My butter pecan cinnamon rolls are soft and SO cozy with swirls of warming spices drenched in a sticky praline sauce! Let me show you how surprisingly simple they are to make in your kitchen at home.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my fluffy buttermilk cinnamon rolls, too!
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❤️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
Everyday Ingredients - The beauty of this old-fashioned pecan roll recipe is that it will give you bakery-style rolls with just a handful of common ingredients available at any grocery store. And no fancy equipment is needed--you can make them with or without a stand mixer!
Perfect Butter Pecan Flavor - You'll taste that unmistakable sweet, buttery flavor with crunchy glazed pecans that provide a nice contrast to the pillowy-soft rolls. And these are a lil' lighter vs traditional cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting.
I love wowing my family, friends, and neighbors with homemade bakery-style treats. Check out my applesauce crumb muffins, sweet potato pie cinnamon rolls, dark chocolate brownies, and bourbon chocolate chip cookies next!
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Active Dry Yeast gives these rolls lift so that they rise into jumbo-sized buns, and produces a beautiful bready flavor that I couldn't quite get with quick-rise yeast. Both options will work, but the active dry yeast results will be better!
Almond and Vanilla Extracts, plus a bit of bourbon, add subtle, creamy, caramel-like, and nutty flavor notes to the buns.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Vegan - Use dairy-free milk and cream, along with plant-based butter and egg alternatives, to make this recipe vegan.
Mini Rolls - As written, this is a jumbo 12 cinnamon rolls recipe. Or you can make 24 standard-sized rolls by rolling the dough along a long edge instead of a short edge, then cutting the spiral into two dozen pieces.
Overnight - Want to prep your rolls the night before for fresh-baked goodness in the morning? Check out the notes section of my recipe card below for directions on how to do that!
How to Make Pecan Cinnamon Rolls from Scratch
- Step One: Warm the milk, then mix in sugar and yeast and let the mixture get foamy. (Photo 1)
- Step Two: Mix in the remaining ingredients for the dough until uniform, shape into a ball, then cover and let rise in a warm spot in the kitchen until doubled in size. (Photos 2 and 3)
- Step Three: Mix up the brown sugar and spices for the filling. (Photo 4)
Pro Tip #1
For the first rise of the dough, I like to place it near a sunny kitchen window or into the oven (while it's turned off) with the oven light on. These work wonderfully for me without having a professional proofing drawer at home!
- Step Four: Press the excess air out of the risen dough, then shape it into a brick. (Photo 5)
- Step Five: Roll the dough out to about one-third of an inch in thickness, then spread the butter over top, and pat in the brown sugar mixture. (Photos 6 and 7)
- Step Six: Roll the dough into a log, then score in 12 equal sections and cut it into 12 pieces. (Photo 8)
Pro Tip #2
When adding the butter and spices, leave half an inch of space around the perimeter of the dough. This will help the dough seal together at the end of each spiral and keep the flavor inside.
- Step Seven: Place the pieces of dough into a baking dish, cover, and let them rise until doubled in size. (Photos 9 and 10)
Pro Tip #3
I recommend preheating the oven while the rolls rise, and placing them on the stovetop (as long as none of the burners are going) so they can benefit from the warmth radiating from the oven. This tip also saves you a bit of time!
- Step Eight: Melt the butter for the butter pecan glaze, then stir in heavy cream, salt, and brown sugar until uniform. (Photos 11 and 12)
- Step Nine: Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, then simmer and stir in the pecans.
Pro Tip #4
You can make the praline sauce up to two weeks ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator. Warm it up and stir to re-incorporate all the ingredients before adding it to the rolls.
- Step Ten: Bake the rolls until they're golden brown and the filling is gooey. (Photo 15)
- Step Eleven: Pour the sauce over top before serving. (Photo 16)
Frequently Asked Questions
Store the rolls in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap. They will be good for up to two days at room temperature, then in the refrigerator for up to five days. After seven days of storage time, the taste and texture of the rolls may begin to degrade.
To freeze the rolls, cool them to room temperature, then wrap each roll individually with plastic wrap, followed by aluminum foil. For extra protection from potential freezer burn, I like to put all the wrapped rolls in an airtight, freezer-safe container, too. Or, you can wrap the entire pan of rolls altogether with a couple layers of plastic wrap, followed by aluminum foil. Once frozen, they can last for up to three months.
How to Serve
Enjoy your pecan praline rolls freshly-baked and warm for the best taste and soft texture. These are a fun weekend brunch treat, and present beautifully enough to serve at holiday gatherings like Easter brunch or on Christmas morning!
The praline flavor in these pecan sticky buns pairs beautifully with chicory coffee for a sensory transport to the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana.
More Favorite Pecan Praline Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
I hope you'll enjoy these butter pecan cinnamon buns soon and very soon. And sharing is caring, so be sure to pin this recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
Sticky Butter Pecan Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer optional
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 ½ cup milk
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar divided
- 7 grams active dry yeast typically one packet
- 5 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon bourbon whiskey
- ¾ teaspoon almond extract
For the Filling
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
For the Praline Sauce
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¾ teaspoon heavy cream
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
- ¾ cup pecans pieces or chopped
Instructions
- Make the Dough: Warm milk to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, then add to the bowl of a stand mixer. Use a whisk or kitchen spoon to dissolve two tablespoons of granulated sugar in the milk. Stir in yeast and set aside for about 10 minutes or until foamy.*If the milk gets too hot, just remove it from heat and allow it to cool to down between 100 and 120 degrees F before mixing in the sugar and yeast.1 ½ cup milk, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, 7 grams active dry yeast
- Add remaining sugar, flour, eggs, butter, salt, vanilla extract, bourbon, and almond extract, then secure the bowl to the base of your stand mixer and attach the dough hook. Mix at low speed until the mixture starts to become dough-like (about 45s to one minute), then increase to medium speed for about five minutes or until you have a smooth, sticky dough. Use floured hands to remove any dough stuck to the hook, cover the bowl with a damp towel, and set aside in a warm spot to rest and rise until it doubles in size (about one hour).*If you don't have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough by hand on a floured surface for about 10 minutes.5 cups all-purpose flour, 2 eggs, ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon bourbon whiskey, ¾ teaspoon almond extract
- Make the Filling: Mix up the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.¾ cup brown sugar, 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Assemble and Proof the Rolls: Dust your cutting board or work surface with flour. Punch or press the middle of the dough to flatten out air and turn it out onto the floured surface. Flour your hands and rolling pin, then knead the dough for a minute or two, and shape it into a rectangle. Use rolling pin to roll out the dough into a large rectangle that's about 12 x 18 inches and about ⅓ inch thick.
- Spread the butter all over the dough, stopping about half an inch from the edges. Cover the butter with the brown sugar mixture, then gently press it into the butter to help it stick.¾ cup unsalted butter
- Roll the dough, along one of the long edges, into a tight spiral (but don't squeeze the dough so much that it changes shape) until it reaches the other edge. Press that edge of dough against the log to seal it. Use a knife to score the log into 12 equal sections then use the same knife or a string of unflavored dental floss to cut the log into pieces.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line baking dish with parchment paper or grease with a bit of softened butter, then place the rolls in the pan and cover with a damp towel and set in a warm spot to proof until doubled in size (about 25 minutes).*I recommend placing the rolls on the stove to rise (as long as none of the burners are going) while the oven preheats, so they can benefit from the warmth radiating from the oven.
- Bake the Rolls: Uncover the rolls and transfer to oven to bake for about 30 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown, and the cinnamon filling is gooey.
- Make the Pecan Praline Sauce: Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, then stir in the brown sugar, cream, and salt until uniform. Bring the liquid to a boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes to allow it to thicken. Stir in half the pecans, then remove from heat.¾ cup unsalted butter, ¾ cup brown sugar, ¾ teaspoon heavy cream, 1 pinch fine sea salt, ¾ cup pecans
- Finish and Serve: Let the baked cinnamon rolls cool for about 10 minutes, then pour sauce over top, and enjoy warm.
David says
I tried my hand at making cinnamon rolls for the first time with this recipe and they turned out so great. My wife and kids were beyond impressed! Thank you much Jazz—you’ve got a new family of fans.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, David and family! Thank you for your note. So glad y'all enjoyed the cinnamon rolls--these are one of my favorites, too.