These brown butter cinnamon roll cookies literally taste like a cinnamon roll. The sugar cookies taste like the dough, mixed with the cinnamon swirl and topped with cream cheese frosting. Say less.
As you may or may not know, cookies are my favorite thing to make, hands down. Who doesn’t LOVE cookies? So I’ve been thinking, why don’t I do a huge cookie series where I just make all kinds of cookies?! They’ll be easy, no-chill, and delicious… don’t worry, I’m already on it!
THE BROWN BUTTER CINNAMON ROLL COOKIES EXPLAINED:
A browned butter sugar cookie dough base rolled in cinnamon sugar and baked until golden brown. Then lastly, swirled cream cheese frosting on top!
HOW TO MAKE THESE CINNAMON ROLL COOKIES:
brown the butter:
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and let it simmer until the milk solids start to brown at the bottom. It will start to foam and it will be a medium honey color. Remove from heat and transfer to a heat-proof bowl and let solidify in the refrigerator.
make the cookie dough:
Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a stand mixer, beat chilled brown butter, softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the egg, egg yolks, and vanilla extract then mix until just combined.
In a medium bowl, whisk the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add this dry mixture to the stand mixer with the wet ingredients. Mix until fully combined.
roll in cinnamon sugar:
Pour about 3 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar onto a small plate and set aside. If you don’t have cinnamon sugar on hand, mix 2 tbsp of granulated sugar with 1 tbsp of cinnamon.
Using a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop, take a full scoop of dough and in between your hands, flatten it out a bit (to where it’s about 1/2 inch thick) and dip both sides into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Form the dough into a ball, where it should look like the cinnamon is marbled throughout. Place on the cookie sheet and gently flatten it with your fingers until the “disc” is approximately 2 1/4 inches in diameter. Repeat while spacing out the dough “discs” about 3 to 4 inches from each other.
bake the cookies:
Bake for 9-12 minutes or until golden and puffy. After 15 minutes the cookies can be transferred to a cooling rack. There will most likely be 2-3 batches of cookies being made. Remember that after the first batch, the pan will already be warm so the time baking time can be reduced (ex: the first batch took 11-12 minutes to become golden and puffy, but the second batch may only need to be in for 9-10 minutes)
grocery list:
- butter
- granulated sugar
- brown sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- flour
- baking soda
- baking powder
- flour
- cinnamon sugar
- cream cheese
- powdered sugar
equipment list:
click here to purchase the equipment listed below
- cookie scoop
- cookie sheet
- mixing bowls
- stand mixer or hand held electric mixer
FAQS:
How do I store these cookies?
These cookies can be stored in a ziploc bag at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the refrigerator up to 6 days.
Scaling- Double/triple or half the recipe (how to/what not to do/why)
This recipe is so simple, it should not be difficult to half it, double it, or triple it.
Can this recipe be gluten-free/vegan or can any of the ingredients be substituted for other dietary restrictions?
Unfortunately, it is not my specialty. However, there are many bloggers who specialize in gluten-free, vegan, nut-free, dairy-free, etc. desserts and I recommend giving them a try!
Brown Butter Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Ingredients
cinnamon roll cookie:
- 1 cup (230g) ½ cup browned ½ cup softened
- 1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar, packed
- 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (172g) cake flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
cream cheese frosting:
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 2 oz (4 tbsp) butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and let it simmer until the milk solids start to brown at the bottom. It will start to foam and it will be a medium honey color. Remove from heat and transfer to a heat-proof bowl and let solidify in the refrigerator.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a stand mixer, beat chilled brown butter, softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add the egg, egg yolks, and vanilla extract then mix until just combined.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add this dry mixture to the stand mixer with the wet ingredients. Mix until fully combined.
- Pour about 3 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar onto a small plate and set aside. If you don't have cinnamon sugar on hand, mix 2 tbsp of granulated sugar with 1 tbsp of cinnamon.
- Using a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop, take a full scoop of dough and in between your hands, flatten it out a bit (to where it's about 1/2 inch thick) and dip both sides into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Form the dough into a ball, where it should look like the cinnamon is marbled throughout. Place on the cookie sheet and gently flatten it with your fingers until the "disc" is approximately 2 1/4 inches in diameter. Repeat while spacing out the dough "discs" about 3 to 4 inches from each other.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until golden and puffy. After 15 minutes the cookies can be transferred to a cooling rack. There will most likely be 2-3 batches of cookies being made. Remember that after the first batch, the pan will already be warm so the time baking time can be reduced (ex: the first batch took 11-12 minutes to become golden and puffy, but the second batch may only need to be in for 9-10 minutes)
- To make the frosting: In a small mxing bowl, beat cream cheese and the 2 oz of butter together until smooth. Add in powdered sugar and mix until perfectly creamy. You can either spread it on top of the cookie like you would a cinnamon roll or to pipe it on in a swirl to give it more of a cinnamon roll identity.
If you loved this recipe for Brown Butter Cinnamon Roll Cookie make sure to check out my Easy Cinnamon Rolls and my Best Chocolate Chip Cookie
