These Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls are a fun, vibrant treat that both kids and adults will love. Fluffy blue rolls with sweetly spiced cinnamon roll filling, cream cheese frosting and two types of cookies!
Fancy trying something slightly spooky but equally as cute this Halloween? My Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls are just the thing! Below you'll find everything you need to know to help you get them right on the first try. If you prefer to skip to the quick, bullet-pointed version, just scroll to the recipe card at the end of the post. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- Flour: Many recipes call for bread flour but I prefer to use plain flour for a softer texture. Plain flour is the same as all-purpose flour.
- Instant yeast: Make sure to use easy-bake or instant yeast for this recipe, not fresh yeast.
- Caster sugar: Also known as superfine sugar.
- Egg: Just the one! I used a medium egg.
- Butter: You can use unsalted or salted, whichever you prefer.
- Milk: Use whole milk for this recipe if you can.
- Blue food colouring: Gel or paste food colouring will work so much better than the liquid type. I used PME food paste.
- Oil: Just a small amount, to stop the dough from sticking to the bowl while it's rising.
- Cinnamon: I used 1 tablespoon but feel free to use more if you want a stronger flavour.
- Icing sugar: Or powdered sugar, for the cream cheese frosting.
- Cream cheese: Use full-fat for best results.
- Cookies: To top your Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls, you'll need some mini chocolate chips and mini Oreos, or you can use full-sized cookies and crush them up as I did for my Cookie Monster brownies.
Equipment
- Mixing bowls: You'll need a big bowl for the dough, and a medium bowl to mix up the wet ingredients and the cream cheese frosting.
- Utensils: A wooden spoon, a whisk or a fork, and a teaspoon.
- 9x12-inch tin: Or any similar-sized tin. Just make sure that your rolls are not too squished together nor too far apart.
- Baking paper: To make it easier to lift the cinnamon rolls out after baking.
- Food scale: Measure your ingredients with a food scale for best results.
- Digital thermometer: To test the temperature of the wet ingredients. This is handy but not completely essential so don't worry.
How to make Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls
Step 1: To a large bowl, add 525g of plain flour, 2 teaspoons of instant yeast and 70g of caster sugar. Mix briefly to combine.
Step 2: Pour 250ml of whole milk into a mug or bowl and pop it into the microwave for about 50 seconds. It should feel quite warm but not super hot.
Step 3: Add 1 egg to a small bowl and whisk it briefly. Stir in 75g of melted butter, the warm milk and ½ a teaspoon of blue gel food colouring. Mix well to combine.
Step 4: Test the temperature of the wet mixture by inserting a digital thermometer. It should be somewhere between 40°C and 50°C. This is the perfect temperature to activate the yeast without killing it. If you don't have a thermometer, just pop your finger into the mixture. It should feel lukewarm- not too hot nor too cold.
Step 5: Pour the wet mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix them together with a wooden spoon. You should end up with a sticky lump of blue dough.
Step 6: Tip the dough out onto a floured surface and gently knead it, adding more flour as needed, until you have a smooth ball of dough. It should spring back when lightly pressed.
Step 7: Place the ball of dough into a lightly oiled bowl (I used olive oil) then cover it with clingfilm or a kitchen cloth and pop it in a warm place for 1 hour to prove. I left mine in my (switched off) oven with the light on.
Step 8: While the dough is proving, prepare your cinnamon roll filling by mixing together 100g of softened butter, 100g of caster sugar or brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon. I also used blue food colouring in my filling but I actually wouldn't recommend it because it turned our fingers blue when we ate them!
Step 9: After 1 hour has passed, the dough should be almost doubled in size. Remove it from the bowl and gently knead it to smooth out any air bubbles. Roll it out onto your work surface to make a rectangular shape that is ½cm thick. You can use a sharp knife to cut off any uneven edges.
Step 9: Spread the filling onto your dough, leaving a small gap at the edges to prevent overflow.
Step 10: Roll the dough up into a log shape. Use dental floss to cut off any uneven edges then divide the rest into 12 even slices. I used a sharp knife to gently mark where I wanted to cut them before using the dental floss. If you don't want to use dental floss, you can use a serrated knife. Just be very gentle or you'll squish your rolls!
Step 11: Place the rolls into a lined 9x12-inch tin. Cover them again and leave to prove for a further 45 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 180°C (or 160°C for fan ovens).
Step 12: After the 45 minutes are up, uncover the rolls and pop them in the oven for 22-25 minutes. You can check if they're done by inserting a thermometer into one- the internal temperature should be at least 87°C. Alternatively, gently pull one of the rolls apart with a fork to check for any rawness.
Step 13: While the cinnamon rolls are cooling, prepare the frosting. Add 90g of very soft butter to a bowl and give it a good mix. Then stir in 150g of room temperature cream cheese frosting, 150g of icing sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Step 14: Spread the frosting on top of the cooled cinnamon rolls then decorate with mini chocolate chip cookies and mini Oreos (or crush up full-sized ones).
Step 15: Cut or tear your rolls into portions and enjoy!
Cinnamon roll tips
- Leave the rolls to prove in a warm place such as inside the (switched off) oven with the light on or next to a radiator.
- Use dental floss instead of a knife when cutting your rolls. This will give you a super clean cut and prevent the filling from spilling out.
- Add the food colouring to the wet ingredients rather than to the ball of dough. This will ensure the colour is evenly distributed and will prevent over-kneading. It will also help to prevent your hands from staining.
- Don't use food colouring in the cinnamon filling! I did this when I made them and it turned my fingers blue when I ate them which was not ideal.
FAQs
These will last for up to 5 days if you keep them in an airtight container in the fridge.
Yes, Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Let them defrost at room temperature before enjoying.
Technically yes but it's quite easy to curdle the milk this way. You can do it over a very low heat on the stove but I'd personally recommend heating them both separately in the microwave.
More sweet pastry recipes:
I hope you like my Cookie Monster cinnamon rolls! If you make them at home, please leave a comment below to let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Cookie Monster Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Cinnamon roll dough:
- 525 g Plain flour (4+½ cups)
- 2 Teaspoons Instant yeast
- 70 g Caster sugar (⅓ cup)
- 250 ml Milk (1 cup)
- 1 Medium Egg
- 75 g Melted butter (⅓ cup)
- ½ Teaspoon Blue gel food colouring
Filling:
- 100 g Softened butter (7 tablespoons)
- 100 g Caster sugar or brown sugar (½ cup)
- 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
Topping:
- 90 g Softened butter (6+½ tablespoons)
- 150 g Full fat cream cheese (¾ cup)
- 180 g Icing sugar (1+½ cups)
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 Bag Mini Maryland cookies
- 1 Bag Mini Oreos
Instructions
Cinnamon roll dough:
- Mix the flour, yeast and caster sugar together in a large bowl.
- Heat the milk in the microwave for around 50 seconds. It should feel warm but not super hot.
- Crack the egg into a small bowl and briefly whisk it with a fork. Add the melted butter, warm milk and blue food colouring and mix well.
- Check the temperature of the wet mixture by inserting a digital thermometer. It should be around 40-50℃ to activate the yeast without killing it off. If you don't have a thermometer, dip your finger into the mixture. It should feel lukewarm- not too hot nor not too cold.
- Pour the wet mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix well until you end up with a sticky dough. Tip the dough out onto a floured surface and gently knead it until smooth, adding more flour as needed. The dough should spring back into place when lightly pressed.
- Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover it with clingfilm or a kitchen towel. Leave it to prove for 1 hour in a warm place until doubled in size. I put mine in the (switched off) oven with the light on.
- After 1 hour has passed, roll the dough out into a rectangle that is around ½cm thick. You can cut off any uneven edges with a knife.
Filling:
- Prepare the filling by mixing the butter, sugar and cinnamon together. Spread this onto the dough, leaving a small gap at the edges to prevent overflow.
- Roll the dough up into a log shape and use floss or a serrated knife to cut off uneven edges. Then divide it into 12 equal-sized rolls.
- Place the rolls into a lined 9x12-inch tin. Cover and leave to prove for a further 45 minutes until they have increased in size.
- Bake the rolls for around 25 minutes until cooked all the way through. You can gently pull one apart to check for any rawness or you can use a digital thermometer, which should read 87℃ when they're done.
Topping:
- Place the butter into a bowl and beat it well until it's super soft and smooth (this will prevent lumpy frosting). Add the cream cheese, icing sugar and vanilla extract and mix well until smooth.
- Spread the frosting over the cooled cinnamon rolls then decorate with the cookies.
- Cut or tear your rolls into portions and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
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