How To Reheat Cinnamon Rolls The RIGHT Way

Baking can be so fun and the treats you make are more than a worthy reward, yet sometimes you may not be able to eat them all at once. This leads to baked treats such as cinnamon rolls and bread having a change in texture. Most baked goods are better when freshly baked or warm, so a lot of people try to reheat them.

Table of Contents

• What are Cinnamon Rolls
  • Why do Cinnamon Rolls Go Stale?
• Is it Safe to Reheat Cinnamon Rolls?
  • Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in an Oven
  • Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in an Air Fryer
  • Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in a Microwave
  • Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in a Toaster Oven
• What is The Best Way to Reheat Cinnamon Rolls?
• FAQs on Reheating Cinnamon Rolls
• BONUS: My New Favourite Cinnamon Roll Recipe – VIDEO Walkthrough

What are Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls are a sweet baked dough that has a cinnamon-sugar filling. They are also found coated in a cream cheese frosting or a sugar glaze. The dough used to make cinnamon rolls is typically puff pastry, although a lot of baking retailers will sell tubes of cinnamon roll or cinnamon swirl dough that is ready for immediate use.

Cinnamon rolls are easily identifiable by their main characteristic of having a swirling pattern on them from how the dough was rolled after being covered in a cinnamon-sugar filling. This exact pattern is also why they can be called cinnamon swirls in some places.

Despite being commonly found with a sugar glaze on the top, there are a lot of other options for toppings and glazes for a cinnamon roll. You can choose to break up the sweet flavor of the filling by topping the roll with pecans or peanuts. This not only gives the roll a crunchy texture but also adds a different flavor to the entire roll.

If you want to go in the completely opposite direction and embrace the sweet nature of this roll, then you can opt to top it with chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, or sprinkles instead. If you want to be really fancy and over the top, you can top the cinnamon rolls with chocolate sauce and then add miniature marshmallows and sprinkles to it. This will look amazing and also be really nice, although slightly sickly.

Why do Cinnamon Rolls Go Stale?

Cinnamon rolls, and all other baked goods, will eventually go stale due to how the starch molecules in them react with moisture. Once introduced to moisture, starch molecules will start to harden and crystalize. This happens when bread is left out on the counter as the humidity in the air slowly turns the bread stale.

There is not much that can be done about this, other than keeping the baked goods in an airtight container. Although, a lot of shortening products such as lard, butter, fat, and milk are known to increase the shelf life of baked goods.

Is it Safe to Reheat Cinnamon Rolls?

Not being able to eat all of your baked goods while they are fresh and hot is a terrible feeling as almost all baked treats are better when they are warm. While this is an annoyance, there is a way to try and get them back to their former glory.

Reheating food is always a spot for controversy as some foods should never be reheated. Others can be reheated but are noticeably lower in quality afterward. Thankfully, cinnamon rolls are not on the list of food you should never reheat, and while they will never be in their prime again, you can get pretty close.

Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in an Oven

Easily one of the best ways to reheat a lot of food is by using an oven. An oven cooks food with dry heat which is better for heating the entire item evenly. Using an oven is how you will get your cinnamon rolls as close as possible to how they once were.

To do this:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Once that is heating up, prepare a baking tray and line it with parchment paper or baking sheets.
2. This is where it gets weird but trust me, it works. Use aluminum foil to wrap each cinnamon roll. The foil stops any moisture from escaping and will also prevent the tops from burning. Before you wrap each of your cinnamon rolls individually in aluminum foil, pour a tablespoon of water over them. This water will help them retain moisture while being heated up.
3. Optionally, alongside the tablespoon of water, you can also add icing to your cinnamon rolls. It can be whatever flavor you want and it is up to you how much you use. After the water and icing have been put on your rolls, wrap them up in aluminum foil. Properly cover them and place them on your baking tray.
4. Place your baking tray in the center of the oven and let them warm up for 10-15 minutes. Reheating in the oven leads to the best results when compared to freshly baked cinnamon rolls. Using icing and water is also a great way to help revive stale or old buns.

The oven produces a result almost as good as original cinnamon rolls, yet it is also the method that requires the most work. It is not convenient if you just want a quick snack so this method is not for everyone. However, if you are willing to put the work in then you will certainly reap the rewards.

Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in an Air Fryer

Not everyone has access to an air fryer. But those that do will never stop marveling in the brilliance of using one. They are almost hassle-free and heat food incredibly well in impressive time. An air fryer not only makes dinner easier, but you can also use one to reheat cinnamon rolls.

This method is a bit like the oven method but without the wrapping aluminum foil step.

1. Place a sheet of baking paper under the cinnamon roll before placing it in the air fryer. This will help make sure there is no mess.
2. Once you have the parchment paper and cinnamon roll in the air fryer, pour a tablespoon of water over the top of your roll and again, optionally, apply any icing or butter that you want.
3. After it is all prepared and ready, turn it on at 350 degrees F and let it cook for roughly 5 minutes.

This method is not as effective as using an oven but it is noticeably easier. Despite being easier, you can only do one cinnamon roll at a time in the air fryer whereas an oven lets you do a batch at a time.

Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in a Microwave

The method of how to reheat baked goods in the microwave has split a lot of people into 2 tactics. You can use the iconic glass of water trick, or you can wrap the item in a damp paper towel.

While the glass is a lot easier to use, wrapping your baked good with a damp paper towel will retain so much more moisture, that it is a no-brainer as to which method to use out of the two.

1. To start this, you will need a microwave-safe plate. Put your cinnamon roll on this and then optionally cover it with icing or butter.
2. Now you will need to grab a paper towel and wet it under the tap. Once it is saturated, you need to simply wring it out so it is damp instead of wet.
3. Once you have your damp paper towel, place this over the top of your cinnamon roll and microwave it on high for 10 seconds at a time. This should be done fairly quickly but the cinnamon roll will be very hot. Remove the plate from the microwave and throw the damp paper towel in the trash.
4. You can let your cinnamon roll sit for a bit to cool down slightly.

The cinnamon roll will come out brilliantly from the microwave. But if it sits for too long it will noticeably shrivel up. If you are going to eat this immediately after it reheats, then the microwave might be the quickest and most convenient method.

Reheat Cinnamon Rolls in a Toaster Oven

This method is incredibly similar to that of the oven method. The only difference is that you will not be able to do a batch at a time and will instead be restricted to one.

The steps are almost the same.

1. You need to preheat your toaster oven to 350 degrees F and prepare your cinnamon roll.
2. By now you should predict what I’m about to say. You should pour a tablespoon of water over your cinnamon roll alongside icing or butter if you choose to.
3. Once your oven is fully heated, wrap the cinnamon roll completely in aluminum foil. Place it inside the toaster oven for 10 minutes before checking them.

What is The Best Way to Reheat Cinnamon Rolls?

While this entirely depends on your definition of ‘best’, the two clear winners are both the oven and microwave.

If you are looking for quality then the oven is by far the best for producing good results. However, if you are looking to do it quickly without sacrificing too much time, then the microwave will help out for sure.

There’s more on the blog for you to read!

• Can You Put Foil In A Toaster

FAQs on Reheating Cinnamon Rolls

BONUS: My New Favourite Cinnamon Roll Recipe – VIDEO Walkthrough

Enjoy!