollop the cold strawberry mixture over the dough, but keep aside two tablespoons for the frosting.
- An offset spatula spreads the strawberries out, leaving about 2 inches uncovered on the bottom long side.
- Carefully roll the dough up, starting from the longest side up the top, into a log.
- Cut the log into 12 equal pieces using unflavored dental floss or a serrated knife.
- Place the rolls into the prepared pan. Cover the pan and let the rolls rise in a warm spot until doubled in size.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 350°F /180°C.
- Bake the rolls in the oven for around 25-28 minutes until golden brown. If they are browning too fast, you can cover the top of the rolls loosely with aluminum foil.
Frosting
- While the rolls are baking, make the frosting. In a large bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, reserved strawberry jam, and salt.
- Beat on low speed to incorporate the sugar, then switch to high and beat until creamy.
- Let the baked buns cool for 20 minutes, then spread on the frosting.
Storing
Storing: Leftover strawberry cinnamon rolls can store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Freezing: The rolls can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw the rolls overnight in the refrigerator and warm them in the microwave before serving.
FAQS
Several factors could affect the rise: the yeast might be too old or the environment might be too cold, Ensure your yeast is fresh and your dough is placed in a warm, draft-free area to rise.
Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week. They can also be frozen for longer storage.
Of course! Feel free to increase or reduce the amount of sugar in the strawberry filling according to your preference.
No problem! You can still mix the dough by hand, although it will require more time and effort to ensure the ingredients are well-combined and the dough is properly kneaded.
When the dough is properly kneaded, it will feel strong and be glossy. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then tear off a piece. Stretch out this piece of dough as thin as you can. It should become almost transparent without tearing if the gluten has been developed enough.
You can prepare the dough ahead of time! Simply knead it and cover the bowl tightly then store it in the refrigerator for up to 16 hours. The filling can also be made in advance and refrigerated until needed.
Related Recipes
For more cinnamon roll recipes or strawberry recipes, check out these!
- Coffee cinnamon rolls
- Blueberry cinnamon rolls
- Blackberry sweet rolls
- Red velvet cinnamon rolls.
- Swiss roll cake
Strawberry Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Dough
- 240 g whole milk
- 2 ¼ teaspoons instant or active dry yeast
- 50 g granulated sugar
- 530 g all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 85 g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
Strawberry Filling
- 250 g strawberries, fresh or frozen
- 50 g granulated sugar
- 1 ½ Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
- Pinch of salt
Frosting
- 113 g cream cheese, room temperature
- 30 g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 180 g confectioners sugar
- 2 Tablespoons strawberry filling
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, warm the milk to around 95-104°F / 35-40°C and pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle yeast and sugar over the milk. If using active dry yeast, let this sit for around 5-10 minutes until it becomes foamy; if using instant yeast, this step can be skipped.
- Add the flour, salt, and eggs to the milk mixture. Fit the stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Mix until a thick dough forms.
- Add in the softened butter, a few cubes at a time, and keep mixing on medium speed for around 10 minutes until the sweet roll dough pulls cleanly from the sides of the bowl and it is soft and strong.
Kneading by hand
- Alternatively, knead the dough by hand. Mix the dough with a wooden spoon until it forms a shaggy ball. Pull it onto a floured surface and knead a few cubes at a time in the butter. Knead by hand for around 10 minutes until it becomes an elastic and smooth dough. If you need a break, take it. The dough responds well to resting time.
First Rise
- Once kneaded, form the dough into a dough ball. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased large bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a damp dish towel.
- Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, around 1 to 1 ½ hours. The total time will depend on your room temperature. The dough can also be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to 16 hours.
Strawberry Filling
- While the dough rises, make the filling so it has time to chill before using it.
- Roughly chop the strawberries into pieces. Add the strawberries, cornstarch, sugar, lemon juice, and salt to a medium saucepan.
- Let the strawberries heat over low-medium heat until they start to break down. Use a wooden spoon to mash them up a bit as they warm.
- Once they have broken down more and released their juices, turn the heat to medium and let the mixture boil, stirring the whole time. As the mixture boils, it will thicken and become jelly-like. Let it boil for a full 2 minutes, continuously stirring.
- Remove from the heat, scrape into a bowl, and let it cool in the fridge until needed.
Shaping
- Grease or line a 9×13-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Punch down the risen dough, then pull it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top of the dough with some flour.
- If the dough has come from the fridge, it will be very stiff. Let it warm up to room temperature for 10 minutes before rolling.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle measuring around 12×16 inches (30cmx40cm).
- Dollop the cold strawberry mixture over the dough, but keep aside two tablespoons for the frosting.
- An offset spatula spreads the strawberries out, leaving around 2 inches uncovered on the bottom long side. This is because the strawberry mixture gets pushed out a bit when you roll it up, and this helps to stop it from escaping.
- Place the rolls into the prepared pan. Cover the pan and let the rolls rise in a warm spot until doubled in size.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 350°F /180°C.
- Bake the rolls in the oven for around 25-28 minutes until golden brown. If they are browning too fast, you can cover the top of the rolls loosely with aluminum foil.
Frosting
- While the rolls are baking, make the frosting. In a large bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla, reserved strawberry jam, and salt. Beat on low speed to incorporate the sugar, then switch to high and beat until creamy.
- Let the baked buns cool for 20 minutes, then spread on the frosting.
I’m looking forward to making this for my daughter who has been BEGGING me for these. BUT, with the slurry mixture for the strawberry filling, you do not say how MUCH water to use. Please help!!!
Thank you.
Sorry, the water slurry step shouldn’t be there! The lemon juice is the liquid. The step has been updated now 🙂