In the morning, I reach for whole grains. Sweet things rarely appeal to me in general, and even less so first thing in the morning. But, every once in a while, a craving comes out of nowhere so quickly that it shocks me. I need: butter, cinnamon, and three kinds of sugar.
So, naturally, it’s cinnamon roll time! Now, of course there are premade rolls that come in tubes that you need to thwack against the counter with your face averted. Homemade cinnamon rolls aren’t those. Cinnamon rolls made from flour are soft and chewy with a sweet glaze that makes your kitchen smell like the best version you could possibly imagine of your home (in such a world, there are no dust bunnies under the couch, the cats never yowl for treats during video calls, and the dishes put themselves away).
And that, folks, is what warm cinnamon rolls bring to the table, along with delicious flavors that will put a grin on your face and–quite possibly–a song in your heart.
Best Flour for Cinnamon Rolls At a Glance
| Flour Ingredien-ts | Texture | Availability | Price per Ounce | Best For | |
| Hannaford | Enriched Bleach Wheat Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononi-trate, Riboflavin, and Folic Acid), Malted Barley Flour | Soft and aerated with no clumps. | At stores in New England and New York. | .04 per ounce | Cookies and cakes |
| Gold Medal | Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin (a B vitamin), Iron, Thiamin Mononi-trate (vitamin B1), Riboflavin (vitamin B2), Enzymes, Folic Acid (a B vitamin). | Soft and aerated with no clumps. | Widely available at main-stream grocery stores: Target, Kroger, Amazon, Walmart. | .08 cents per ounce | Cookies, cakes, and brownies |
| King Arthur Flour | Unbleach-ed Hard Red Wheat Flour, Enzyme** Enzyme added for improved yeast baking perfor-mance. | Soft and aerated with very little clumping. | Widely available at all major grocery stores: Target, Amazon, Walmart, and Kroger. | .08 cents per ounce | Rustic sourdough or popovers |
| Bob’s Red Mill | Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour or Enzyme*, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononi-trate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid). CONTAINS: Wheat. *Enzyme added for improved yeast baking perfor-mance. | Soft and aerated with very little clumping. | Widely available at all major grocery stores: Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Kroger | .13 per ounce of organic flour, and .09 cents per ounce for the non-organic all-purpose flour. | Dessert recipes that need a little wheaty flavor to offset the sweetness, rustic breads, and sweet or savory popovers |
Why the Flour Type Is So Important
While the cinnamon and the icing are the flashy stars of the cinnamon roll experience, the flour is the set designer of the production. No matter how great the stars sing and dance, without a platform they’re going to be performing on a couple of pieces of plywood. And no one wants that. Give them a beautiful stage!
So, the type of flour used for the rolls themselves is a big part of your cinnamon roll experience. And while it’s tempting to think “flour is just flour,” it’s really not. Flour types have different protein content, and while that can be great for extra structure with some baked goods, it can make others a little less supple.
And because everyone wants the best cinnamon rolls possible, I set out to see which flour would work the best for these delectable treats.
How I Tested Flour for Cinnamon Rolls
I went shopping and grabbed one bag each of King Arthur, Gold Medal, Bob’s Red Mill, and since I was there, my local store brand, Hannaford.
I purchased all the local flour from my local grocer. And I’m not sure whether they were out or just don’t stock non-organic Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Flour. So, I grabbed the organic flour because that’s what was there. However, if I’d gone to another store, I could have found the non-organic all-purpose flour there for $6.99. So, because the organic flour is more expensive, these numbers aren’t a true one-to-one comparison.
I used the same recipe for each batch and cut the slices all the same size (hello, kitchen ruler! You don’t get enough love!). Then I baked them all in the same-sized 10-inch cake pans. And much like a parent who loves their children equally, they all were delicious but had their own personalities.
Hannaford Store Brand
About the flour: It’s both rated kosher and it has a “sustainable” rating.
These were just straight up delicious. The dough was super soft and practically rolled itself out in a smooth sheet across the counter. The cinnamon rolls baked up to be both soft and sturdy with an airy quality that really played well with the filling and glaze.
Pros
· Soft, fluffy and aerated
· Dough rolls out smoothly and easily
· Neutral flavor
Cons
· While the neutral flavor might work well for some baked goods like cookies, it might not stand up to overly sweet items where a little “flavor pushback” would be called for like powdered sugar donuts.
· Also, because of the delicate crumb it might be better for something like an Irish Soda Bread, rather than a No-Knead Boule.
Gold Medal Flour
About the flour: If you won a top prize in 1880 at your first international millers’ competition, why not name the company after that amazing success? And Gold Medal Flour, with its blend of hard and soft wheat, has been making bakers happy for 146 years.
These baked up soft and sturdy as well, and they did have a slightly sentimental taste that gave me the urge to pick up the phone and call a friend from high school. They were soft and the edges tore off into perfect little rounds with one side covered by the glaze, and the other with the cinnamon butter combination.
Talk about a great bite of food! In other words, the Gold Medal rolls perfectly exemplified the company’s motto: “Quality Flours and Timeless Heritage.”
Pros
· Soft and aerated.
· Is very forgiving for the beginning baker.
· Rolls out smoothly and easily in a dough.
Cons
· The protein content is approximately 10.5%, so it’s slightly better for tender items like flaky pie crusts or galettes rather than a hearty sourdough or a super chewy cinnamon roll.
· Some bakers may prefer a more aggressive flavor.
King Arthur Flour
About the flour: What started as Henry Wood & Company in 1790, morphed into King Arthur Flour in 1896, making it the first food company in New England. The flour is unbleached and has no artificial preservatives. Fun fact: Their all-purpose flour has 11.7% protein, which is higher than many brands and is close to the protein of bread flour at 12%-14%.
When I rolled these out, I could practically feel the little bit of extra protein in the flour. No surprise then, when I pulled them out of the oven and these rolls had baked up to be robust and hearty. And once I tasted the King Arthur Flour rolls my first thought was, “is there such a thing as a breakfast tea sandwich? Because these would be amazing cut in half and slathered with a little butter and thinly sliced apples.”
Pros
· At 11.7% protein, it’s great for hearty and rustic breads.
· It’s a solid all-purpose flour for cookies, scones, pizza dough, and sweet or savory popovers.
· It’s also great for stuffed breads and chewy breads like black olive ciabattas or cheddar jalapeno bagels.
Cons
· Because of the high protein content, it’s not the best candidate for delicate things like chiffon cakes, puff pastry, or sponge cakes.
· Slightly more expensive than other brands.
Bob’s Red Mill
About the flour: Clocking in with a protein content of 10%-12%, Bob’s Red Mill creates a great gluten structure for hearty breads, while being soft enough to handle pastries and other more delicate baked goods. And here’s a fun factoid: they have a rigorous sifting process to make the flour pure white without any chemicals.
These cinnamon rolls were just fabulous. The flour had just a touch more wheat flavor, which meant it could hold its own against the three types of sugar in the bread and in the glaze. The Bob’s Red Mill flour also baked up sturdily and had a great chew. Conversely, it had a light crumb that practically begged to be dunked in a cup of tea. Utterly delicious and a great vehicle for the sweetness and cinnamon goodness.
Pros
· With protein levels at 10-12%, it’s great for things as varied as Baozi (steamed dumplings), sweet or savory popovers, or hearty, crisp, and chewy baguettes.
· It has a slightly “wheatier” taste than some other flour brands.
· It’s also great for cookies, pancakes, waffles, and pizza crust.
Cons
· Because of the slightly “wheatier” taste, it’s not the best go-to option for really delicate bites of food like macarons or madeleines.
· With the high protein content, it can add a touch too much chew to flaky things like scallion pancakes.
How to Choose the Right Flour for Your Next Batch of Cinnamon Rolls
Best Overall: Bob’s Red Mill They had a little bit more of a wheaty bite, which perfectly offset the sweetness of the filling and glaze.
Best for Handling: Store Brand (Hannaford) The dough was soft and incredibly easy to work with both while mixing and rolling out. It handled like a dream and baked into some majorly tasty cinnamon rolls.
Best for Soft Cinnamon Rolls: Gold Medal These guys were little bites of pillowy perfection, and they had a slight nostalgic feel, like going to a diner after school.
Best for Heartiness: King Arthur Flour These could have been sliced in half and stuffed with apple slices for a fantastic breakfast sandwich.
Cinnamon rolls are one of the more approachable recipes. They do take a little time to put together, but that’s not really a problem. We all have podcasts to check out, books or music to listen to, and the time is mostly hands-off time. So heck, you can even take a stroll around the neighborhood and go out for a cup of coffee.
Just think of the rising time on these as “you time.” For hands-on baking you’re just going to roll out the dough, sprinkle it with a brown sugar/butter/cinnamon combination, roll it up, slice it up, and put the rounds in a pan for the aforementioned rise. And, you can nearly do that with one hand behind your back!
Still, they do require some effort, so you want to put some thought into the flour that’s going to be the base of this classic treat. If you want soft and tender rolls, go with Hannaford or Gold Medal. If you want something that’s a little extra hearty, go with King Arthur. But, if you want rolls with just a touch more grain flavor that can hold its own against three types of sugar (and a stick of butter), Bob’s Red Mill is the way to go.
