Cinnamon Roll Focaccia
Two incredible experiences in one warm bite: soft, puffy focaccia and gooey-sweet cinnamon rolls. And thanks to store-bought dinner rolls, this show-stopping treat is super easy to make.
This is a sponsored post for Rhodes Bake N Serv. All opinions are mine.
This is the ultimate marriage of two favorites. If you like both chewy focaccia and warm cinnamon rolls, this recipe is for you. We coat fluffy dough with buttery cinnamon-sugar and, after a quick bake, chewy, cinnamony, vanilla-glazed cinnamon roll focaccia is born. And using frozen dinner rolls means there’s no need to make yeast dough from scratch – which can be quite messy and ultra time-consuming.
What type of dinner rolls should you use? I used Rhodes Thaw, Rise & Bake frozen dinner rolls because they’re doughy soft and bake up perfectly every time. Simply nestle 22 rolls in a baking dish and allow them to rise. Once they’ve doubled in size, it’s easy to press them down to create that cherished, dimpled focaccia dough.
Give yourself time to thaw the rolls. The rising time for these rolls will depend on the temperature of your kitchen, and will take anywhere from 3 to 5 hours. While package instructions give an overnight, refrigerator thawing option, I prefer to thaw these rolls at room temperature to ensure puffy, doughy dimples in the dough. When thawing in the refrigerator, the dough is too chilled to create fluffy dimples. Simply plan ahead and you’ll be rewarded every time.
The vanilla glaze for this focaccia is creamy and fabulous. While this cinnamon roll focaccia is still warm, we drizzle over a creamy, vanilla-scented glaze. It’s delightfully sweet and the vanilla partners beautifully with the cinnamon. If you prefer cream cheese in your cinnamon roll frosting, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese to the mixture and thin out with cream (or milk) as needed.
The brown sugar topping takes the cake! Sorry for the pun, but a simple blend of butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon creates the ultimate cinnamon roll experience for this focaccia. And we sprinkle the mixture over the dough, so there’s no rolling or fussing with cinnamon roll spirals. You can enjoy the warm deliciousness of cinnamon rolls, without all the work. And if you like nuts on your cinnamon rolls, add 1/2 cup chopped walnuts to the brown sugar topping.
How should you store this cinnamon roll focaccia? There’s no doubt this focaccia is best eaten warm, but leftovers are certainly welcome anytime. Once cool, wrap your focaccia in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days. For warm focaccia, simply reheat slices in the microwave.
Cinnamon Roll Focaccia
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter, softened and divided
- 22 frozen dinner rolls, such as Rhodes Thaw, Rise & Bake Frozen Dinner Rolls, kept frozen until ready to use
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil, such as avocado oil or vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
For the vanilla glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered, confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream, or milk, or more if needed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Coat a 13×9-inch baking pan with 2 tablespoons of the softened butter. Spread the butter out to coat the bottom of the pan.
- Arrange the dinner rolls in the prepared pan. Brush the top of the rolls with the oil.
- Coat a piece of plastic wrap with cooking spray (or more oil) and arrange over the rolls, oiled-side down.
- Let the rolls rise in a warm, draft-free place until they have doubled in size, about 3 to 5 hours. The actual time will depend on the temperature of your kitchen.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove and discard the plastic wrap. Using your fingers, punch the rolls down, deflating them while making fingerprints (dimples) in the dough, all the way to the bottom of the pan.
- In a small bowl, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon and mix well (use your fingers to create a fine crumble). Sprinkle the mixture all over the top of the dough.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until puffed up and golden brown.
- Meanwhile, to make the glaze, in a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla until smooth. If you prefer a thinner glaze, whisk in more cream (or milk).
- Cool the focaccia for 5 minutes before drizzling some of the glaze over top. Serve the remaining glaze on the side.