Go from savory store-bought pizza dough to sweet breakfast bliss with a 35-minute recipe for Pizza Dough Cinnamon Rolls.
My thought process leading up to this latest creation was simple: Leftover pizza dough is sitting in my fridge. It’s 8 a.m. I love carbs. I love butter. Hello, Pizza Dough Cinnamon Rolls.
As history has shown, I’m all for baked goods that don’t involve yeast (see examples 1 through 789 here). There’s no proofing. There’s no rolling. Heck, there’s even no mixing if you go the store-bought pizza dough route.
And since I’m always in need of a new way to use up leftover pizza dough, ditching savory for sweet seemed like the perfect solution to the morningtime munchies.
Pizza dough brushed with butter, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, and drizzled with vanilla glaze? I’ll skip the pepperoni any day for that.
So next time you’re stocking up on store-bought pizza dough, or whipping up a yeast-free DIY batch, double-up and keep one in the freezer for a 35-minute journey to the ultimate Pizza Dough Cinnamon Rolls.
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Ingredients
For the cinnamon rolls:
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 pound homemade or store-bought pizza dough, at room temp
For the glaze:
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temp
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 Tablespoons hot water (until desired consistency)
Instructions
Make the cinnamon rolls:
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Grease an 8×11-inch baking dish with unsalted butter.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cinnamon and sugar.
- Lightly flour your work surface then roll out the dough into a 16×10-inch rectangle. Brush the dough all over with the melted butter then sprinkle it with the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting at the long end closest to you, tightly roll the dough into a log. Cut the log into 12 rolls, about 1 1/2-inches each. Arrange each roll in the prepared baking dish about 1 inch apart.
- Bake the rolls for 20 to 25 minutes until the dough is fully cooked. (See Kelly’s Notes.) Remove the rolls from the oven and let them cool slightly while you make the glaze.
Make the glaze:
- In a medium bowl, stir together the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Whisk in the hot water 1 tablespoon at a time until the glaze reaches your desired consistency. Drizzle the glaze over the slightly warm cinnamon rolls and serve immediately.
Kelly’s Notes:
- Pizza dough is easier to roll out when it’s at room temperature versus when it’s cold.
- Pizza dough gets crispier on the edges than traditional cinnamon roll dough so when in doubt, underbake the rolls to guarantee they remain soft.
- Unlike cinnamon rolls made with traditional dough, these rolls are denser in consistency and chewier in taste as a result of the pizza dough.
- ★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
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Recipe by Kelly Senyei of Just a Taste. Please do not reprint this recipe without my permission. If you'd like to feature this recipe on your site, please rewrite the method of preparation and link to this post as the original source.
Easy from left over pizza dough bake 375 20 minutes is all
I served with fruit around
Strawberries banana raspberries around
Bedded glaze a little whipped cream looked beautiful and my guest loved it
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Rosemary!
I made these in my Instant Omni Plus on Bake at 350 for 12 minutes for 8 rolls. Instead of melting the butter, and also instead of the sugar, I fork blended about a 1/4 cup of maple syrup and 4 Tbsp of softened butter. I spread that on the dough then sprinkled cinnamon on top until I thought it was enough. NOTE: I never think cinnamon rolls have enough cinnamon. I didn’t bother with the glaze. Thanks for inspiring me to make the best cinnamon rolls ever. (Well, except for Cinnabon, which is only a distant memory for me, but I do recall their cinnamon rolls fondly, especially the icing.)
Love reading this, Steve!
Thought about doing this and you inspired me to go ahead! They are very good and worth repeating! Went a little crazy and added golden raisins. Made them healthier!
Thank you!
Thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Nama!
Can I make the cinnamon rolls and just bake them in the morning?
Hi Janice! I’ve never tried making them that far in advance. Let me know if you give it a shot!
Thank you for this. I used to make a similar one, but it called for bread dough instead. Suddenly, there was no place that sold bread dough anymore; only pizza dough. I will be trying this today :)
Enjoy, Georgette!
New Year’s Morning Breakfast!
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe, Michael!
Had a can of pizza dough left over from another recipe. Thought I might could do cinnamon rolls and found this recipe. For the life of me, I could not find the cinnamon, but I did find some Chinese Five Spice and thought what the heck.
The Five Spice Rolls turned out ridiculously good.
Sounds awesome, Lowe!
I used gluten free pizza dough (trader joes brand) and they turned out very yummy!! Thank you