Homemade Bacon Cinnamon Rolls

Did you know that cinnamon rolls are delicious with bacon as a secret ingredient? I made these yummy breakfast treats with a twist. Here are the steps I used to make homemade bacon cinnamon rolls.

I made the basic dough using a recipe from The Pioneer Woman. Once rolled out, I added strips of bacon alongside melted butter and sprinkled cinnamon and sugar.

Dough Ingredients & Instructions

• 4 cups whole milk
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 packages Active Dry Yeast
• 8 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of all-purpose flour (added separately)
• 1 heaping tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tbsp. salt

First, mix the milk, vegetable oil, and sugar in a pot and scald the mixture until just before boiling. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

When the mixture has cooled to a lukewarm temperature, sprinkle in 2 packages of Active Dry Yeast. Let it sit a minute, then mix in 8 cups of flour.

Let the dough rise for at least an hour. Then add 1 more cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir the mixture together until it is completely blended.

I discovered the dough stores just fine in the fridge overnight. I covered the pan with plastic wrap. Additionally, you can freeze the dough wrapped in plastic wrap for up to a few weeks. You could use frozen dough to effortlessly make cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

Bacon Cinnamon Rolls Filling

• 1 to 2 sticks melted butter
• 1 cup of cinnamon and sugar mixed
• 8 to 10 slices of semi-cooked bacon

Next, sprinkle your work surface generously with flour and roll out half of the dough into a rectangle. Spread the melted butter over the dough, adding more as needed.

Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar mixture over the butter, and lay out 3-inch pieces of bacon in strips lengthwise along the dough. Place each strip 2 inches or so apart.

Begin rolling the dough in a neat line away from you, wrapping the strips of bacon inside the dough. Pinch the edges at the seam together to seal the roll.

Finally, cut the rolls into 1-inch thick pieces and position them on a baking sheet a few inches apart. I used old cookie sheets to bake these rolls because baked cinnamon and sugar can stain baking sheets. You could also line your baking sheets with parchment paper to protect them.

Let the rolls sit for 20 to 30 minutes to rise. Bake them at 400 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes until light golden brown.

I made a pan of regular cinnamon rolls (left) and a pan with bacon pieces (right). I froze the other half of the dough for later use.

Bacon Cinnamon Rolls Icing

• 1 tbsp. butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• Several spoonfulls of milk

To make the icing, melt the butter and mix in the powered sugar and vanilla. Add one spoonful of milk at a time and stir the icing until its creamy. Drizzle the icing over your homemade bacon cinnamon rolls and enjoy!