These gooey chocolate cinnamon rolls are made with fluffy and soft dough that is filled with a rich chocolate filling and topped with a silky smooth chocolate cream cheese icing.
This recipe is perfect for cinnamon roll lovers and chocolate lovers! Serve these for Christmas morning for a sweet breakfast or as a dessert after a hearty meal.
The combination of these flavors creates a heavenly indulgence that is perfect for breakfast or as a sweet treat any time of the day.
For more cinnamon roll recipes, check out our homemade cinnamon rolls, pumpkin cinnamon rolls, and apple cinnamon rolls with apple pie filling.
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Why this recipe works
- Texture- these rolls have a soft and fluffy dough that turns into a gooey goodness with the buttery and chocolaty filling.
- Chocolate flavor- these rolls have all the chocolate flavor! They are made with chocolate filling, and frosted with chocolate cream cheese glaze.
- Gooey- these rolls are gooey and soft. They will simply melt in your mouth.
- Chocolate cream cheese glaze- these gooey rolls and topped with the most luscious and silky smooth chocolate cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
For the dough
Flour– we used all-purpose flour for this recipe, bread flour is even better.
Yeast- we used instant yeast for this recipe. make sure that your yeast isn't expired.
Sugar- we used granulated sugar for this recipe. You can use caster sugar as well.
Eggs- you will need 2 large eggs for this recipe. Make sure that you use room-temperature eggs in this recipe.
Melted butter- we used unsalted butter for this recipe. If you want to use salted butter, skip the salt in this recipe. Melt the butter over the stovetop or in the microwave and let it cool to room temperature.
Kosher salt- you will need 1 teaspoon of kosher salt for this recipe.
Milk- use whole milk in this recipe.
For the chocolate filling
Soften butter– leave the butter in room temperate for 1 hour, or until it softens.
Powder sugar- You don’t have to buy powdered sugar, you can simply make it at home by blending granulated sugar in a blender or food processor. super easy!
Cinnamon– You will need 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon for the filling.
Dutch cocoa powder– we like to use Dutch-process cocoa powder for this because we like the deep and rich chocolate taste, but natural cocoa powder will work great as well!
Chocolate- use the best quality semisweet or dark chocolate bars for the best flavor. Using the best quality dark chocolate is very important in this recipe.
For the chocolate cream cheese frosting
Cream cheese– you will need to get your cream cheese to room temperature.
Butter– use room-temperature unsalted butter.
Vanilla extract- adds extra flavor. You can use regular vanilla extract or vanilla bean extract.
Powder sugar– powder sugar works best for the frosting.
Instructions
In a bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, dry yeast, and granulated sugar. Mix with a spoon until combined. Add the salt, and mix until combined.
Add the eggs, room-temperature milk, and cooled melted butter. Start mixing on low until the dough forms.
Increase the speed to medium and mix for at least 8 minutes or until the dough is smooth and silky.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for 1-2 hours or until it’s doubled in size (or even tripled in size).
Make the chocolate filling
In a small mixing bowl, add the butter, dark chocolate, powdered sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and cocoa powder, and microwave for 1 ½ minutes or until it's melted.
Mix with a spoon until well combined and until the butter and dark chocolate are completely melted.
Punch the dough down and transfer it to a clean floured surface. Sprinkle flour generously on the dough and roll it into a ¼-inch thick rectangle, making sure that the bottom of the dough doesn’t stick to the surface.
Spread an even layer of the chocolate filling on the rolled dough.
Roll the dough tightly into a log and pinch the edges of the dough to keep the roll sealed tightly. Use a serrated knife or unflavored dental floss and cut the rolls into 12 even rolls.
Place the rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan, cover with a towel, and let the rolls rise until doubled in size.
Remove the towel, and bake the rolls in a 180c (350f) oven for 20-25 minutes or until the tops of the rolls are a bit browned. Don't overbake these so they won't dry out.
Make the chocolate cream cheese frosting
In a medium-sized bowl, add the softened cream cheese, softened butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla extract. Mix with a spoon or a tiny whisk until creamy and smooth.
Top the warm rolls with the cream cheese glaze and serve!
Expert Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and milk. This step ensures that your dough mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with the back of a knife.
- Don't overheat your milk! Overheating your milk is one of the most common mistakes in making cinnamon rolls. If you heat your milk over 110f, it might kill your yeast and stop your dough from rising.
- Make sure that your ingredients are fresh! Make sure that your flour and yeast are fresh and not expired. This step ensures that you will have great dough to work with.
- Be patient! Let the dough rise at least until it doubles its size. The more the dough rises, the more fluffy the cinnamon rolls will be.
- Make sure that your yeast isn’t expired. You can check if your yeast is expired by mixing a teaspoon of dry yeast with ¼ cup of room temperature water, waiting 10 minutes, and if the yeast has bubbles in it and it puffed a bit, your yeast is alive and good, if there are no bubbles in your yeast mixture, your yeast is probably expired.
Faq's
The milk should be warm to the touch. We suggest using whole milk for this recipe.
If you warm up your milk too much, it can kill the yeast, so either use room temperature milk or measure the temperature of the milk with a thermometer, it shouldn't go past 100f.
You can knead the dough by hand! Start by mixing the ingredients in a big mixing bowl, then transfer the dough to a clean floured surface and knead the dough for at least 10 minutes, or until the dough is super smooth and elastic.
After you roll and cut your rolls and place them into your baking pan, cover them with plastic wrap, and place them in the fridge.
The next day, remove them from the fridge and let them come to room temperature (for about an hour) before baking.
The best flour for cinnamon rolls and for yeasted dough is bread flour. It contains a higher percentage of gluten which is the protein in the flour that makes the dough silky, stretchy, and smooth.
All-purpose flour works great for this recipe as well.
Storing
It’s okay to store these cinnamon rolls at room temperature for up to 3 days. Make sure that you store the rolls in an airtight container so they won’t dry out.
Freezing
Freeze these after they cooled completely in an airtight freezer-friendly container for up to 3 months.
I suggest removing the rolls from the pan and placing them in an airtight container or wrapping them with a few layers of plastic wrap.
Thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for a few hours and reheat it in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 5-10 minutes.
Reheating
Place the cinnamon rolls on a plate and reheat them in the microwave for 20 seconds, these warm-up great and taste amazing for 4 days.
Substitutions
Dairy-free- you can make this dairy-free by replacing the milk with vegan milk, cream cheese with vegan cream cheese, and the butter with vegan butter.
Variations
Add-ins- make this recipe your own and add your favorite add-ins: white chocolate chips, chopped nuts, chopped fruit, chopped chocolate, etc.
Toppings- these can be topped with cream cheese frosting, cinnamon cream cheese frosting, or maple cream cheese frosting. Use your favorite toppings that you like to make the most.
Heavy cream- to make these rolls even more decadent, add ½ cup of heavy cream on top of the unbaked rolls just before you bake them. This will add moisture and make these rolls extra gooey.
Equipment
More chocolate recipes
Fudgy brownie pie- This brownie pie is made with a flakey and buttery dough and is filled with a fudgy, rich, and chocolaty brownie filling.
Fudgy brownie bites- These brownie bites are moist, fudgy, and full of chocolate flavor! They are gooey in the center and have a crackly brownie-like top!
Chocolate Brooklyn Blackout Cake- This Brooklyn blackout cake is a rich chocolate cake that is filled with luxurious chocolate pudding and frosted with chocolate frosting.
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If you liked this recipe
📖 Recipe
Gooey Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the dough
- 5 cups Flour AP or bread flour
- 1 tablespoon Instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ⅓ cup Granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ cups Milk
- ¼ cup Butter melted and cooled, unsalted
- 2 Eggs
For the chocolate filling
- 3 oz Butter unsalted, room temp
- 3 tablespoon Cocoa powder
- ½ cup Powder sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 5.3 oz Dark chocolate
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon optional
For the chocolate cream cheese glaze
- ¼ cup Butter unsalted, room temp
- 4.2 oz Cream cheese room temp
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups Powdered sugar
- ⅓ cup Cocoa powder
Instructions
- In a bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, dry yeast, and granulated sugar. Mix with a spoon until combined. Add the salt, and mix until combined.
- Add the eggs, room-temperature milk, and cooled melted butter. Start mixing on low until the dough forms.
- Increase the speed to medium and mix for at least 8 minutes or until the dough is smooth and silky.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for 1-2 hours or until it’s doubled in size (or even tripled in size).
Make the chocolate filling
- In a small mixing bowl, add the butter, dark chocolate, powdered sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and cocoa powder, and microwave for 1 ½ minutes or until it's melted.
- Mix with a spoon until well combined and until the butter and dark chocolate are completely melted.
- Punch the dough down and transfer it to a clean floured surface. Sprinkle flour generously on the dough and roll it into a ¼-inch thick rectangle, making sure that the bottom of the dough doesn’t stick to the surface.
- Spread an even layer of the chocolate filling on the rolled dough.
- Roll the dough tightly into a log and pinch the edges of the dough to keep the roll sealed tightly. Use a serrated knife or unflavored dental floss and cut the rolls into 12 even rolls.
- Place the rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan, cover with a towel, and let the rolls rise until doubled in size.
- Remove the towel, and bake the rolls in a 180c (350f) oven for 20-25 minutes or until the tops of the rolls are a bit browned. Don't overbake these so they won't dry out.
Make the chocolate cream cheese frosting
- In a medium-sized bowl, add the softened cream cheese, softened butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla extract. Mix with a spoon or a tiny whisk until creamy and smooth.
- Top the warm rolls with the cream cheese glaze and serve!
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and milk. This step ensures that your dough mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with the back of a knife.
- Don't overheat your milk! Overheating your milk is one of the most common mistakes in making cinnamon rolls. If you heat your milk over 110f, it might kill your yeast and stop your dough from rising.
- Make sure that your ingredients are fresh! Make sure that your flour and yeast are fresh and not expired. This step ensures that you will have great dough to work with.
- Be patient! Let the dough rise at least until it doubles its size. The more the dough rises, the more fluffy the cinnamon rolls will be.
- Make sure that your yeast isn’t expired. You can check if your yeast is expired by mixing a teaspoon of dry yeast with ¼ cup of room temperature water, waiting 10 minutes, and if the yeast has bubbles in it and it puffed a bit, your yeast is alive and good, if there are no bubbles in your yeast mixture, your yeast is probably expired.
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