These apple cinnamon scrolls skip the yeast and the waiting around, just 25 minutes and you've got warm, glazed scrolls on the bench.
If sweet scrolls are your thing, my Banana Bread and ABCD Muffins are two more lunchbox favourites worth adding to the rotation.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
✅ Recipe Name: Apple & Cinnamon Scrolls
🕒 Ready In: 25 minutes
👪 Serves: 10
🔥 Calories: 321kcal per serve
🥣 Main Ingredients: self-raising flour, butter, milk, apple, cinnamon
🌿 Dietary: vegetarian
⭐ Why You'll Love It: no yeast, no proving, bakery-style scrolls that come together in one bowl.
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This is the most delicious thing I have ever baked! Highly recommend!
- Sarah
Sarah's far from the only fan, one reader even said she made these for the nurses at work and they went down a treat.
If savoury scrolls are more your speed, my Cheese and Vegemite Scrolls and Ham and Cheese Scrolls use the same easy no-yeast dough.
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Why You're Going To Love This Recipe
- No Yeast, No Proving - self-raising flour means these go straight in the oven, no waiting around for dough to rise.
- Basic, Budget-Friendly Ingredients - you've probably got everything in the pantry already.
- Classic Flavour - apple, brown sugar and cinnamon, an easy crowd pleaser.
- Freezer-Friendly - make a double batch and freeze the extras for later, see my Recipe Tips below.
- Conventional and Thermomix - both methods are in the recipe card.
Scroll Ingredients
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredient quantities and full detailed method.
Most of this is basic pantry stuff, but here are the ones worth a mention:
- Self-raising flour - make sure it's fresh, old self-raising flour loses its rising power and your scrolls won't puff up properly. In a pinch, you can make your own self raising flour by adding 2 teaspoons of baking powder to every cup of plain flour.
- Apple - chop it small and use a variety that holds its shape when cooked, like Granny Smith, Royal Gala or Fuji. A soft apple like Red Delicious will turn to mush and make the scrolls soggy.
- Icing sugar - use pure icing sugar rather than icing sugar mixture for the glaze, it sets firmer and gives you that classic bakery finish.
Variations
- Plain cinnamon scrolls - leave out the apple entirely if you'd rather keep it simple.
- Pear and cinnamon - swap the apple for a firm pear, chopped the same way.
- Cream cheese glaze - beat 60g softened cream cheese with the icing sugar and a splash of milk instead of water for a richer, tangier topping.
- Mini scrolls - cut into 12 smaller pieces instead of 8, they'll also cook through a little faster.
- Freeze for later - make a double batch and freeze a whole tray unglazed, or wrap individual baked scrolls for the lunchbox. Freeze for up to 3 months and defrost at room temperature.
How To Make Apple & Cinnamon Scrolls
No yeast, no proving, just a bit of rolling and rubbing in.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredient quantities and full detailed method (plus the Thermomix version).
- Step 1: Rub in the butter. Preheat the oven to 210°C fan-forced and grease a 20cm round tin. Sift the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.
- Step 2: Add the milk. Mix in the milk to form a soft dough. Handle it as little as possible; overworking it makes the scrolls dense.
- Step 3: Roll and fill. On a floured board, roll the dough into a 5mm thick rectangle, this thickness matters, any thicker and the centre won't cook through. Spread over the cinnamon butter mixture.
- Step 4: Add the apple. Sprinkle the finely chopped apple evenly over the cinnamon sugar layer, keep the pieces small so they cook through in time.
- Step 5: Roll, cut and bake. Roll the dough up into a log and cut into 8-12 scrolls. Place cut-side up in the tin, letting them touch (this helps them rise), and bake for 15 minutes until golden.
- Step 6: Glaze. Mix the icing sugar with hot water into a smooth paste and drizzle over the warm scrolls with a spoon.
Recipe Tips
- Centre still doughy? This is the most common issue readers hit. Roll the dough to a genuine 5mm thickness, dice the apple small so it doesn't add extra moisture, and cut into 10-12 smaller scrolls rather than 8 big ones. If they still look doughy in the middle once golden on top, cover loosely with foil and bake for another 3-5 minutes.
- Don't overwork the dough - mix and knead just until it comes together; overworking makes the scrolls dense instead of soft.
- Let the scrolls touch in the tin - this helps them rise up rather than spread out.
- They're ready when golden on top, and they sound slightly hollow when tapped.
- Storage - keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Freezing - freeze baked scrolls (glazed or unglazed) for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature before eating.
Apple & Cinnamon Scrolls FAQs
Because these scrolls are quite thick, the outside can brown before the centre finishes baking. Roll the dough to a true 5mm thickness, dice the apple small, and try cutting into 10-12 smaller scrolls instead of 8 large ones. If needed, cover loosely with foil and bake an extra 3-5 minutes.
Yes, use a variety that holds its shape when cooked, like Granny Smith, Royal Gala, Fuji or Sundowner. A softer apple will turn mushy and make the scrolls soggy.
Icing sugar mixture has cornflour blended through it to stop lumps forming, which is better for buttercreams and frostings. Pure icing sugar sets firmer, which is what you want for this glaze.
They're best fresh on the day, but you can freeze a whole batch (glazed or unglazed) and reheat gently in the oven or microwave when you want one.
No, that's the whole point of this recipe. It uses self-raising flour instead of yeast, so there's no proving time at all, straight from bowl to oven.
More Scroll Recipes
Not just sweet ones, here are some savoury scrolls the kids love just as much.
Apple Cinnamon Scrolls
Ingredients
- 300 g (2 cups) self raising flour
- 90 g butter
- 150 g (150ml) milk
- 70 g extra butter room temperature
- 50 g (¼ cup) brown sugar
- 3 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 apple peeled, cored and cut into very small chunks
- 150 g (1 cup) icing sugar
- 3 tbs hot water approx
Instructions
Conventional Method
- Preheat oven to 210 degrees (fan-forced). Lightly grease a 20cm round cake tin and set aside.
- Sift flour into a bowl. Rub in the butter in using your fingertips.
- Add the milk and mix to a soft dough. Knead on floured surface until smooth.
- Roll the dough out into a 5mm thick rectangle.
- Place the butter (softened to room temperature), brown sugar and cinnamon into a bowl. Mix with a spoon until creamy and smooth.
- Spread the cinnamon butter mixture onto the dough. Sprinkle over the chopped apple.
- Gently roll the dough up into a tube (lengthways). Use a sharp knife to cut the roll into 8-12 pieces.
- Place the pieces cut side up into the prepared cake tin (allow the rolls to touch one another as this will help them to rise).
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly in the tin.
- Place the icing sugar and 2 tbs hot water into a bowl. Mix until a smooth paste forms. Use a spoon to drizzle over the buns. Note: If the mixture is still too thick, add another tablespoon of hot water and mix for a further 10 seconds.
- Serve warm or cold.
Thermomix Method
- Preheat oven to 210 degrees (fan-forced). Lightly grease a 20cm round cake tin and set aside.
- Place the cold butter and self raising flour into the Thermomix bowl. Mix for 10 seconds on Speed 5. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and repeat 2 more times.
- Mix on Interval (knead) function for 1 minute (whilst pouring in the milk).
- Sprinkle some extra flour onto a board or bench. Roll the dough out into a 5mm thick rectangle.
- Place the butter (softened to room temperature), brown sugar and cinnamon into the Thermomix bowl. Mix for 20 seconds on Speed 4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and repeat.
- Spread the cinnamon butter mixture onto the dough. Sprinkle over the chopped apple.
- Gently roll the dough up into a tube (lengthways). Use a sharp knife to cut the roll into 8-12 pieces. Place the pieces cut side up into the prepared cake tin (allow the rolls to touch one another as this will help them to rise).
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly in the tin.
- Place the icing sugar and 2 tbs hot water into the Thermomix bowl. Mix for 10 seconds on Speed 6. Scrape down the bowl and repeat 2 more times. Use a spoon to drizzle over the buns. Note: If the mixture is still too thick, add another tablespoon of hot water and mix for a further 10 seconds.
- Serve warm or cold.
Notes
- These cinnamon scrolls are made using no yeast (so there's no need to wait for proving time). Instead, we use self-raising flour which can be baked immediately.
- Roll the dough out on a floured board until 5mm thick.
- Our homemade cinnamon butter is made using butter, cinnamon powder and brown sugar.
- I like to sprinkle small apple chunks of apple over the top of the cinnamon butter but you can omit the apple for plain cinnamon rolls.
- Choose a variety of apple that stays firm when cooked, such as Granny Smith, Royal Gala, Fuji or Sundowner.
- Cut the scrolls into 8-12 pieces and place (slightly touching each other) in a round cake tin.
- Allowing the scrolls to touch helps them to rise.
- Bake until golden and the rolls sound hollow when tapped.
- Allow the scrolls to cool for 10 minutes then remove from the baking tin and place onto a wire rack or serving plate.
- A simple icing glaze is made using pure icing sugar (which sets firm) and hot water mixed together.
- Pour the glaze over the cinnamon scrolls while they are still slightly warm.
- Homemade cinnamon scrolls can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Alternatively they can be frozen for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost at room temperature before consuming.
Lauren says
I love this recipe, but mine keep going doughy, even when the outside looks cooked. Do you have any tips to avoid this?
Lucy Mathieson says
A couple of tips! 😊 Because these are quite thick, they can sometimes look cooked on the outside before the centre is fully baked.
• Make sure the dough is rolled to around 5mm thick before adding the filling.
• Try cutting the scrolls a little smaller (10-12 rather than 8 large scrolls).
• Finely dice the apple so it softens quickly and doesn't add too much extra moisture.
• Every oven is different, so if they're still doughy in the middle, cover loosely with foil and bake for an extra 3-5 minutes.
They're ready when they're golden on top and sound slightly hollow when tapped. I hope that helps! 😊
Amber says
These are easy and delicious!!
Sarah says
This is the most delicious thing I have ever baked! Highly recommend!
Lucy says
Yay! That's fantastic!
Julie says
I made this recipe at work, our patients and nurses absolutely loved them, look forward to using more of your recipes.
Lucy says
Thank you so much!