Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls

These from scratch red velvet cinnamon rolls are creamy with the right amount of tang for your next unique cinnamon roll.

Red velvet cake is one of my favorites! But combined with a cinnamon roll I really don’t think that it can get much better! This cinnamon roll is soft, fluffy, and perfectly marries the red velvet cake and a from scratch cinnamon roll. No boxed cake mix here.

Ingredients for Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls

For the Dough

• Yeast – I use dry active yeast, if using instant you can skip the proofing step.
• Sugar – used to help activate the yeast.
• Milk – helps to create a soft and fluffy roll, you can swap for water if needed
• Butter – creates the perfectly buttery roll
• Egg – helps to build structure in the dough, BUT if you have an allergy you can skip this.
• Flour – all purpose or bread flour works here. Bread flour will create a denser dough.
• Cocoa Powder – for the chocolatey flavor we love from red velvet
• Food Coloring – for the perfectly beautiful red color

For the Filling

• Butter – softened
• Brown Sugar – I prefer the richness of brown sugar or granulated
• Cinnamon – for the perfectly warm flavor

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

• Cream Cheese – for a tangy cream cheese frosting
• Butter – for a smooth texture
• Powdered Sugar – to sweeten
• Vanilla Extract – for the warm flavor

How to Make From Scratch Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls

For the Rolls

• In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and 1/4 cup warm milk. Let sit for 5-10 minutes. 
• In a large bowl (or your stand mixer) combine flour, cocoa powder, salt, egg, butter, yeast mixture, red food coloring and 3/4 cup milk. Begin mixing adding in additional milk as needed. You want your dough to be able to pull away from the bowl. If you do add too much milk, add a little bit of flour. 
• Knead the dough four 5-10 minutes, until the dough passes the windowpane test. 
• Place dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise for about an hour (or until doubled in size). 
• Pour dough onto a lightly floured counter and roll into an 18″ long rectangle. 
• Spread remaining butter onto the rectangle and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. 
• Roll the dough into a log and cut into 1.5″ slices, place onto a baking sheet. 
• Cover the dough lightly with a clean cloth and let rise for an additional hour. 
• Preheat oven to 350. 
• Remove cloth and bake the cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes. 

Cream Cheese Frosting

• While the rolls are baking add butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar to a bowl and mix until well combined. 
• Let rolls cool slightly, then spread the cream cheese frosting onto the warm cinnamon rolls. 
• Dive in and enjoy!

Share Your Experience

I would love to hear about your experience making and enjoying my From Scratch Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls! Feel free to tag me on Instagram or leave a review below. Your feedback helps me improve our recipes and provides inspiration to fellow home cooks.

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