Is there anything better than the smell of cinnamon rolls in the morning? How about a batch of cinnamon roll cookies—chewy, buttery vanilla cookies swirled with cinnamon sugar and finished with a sweet vanilla drizzle. These cookies take everything you love about cinnamon rolls and wrap them up into an easy-to-make (and even easier-to-eat) treat. Perfect for cozy mornings, weekend baking, or sharing during the holidays.
These chewy cinnamon roll cookies start with a soft vanilla dough—no chill required if you’re short on time, though a quick rest in the fridge helps keep them nice and thick. The dough is gently folded with a rich cinnamon brown sugar swirl that bakes right into every bite, just like the center of a cinnamon roll. Once cooled, they get drizzled with a simple vanilla glaze for that classic cinnamon roll finish.
If you’re a fan of warm, nostalgic bakes that taste as good as they smell, this recipe is about to be a new favorite. It’s also a great base for customizing—try adding a touch of nutmeg, swapping the glaze for a cream cheese version, or even sandwiching two cookies with icing in the middle for an extra indulgent treat. Whether you’re baking these for a weekend brunch, a holiday cookie tray, or just because cinnamon-sugar is your love language, this recipe delivers every time.
Recipe Tips
- Don’t overmix the swirl: When adding the cinnamon sugar mixture, fold it in gently so you get visible swirls throughout the dough. This keeps the cinnamon roll effect intact.
- Chilling the dough: Chilling the dough will help with two things: cookie spreading and flavor. These cookies will spread when they bake but by chilling the dough for 45 minutes prior to baking, it will keep them from spreading too much! Also as the dough chills the flavor will enhance. It’s truly a win-win 🙂 I leave my cookie dough in the refrigerator and only pull out how many I need for the pan. They should be baked up straight from the fridge.
- Use real butter: It makes all the difference in flavor and texture. Salted butter adds a little extra depth to the dough.
- Cookie dough scoop: I always get a ton of questions about what scoop I use, so I wanted to link the ones I used for this recipe! I like this set because it comes in 3 different sizes. For these cookies I used the large size. Using a cookie dough scoop gives you perfect cookie dough balls that are even and therefore will bake evenly!
- Underbaking the cookies: This is essential to getting the texture right. I bake my cookies for 12 minutes on the dot and then remove from the oven and let cool completely on the cookie sheet. Letting them cool on the hot pan will keep cooking them but at a lower temperature, not drying out the cookie entirely. If you prefer a crispier cookie, feel free to bake for 14 minutes. They’re still delicious, but I’m a sucker for a fudge chocolate cookie 🙂
- Baking sheet: For all of my cookie recipes you I suggest you use a cookie sheet. You can use a jelly roll however I find the edges of the cookies tend to brown a little faster and they bake differently.
Perfectly round cookies every time!
This trick is totally optional but I use it anytime I bake cookies to ensure they are perfectly round every time! This works especially with these cookies since they tend to spread. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven and still hot use a large round cookie cutter, or something else round and larger than the cookies (I’ve used a glass or bowl before). Place overtop of the cookie and move it around in a circular motion for 3-5 seconds, gently bouncing the cookie around inside. This will round the edges of the cookie out giving that perfectly circular shape. This will make your cookies pretty and uniform!
Storage Tips
- Room temperature: Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4–5 days.
- Freezing baked cookies: These cookies freeze well! Let them cool completely, then freeze in a single layer or with parchment between layers in an airtight container. Thaw at room temp or microwave for 10–15 seconds.
- Freezing dough: You can also freeze the dough balls (before baking) for up to 2 months. Bake from frozen, adding an extra 1–2 minutes to the bake time.
Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Ingredients
For the cinnamon swirl:
- 2 tbsp salted butter melted
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
For the cookies:
- 1 cup salted butter melted
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg room temperature
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
For the icing:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- ½ tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
Instructions
For the cinnamon swirl:
- In a small bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon until it forms a thick, scoopable paste. Set aside.
For the cookies:
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and granulated sugar until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and egg. Add flour, baking soda, cornstarch and salt. Mix until a soft dough forms.
- Drop spoonfuls of the cinnamon mixture into the dough and gently fold/swirl with a spatula or your hands. Don’t overmix — you want visible streaks.
- Scoop 20 even cookies and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill in the refrigerator for 45-60 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Spae 2 inches apart as these will spread! Bake for 11-12 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers look slightly underbaked. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack.
For the icing:
- Once cooled, mix icing ingredients and drizzle over the cookies. The icing will set up in 15 minutes.
You say that you bake your cinnamon swirl cookies for 12 minutes on the dot, but in the instructions it says to bake them for 9-10 minutes, which is correct?
Why do my cookies never spread? They bake up in a ball.
You dough may be too cold going into the oven! If the butter is too cold it doesn’t melt fast enough which makes it so the cookies do not spread.
Horrible recipe. Do not make these cookies. Followed the recipe to a T. Too much flour, crumbly dough, even leveled my flour as I usually do. Waste of ingredients.
These turned out beautifully and were amazing