These gooey, soft, and sweet Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls are a Spring take on the classic that we all know and love, and just as fluffy and mouthwatering! Celebrate Spring with this homemade iced cinnamon bun recipe for Easter, Mother’s Day, or any Spring gathering. I promise, serve these cinnamon buns and you’ll be a legend!
Why You’ll Love This Spring Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
I love making seasonal-inspired recipes, but as a nostalgic person, I can’t let go of my loyalty and nostalgia for the classics. I mean, who doesn’t love classic carrot cake for Easter?! Well, I blended two of my current cravings and these Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls are truly the best of both worlds.
They will fulfill your carrot cake cravings in a new and fun way! I love walking into a party with a dessert that surprises people, but still makes them want to dive in with both hands.
They’re gooey, soft, and perfectly spiced! I love serving these homemade cinnamon rolls still warm from the oven and slathered with a generous amount of cream cheese glaze. A hot cup of coffee is totally optional, but I recommend it!
Ingredients
So are they really just cinnamon rolls?! Well, yes, sort of! The actual dough part of these carrot cake cinnamon rolls is pretty much your basic cinnamon roll dough. The inside filling is where things get fun!
Dough Ingredients
- Active dry yeast
- Warm milk
- Brown sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Salt
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour
Filling Ingredients
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Carrots
- Raisins
- Pecans
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
And for the icing (literally!) on top of the cinnamon buns, you need salted butter, cream cheese, vanilla extract, powdered sugar, and milk (or cream).
How To Make Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls
Part 1: Make Cinnamon Rolls
- Step 1: Dissolve the yeast into warm milk for 5 minutes, or until foamy. While the yeast is dissolving, combine brown sugar, butter, salt, and eggs into a large bowl. Mix in two cups of flour, and then mix in yeast + milk mixture. Mix in the remaining flour until the dough is easy to handle. The dough should be elastic, but not sticky. Sprinkle flour over a large surface and knead for 5-10 minutes.
- Step 2: Place the dough in a large, well-greased bowl (I sprayed mine with Pam) and cover it with two clean dish towels without touching the dough. Place it in a dry area for an hour to double in size.
- Step 3: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Step 4: Punch down the dough and roll it out into a large 15×9 rectangle on a floured surface. Spread it evenly with softened butter, brown sugar, shredded carrots, raisins, pecans, cinnamon and nutmeg. Very gently roll the dough together. Cut the slices about 1 inch thick and arrange them close together in a greased casserole dish, or on a large baking sheet. Brush the tops and sides of the rolls with melted butter.
- Step 5: Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly golden.
Part 2: Make Cream Cheese Frosting
- Step 1: In a large bowl fitted with a hand mixer or the bowl of an electric stand mixer with the paddle attachment, add in room-temperature butter, cream cheese, and vanilla extract. Beat for 2-3 minutes. Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time and 1 tablespoon of milk or cream after every sugar addition.
- Step 2: Spread evenly onto warm cinnamon rolls!
Note: And yes, if you really hate raisins you don’t have to add them in, but they’re a carrot cake classic in my book!
How To Prepare Cinnamon Buns The Night Before
I know cinnamon rolls can be kind of a lot of work, so it’s nice to be able to prepare them the night before so you can sip on a mimosa while you bake them off the next morning. Here are a few easy steps to ensure your carrot cake cinnamon rolls will be just as tasty the next day:
- After I let the dough rise once and then fill and cut the cinnamon rolls, I wrap them up extremely tight in their baking vessel with plastic wrap before placing them in the fridge. You don’t want any refrigerated air to enter into the rolls or they will begin to dry out, and no one wants that.
- The second important step is to take the rolls out of the fridge an hour before you bake them so they come up to room temp. This will actually let the cinnamon rolls rise again and get super big and puffy! Then, you’re ready to bake!
- If you’re really looking for a simple morning, you can even make the cream cheese icing the night before as well! Just seal the batch up tightly in a Tupperware container and refrigerate. The day of, bring the icing to room temp before slathering it all over these delicious carrot cake cinnamon rolls.
Top Tips:
- The perfect temperature for active dry yeast is 100-110 degrees F. Yeast needs a specific temperature of liquid in which it becomes activated. Too cold, it won’t wake up. Too hot, it’ll die. You can use an instant-read thermometer to check it, but I check it with my finger. Once the milk is slightly warm, it’s good to go!
- Make sure to use fresh carrots for this recipe and then shred them yourself. Pre-shredded carrots are thick and too hard for the filling of these delicate rolls.
- For an Italian twist, replace the cream cheese with an equal amount of Mascarpone cheese. The texture of mascarpone is softer, but the flavor is divine. As always, make sure to bring your frosting ingredients to cool room temperature for easy whisking!
FAQs
The difference is in the dough! Morning buns are flaky and have a croissant-like texture because their dough is laminated. On the other hand, cinnamon rolls are softer, more dense, and fluffy because they’re made from yeast dough.
Carrots are underrated in baking! They add a natural sweetness, flavor, moisture (so the rolls get even more gooey!), and of course, the carrot cake vibes we love.
It’s all in the spices. The generous amounts of cinnamon and nutmeg make cinnamon rolls truly pop and taste finger-lickin’ good!
More Cinnamon Roll Recipes You’ll Love:
- Apple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing
- Salted Caramel + Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls
- Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls
- Eggnog Cinnamon Rolls with Spiced Frosting
If you make these Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls, be sure to tag me on Pinterest and Instagram!
I seriously love seeing what you guys are making and sharing your creations with the Everyday Elizabeth community!
Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls
ingredients
Cinnamon Rolls
- 1 packet 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 cup warm milk
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter melted + cooled
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs room temperature, slightly beaten
- 4½ cups all-purpose flour
Carrot Cake Filling
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter softened + 1 tablespoon melted for topping
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 carrots peeled and finely grated
- ½ cup raisins
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- 1 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup salted butter
- 4 oz 1/2 package cream cheese
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk or cream
instructions
Make Cinnamon Rolls
- Dissolve yeast into warm milk for 5 minutes, or until foamy. While yeast is dissolving, combine brown sugar, butter, salt, and eggs into a large bowl. Mix in two cups of flour, and then mix in yeast + milk mixture. Mix in remaining flour until dough is easy to handle. The dough should be elastic, but not sticky. Sprinkle flour over a large surface and knead for 5-10 minutes.
- Place dough in a large, well-greased bowl (I sprayed mine with Pam) and cover with two clean dish towels without touching the dough. Place in a dry area for an hour to double in size.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Punch down the dough and roll out into a large 15×9 rectangle on a floured surface. Spread evenly with softened butter, brown sugar, shredded carrots, raisins, pecans, cinnamon and nutmeg. Very gently roll dough together. Cut slices about 1 inch thick and arrange close together in a greased casserole dish or on a large baking sheet. Brush the tops and sides of rolls with melted butter. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly golden.
Make Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large bowl fitted with a hand mixer or the bowl of an electric stand mixer with the paddle attachment, add in room temp butter, cream cheese, and vanilla extract. Beat for 2-3 minutes. Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time and 1 tablespoon of milk or cream after every sugar addition. Spread evenly onto warm cinnamon rolls!
notes
Nutrition
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