Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls
Warm, sweet, and unique Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls are one of my all time favorite breakfast treats! The homemade cinnamon roll dough is baked to fluffy perfection and filled with a boldly flavored bananas foster butter before being topped with sugary icing.
Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls
That can of cinnamon roll dough you have sitting in your fridge has nothing on the real deal! I mean, as much fun as that can is to pop open, the end result is never as fluffy, flavorful, or satisfying as homemade cinnamon rolls. When I’m going to indulge in something as sugary sweet as a cinnamon roll, I want it to be homemade – that way the indulgence is actually worth it!
I’m not exaggerating when I say that these bananas foster cinnamon rolls might just be the best I’ve ever had… Well, I have quite a cinnamon roll few recipes that are near and dear to my heart, but this one is pretty special to me! Not only is the dough pretty perfect here, but it’s also rolled up with a bananas foster buttery filling that makes each bite even better than the last.
If you’ve ever had bananas foster before, you already know the deal. Essentially, this butter is made with key bananas foster ingredients like bananas, bourbon, cinnamon, and vanilla. It’s equal parts warm and sweet, which is the best flavor palate for a buttery cinnamon roll filling! Yes, waiting for the homemade dough to rise may be time consuming, but trust me – the process is so very worth it in the end!
How to Make Them
Prepare the ingredients. In a small bowl, mix together the yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar and water to bloom. Set aside. In a large measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, butter and eggs. Set aside.
Form the dough. Mix the flour, remaining sugar, yeast mixture and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. With the mixer on low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and mix until the dough comes together. About 1 minute.
Knead and let rise. Increase the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and stretchy, approximately 10 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead by hand. Form a smooth, round ball and place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size. Approximately 2-2 1/2 hours.
Butter the dish. Butter a 13×9 inch baking dish and set aside.
Prepare more ingredients. Mix the butter, bananas, bourbon, vanilla and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a separate small bowl and set aside.
Butter the dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press the dough into a 16 by 12 inch rectangle. Spread the butter mixture over the entire surface of the dough and then sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the butter leaving a 3/4 inch border along the top edge. Press down on the sugar mixture to adhere it to the butter.
Roll and chill. Roll the dough into a tight cylinder being sure to push the butter mixture into the dough so it doesn’t get squeezed out, and press the seam closed. Roll the cylinder onto a lightly floured baking sheet, seam side down. Gently stretch the cylinder until it is 18 inches in length, with an even diameter, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Slice the dough. Remove from the refrigerator and pat the ends to even them. Slice the dough into 12 evenly sized rolls using a serrated knife. Arrange the rolls cut side down in the prepared baking dish.
Chill again. Without pressing on the rolls, wrap the baking dish tightly with greased plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 16 hours. You can skip this step if making them the same day.
Let them rise. Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap. Let them sit at room temperature until puffy and almost doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
Bake. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. Turn the rolls out onto a wire rack and let cool for 5-10 minutes before icing.
Make the glaze. In a large bowl, whisk the cream cheese and milk together until thick and smooth. Sift the sugar over the mixture and continue whisking until smooth.
Glaze, and enjoy! Flip the rolls upright and drizzle the glaze over the rolls evenly. Serve immediately.
How long will they stay fresh?
Once they’ve been baked and frosted, you can keep your leftovers cinnamon rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for about 4 days. Enjoy them as they are or pop them into the microwave for a gooey treat!
Do I have to use the bourbon?
You can make the butter filling without bourbon, but then they won’t necessarily be bananas foster cinnamon rolls. They’ll still have plenty of warm banana flavor from the ripe banana and cinnamon, though! However, bourbon is an essential bananas foster ingredient – thanks New Orleans!
How do I freeze them?
After arranging the rolls in the baking dish, cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the rolls have doubled in size, approximately 1 hour. Wrap the dish tightly without pressing on the rolls and freeze up to 1 month. To bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Unwrap the rolls and wrap tightly with foil. Bake the rolls for 20 minutes and then remove the foil and continue baking until golden, an additional 30 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack, cool and ice as directed above.
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Get the Recipe: Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 2 tablespoons yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup buttermilk, warmed to about 110 degrees
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted and cooled
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
For the Bananas Foster Butter and Cinnamon Sugar:
- 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 whole ripe banana, mashed with a fork
- 1 teaspoon bourbon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
For the icing:
- 1 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 3 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
Equipment
- baking dish
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar and water to bloom. Set aside.
- In a large measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, butter and eggs. Set aside.
- Mix the flour, remaining sugar, yeast mixture and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. With the mixer on low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and mix until the dough comes together. About 1 minute.
- Increase the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and stretchy, approximately 10 minutes.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead by hand. Form a smooth, round ball and place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size. Approximately 2-2 1/2 hours.
- Butter a 13×9 inch baking dish and set aside.
- Mix the butter, bananas, bourbon, vanilla and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
- Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a separate small bowl and set aside.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press the dough into a 16 by 12 inch rectangle. Spread the butter mixture over the entire surface of the dough and then sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the butter leaving a 3/4 inch border along the top edge. Press down on the sugar mixture to adhere it to the butter.
- Roll the dough into a tight cylinder being sure to push the butter mixture into the dough so it doesn’t get squeezed out, and press the seam closed. Roll the cylinder onto a lightly floured baking sheet, seam side down. Gently stretch the cylinder until it is 18 inches in length, with an even diameter, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the refrigerator and pat the ends to even them. Slice the dough into 12 evenly sized rolls using a serrated knife. Arrange the rolls, cut side down in the prepared baking dish.
- Without pressing on the rolls, wrap the baking dish tightly with greased plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 16 hours. (You can skip this step if making them the same day.)
- Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap. Let them sit at room temperature until puffy and almost doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. Turn the rolls out onto a wire rack and let cool for 5-10 minutes before icing.
- In a large bowl, whisk the cream cheese and milk together until thick and smooth. Sift the sugar over the mixture and continue whisking until smooth.