Dutch Oven Cinnamon Rolls
Easy and delicious Dutch Oven Cinnamon Rolls have the ooey-gooey classic flavor you love, whether camping or at home.
This post has been updated from its original May 16, 2017 publishing with new photography, content, and clarified recipe card.
Disclaimer, just so you don’t get mad at me later!
These are addictively delicious! And dripping with the most amazing cinnamon-sugar frosting mixture.
Now that the warning or disclaimer is out of the way, these Dutch Oven Cinnamon Rolls are not a tradition cinnamon roll. You know the swirling bread with a layer of cinnamon-sugar between it’s fluffy layers.
Our version is a riff on those, created for a tasty dessert or sweet breakfast while camping.
We wanted that classic taste we all know and love, but something much simpler while cooking outdoors.
Turns out, these are so amazing, I might not ever make them in the traditional way again…you might not either.
How to Make Dutch Oven Cinnamon Rolls
These cinnamon holes, which is what they really are, are really easy to make, but they do require a bit of forethought.
We use frozen dinner rolls. Yes you read that right. Frozen Dinner Rolls. NOT frozen cinnamon rolls (although, we’ve done that once and they’re delicious too.)
Depending on how warm your kitchen or campsite is, the dough needs to sit in the Dutch oven (or skillet) for 2-3 hours to rise.
Use about a tablespoon of softened butter to coat the inside of the DO or skillet. I like to be generous since removing them is easier the more it’s coated and the extra butter just helps with the their richness.
Place the frozen dough balls in, however you can make them fit.
However, the more space you leave them, the bigger and fluffier they’ll bake up. Our regular 6 quart DO and 12-inch skillet can fit between 21-24 frozen dough balls.
The smallest package of rolls I could find was 36, so perhaps you want to make a double batch or just toss the rest back in the freezer for another use.
Top the dough with brown sugar, taking a bit of care to get it in the nooks and crannies between the rolls.
Then sprinkle the cinnamon over the brown sugar.
And finally, if you’re using pecans, spread them over the top as well.
Drizzle the melted butter all over the top of the sweetened dough. The butter-coated sides along with the melted butter will create the tasty sticky sugary sauce you’ll have at the end.
Once they’re all arranged and topped, cover them with either the DO or skillet lid or a kitchen towel. Allow them to sit out and rise. They will increase in size as they thaw.
The more space they have to expand, the more room they’ll take…much like a child or pet who crawls into your bed at night.
Insert the Jeopardy music while they rise over the next 2-3 hours.
Pre-heat your oven to 350°F about 10 minutes or however long your oven takes to heat up, before you want to bake them.
If cooking over coals, prepare them in advance, so it’s ready to go when you are.
Cover with the Dutch oven with its lid or foil and bake for 20 minutes. They could take up to 30, depending on your oven or coals consistency and how well you packed the pan.
Once they’re fully baked, remove them from the oven or coals and let sit. WITHOUT opening the lid or foil.
While they’re resting, slightly warm the pre-made cream cheese frosting. Once it’s warm, stir in the cream to thin it.
Drizzle the icing over the top of the still HOT cinnamon rolls.
If you want to be really decadent, you can sprinkle a bit of cinnamon-sugar blend over the drizzled icing. But this isn’t necessary to fully enjoy this delectable treat.
Serve (with a lot of napkins) and enjoy.
Dutch Oven Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- 12-inch camp oven OR 6 quart Dutch Oven
- 12-inch cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter softened
- 24 frozen, unbaked rolls We used Rhodes
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- ½ cup butter melted or see notes.
- 2 tbsp heavy cream half and half or milk will work too.
- 8 oz cream cheese frosting
- 1 tsp Cinnamon-sugar blend (optional)
Instructions
Assembly
- Arrange frozen dinner rolls in the pot/pan
- Sprinkle the brown sugar over the top of each dough ball; repeating with the cinnamon and the pecans.
- Pour the melted butter over the top.
- Let stand for at least 2 hours allowing the rolls to double in size.
Oven baked
- Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
- Assemble the rolls. (see above)
- Cover with a lid or foil and bake for 30 minutes or until cooked through.
Outdoor camp oven
- Heat coals in a charcoal chimney.
- Once hot, place 12 coals on bottom (camp table, fire pit, etc).
- Nestle camp oven on top of the coals.
- Assemble the rolls. (see above)
- Cover with the camp oven lid.
- Place heated coals over the entire lid.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until cooked through.
- When done, using a lid lifter, remove from coals.
Glazing the rolls
- Add the premade frosting to a heat-safe bowl, and warm slightly.
- Stir in the cream to thin the icing.
- Drizzle the icing over the warm cinnamon rolls.
- If using, sprinkle with the optional cinnamon-sugar blend.
- Serve warm; drizzled the buttery-cinnamon sauce from the pan over the rolls.
Notes
Nutrition
Dutch Oven Daddy is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Quick and Easy Desserts
If you love these quick and easy Dutch Oven Cinnamon rolls, then you just might these other sweet treats pulling double duty as a breakfast (or snack) and dessert.
- Skillet Cherry Clafoutis
- Orange Cardamom Concha Bread (Pan Dulce) from The Complete Savorist
- Slow Cooker Baked Apples from The Magical Slow Cooker
- Easy Cherry Cheese Danish from Family Fresh Meals
- Air Fryer Donut Bites from The Rockstar Mommy
- Skillet Sweet Cherry Rolls
- Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Muffins from The Complete Savorist
- Slow Cooker Scalloped Apples from The Magical Slow Cooker
- Strawberry Banana Bread from Family Fresh Meals
- Cast Iron Cinnamon Apples
Ned, this looks to die for! I will definitely give this one a go!
Thank you so much! I think you will enjoy this recipe very much.
I made these for dessert for Thanksgiving. What a hit!!!!! I will have to make them a few more times to get into their rhythm! And give it a few “me” tweaks!!!
Thank you for posting this recipe!!! Love it!!!
I’m so glad you took this recipe to the Thanksgiving table and everyone enjoyed! Thank you for the feedback, excited to see what “me” tweaks you end up with as well. 🙂
Omg these cinnamon rolls were gooey, moist and perfectly sweet!! Our kids devoured them when we served them at breakfast!
Cinnamon rolls are my favourite indulgence and this looks like an amazing way to cook them.
What a great idea. I had no clue that you could make these in a dutch oven. Perfect for camping.
These have blown me away! We love cinnamon rolls but this recipe was definitely head and shoulders above other we tried! Must be the dutch oven working its magic!
Cinnamon bun perfection! So gooey, fluffy and sweet!