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These Bacon Cinnamon Rolls are the best cinnamon roll recipe! They are fluffy cinnamon buns with crispy bacon and tons of maple flavor in every bite. We love the maple bacon combination – these are EPIC.

maple bacon cinnamon roll iced with white icing and sprinkled with bacon in a white dish.


Homemade Bacon Cinnamon Rolls

These golden brown cinnamon rolls with suit anyones needs! Bacon in any dessert recipe is so fun because it brings in a savory and salty element, which is such a great combo. I first had maple and bacon together when I tried a doughnut while traveling in Portland and I became obsessed.

My Maple bacon cinnamon rolls use active dry yeast and you can even make them ahead – prep them the day before and let them rise overnight in the refrigerator. They’re the perfect breakfast or brunch – they even have a maple cream cheese frosting!

ingredients in bacon cinnamon rolls laid out on a marble countertop.

Ingredients Needed

  • Active Dry Yeast: Make sure you pay attention to what yeast you buy. This recipe is written with active dry, not instant yeast.
  • Warm Milk: I use this instead of water for a richer dough. Same goes with the egg!
  • Bacon: The heart of the filling – make sure to crisp it up and let it cool.
  • Brown Sugar: Remember to always pack your sugar when measuring.
  • Pure Maple Syrup: This is not cheap pancake syrup – buy the real thing.
  • Maple Extract: Adds TONS of maple flavor and should not be skipped.

How to make Cinnamon Roll Dough

  • Heat milk to between 100-110°F, approximately 30-40 seconds in the microwave. Add the yeast and 1 teaspoon of the sugar to the warm milk and let it sit until it starts to foam.
  • Using the paddle attachment, mix the butter, remaining sugar, salt, and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the yeast mixture and stir.
  • Switch to the dough hook. Add the flour slowly. Start with one cup and then add the rest. The dough will be sticky, but not so much that you can’t handle it.
  • Once dough comes together, spray a large bowl with cooking spray, place the dough inside the greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.

How to make Bacon Cinnamon Rolls

  • Slice strips of bacon into small pieces. Cook bacon until crispy. Set aside to drain and cool. Stir together brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
  • Once the dough is ready, roll it into a rectangle. Brush the rectangle with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, then sprinkle with bacon.
  • Roll the dough tightly.
  • Slice in half with a sharp knife, then each half in thirds to make 12 rolls.
  • Place in a 9×13-inch baking pan that’s been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Let the rolls rise for 1 hour in a warm place. If you are eating them right away, proceed to baking.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake about 2-25 minutes, or until golden.
  • While the cinnamon rolls are baking, make the maple frosting: Beat together butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar. Mix in maple syrup and both extracts until smooth. Spread on warm cinnamon rolls.
maple bacon cinnamon roll iced with white icing and sprinkled with bacon in a white dish.

Expert Tips

  • I recommend using a stand mixer if you have one because it makes life so much easier. If you do the recipe by hand you’ll need to knead the dough for several minutes on a flour dusted surface.
  • Get an instant read thermometer to test your milk temperature so you know it’s the proper temperature to activate the yeast.
  • Instead of baking right away, you can cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight until you are ready to eat. Remove from the refrigerator and let sit on the stove while it is preheating, then bake.

FAQs

Can you make these ahead of time?

Yes you can! If you are making them ahead of time, cover them with plastic wrap and put them in the fridge!

Can you freeze these cinnamon rolls?

Yes you can! Store them in an airtight container in the freezer!

maple bacon cinnamon roll iced with white icing and sprinkled with bacon in a white dish.

Bacon Maple Cinnamon Rolls

5 from 3 votes
The perfect weekend breakfast: Bacon Maple Cinnamon Rolls! A wonderful buttery cinnamon roll dough filled with maple brown sugar and bacon filling, and topped with a maple glaze!

Recipe Video

Total Time 4 hours
Yield 12 rolls
Serving Size 1 serving

Ingredients
 

For the Dough:

  • 1 packet (7g) active dry yeast
  • ¾ cup (177ml) warm milk
  • cup (67g) granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 cups (372g) all purpose flour

For the Filling:

  • 1 pound bacon
  • 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter , melted
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • ¾ cup (150g) packed brown sugar

For the Frosting:

  • 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter , softened
  • 4 ounces (113g) cream cheese , softened
  • 2 cups (226g) powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) pure maple syrup
  • ¼ teaspoon maple extract
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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Instructions

  • Heat milk to between 100-110°F, approximately 30-40 seconds in the microwave. Add the yeast and 1 teaspoon of the sugar to the warm milk and let it sit for five minutes, until it starts to foam. (Just take the teaspoon of sugar from the ⅓ cup called for.)
  • Using the paddle attachment, mix the butter, remaining sugar, salt, and eggs in the bowl of a mixer. Add the yeast/milk mixture and stir.
  • Switch to the dough hook. Add the flour slowly. Start with one cup and then add the rest. The dough will be sticky, but not so much that you can’t handle it.
  • Once dough comes together, spray a large bowl with cooking spray, place the dough inside and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.
  • While the dough is rising, prepare the filling. Dice the raw bacon. Place in a medium sized frying pan and cook about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned or until it’s the doneness you prefer. Transfer to a plate covered with paper towels to drain.
  • Stir together brown sugar and cinnamon.
  • Once the dough is ready, roll it into a rectangle (about 10×14 inches). You may need to use a little flour when rolling, that’s okay. Brush the rectangle with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, then sprinkle with bacon. Roll the dough tightly. Slice in half, then each half in thirds to make 12 rolls. Place in a 9×13-inch baking dish that's been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Let the rolls rise for 1 hour at room temperature. If you are eating them right away, proceed to baking. Or, you can then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight until you are ready to eat. Remove from the refrigerator and let sit on the stove while it is preheating, then bake.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake about 2-25 minutes, or until golden.
  • While the rolls are baking, make the frosting. Beat together butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar. Mix in maple syrup and both extracts until smooth. Spread on warm cinnamon rolls. Sprinkle with extra bacon, if desired.

Recipe Notes

  • You can mix by hand but then you’ll need to knead the dough for about 5-8 minutes on a floured surface before letting rise for the first time.
  • It’s helpful to have an instant read thermometer to test your milk temperature so it’s warm enough to activate the yeast but not too hot.
  • Make these ahead of time and cover with plastic wrap. Store in refrigerator up to overnight to bake in the morning (allow to come to room temperature first).
  • You can freeze unbaked cinnamon rolls or freeze leftovers.

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 321kcal
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American

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Dorothy Kern

Welcome to Crazy for Crust, where I share recipes that are sometimes crazy, often with a crust, and always served with a slice of life.

5 from 3 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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111 Comments

  1. Holy wow! These look amazing! Two of the tastiest breakfast items combined into one fabulous breakfast. Delish!

  2. I love maple, but I cannot get on this bacon train. I just could take it or leave it. So I’d try this without 🙂

    I don’t think of LIW when thinking of maple syrup, but I’m currently reading Little Farm in the Ozarks with my class (and thinking about how I’m moving to the Ozarks soon!) and I’ve read this book SO many times that pieces of IT remind me of my own childhood. Like, “Oh, I remember reading about Market Day and Rose’s new dress when I was 10 years old…”

  3. Seriously? the first photo is killing me! And i don’t even eat bacon! I love anything cinnamon rolls and maple frosting sounds so good i could eat it with the spoon!

  4. oh my! I’m already crazy for Cinnamon Rolls to start with. Adding bacon and maple? Who can resist. Hm….the Voodoo Doughnut shop sounds like fun. Wish there’s one around. 🙂

  5. This is a truly perfect weekend breakfast! I can never eat something sweet for breakfast (I usually add eggs or something else savory), so adding bacon to cinnamon rolls is right up my alley!