This is a packet recipe done properly. Two cans of refrigerated cinnamon rolls are quartered into bite-sized pieces, and the icing that comes with them is saved for the very end rather than baked in.
The two pieces of equipment that make it work are not appliances. Parchment lines the cooker so the finished bread lifts out whole, and a clean kitchen towel sits under the lid so the condensation a sealed cooker generates never lands on the dough.
Why This Recipe Works
- Quartering the rolls gives the pull-apart pieces their size and lets the syrup reach every surface.
- Tossing the pieces in granulated sugar and cinnamon coats them before any liquid is added, so the coating stays on.
- Brown sugar, butter and cream poured over become a syrup that sets around the dough as it cooks.
- A ten-minute rest firms the bread enough to lift out on the parchment without collapsing.
Ingredient Notes
- Refrigerated cinnamon rolls with icing
- Two 12.4-ounce cans. The icing tubs that come with them are the finish in step 5, not an extra purchase.
- The syrup
- A third of a cup of brown sugar, six tablespoons of melted butter, a third of a cup of cream and a pinch of salt, stirred and poured over.
- Parchment
- Not optional. It is how a sticky set loaf comes out of a slow cooker in one piece.
How to Make It
Line the cooker
Line a 6-quart slow cooker with parchment and lightly grease it.
Cut and coat
Cut each cinnamon roll into quarters. Toss pieces with granulated sugar and cinnamon.
Layer and drizzle
Layer dough pieces in the cooker. Stir brown sugar, melted butter, cream and salt; drizzle evenly over the dough.
Towel under the lid
Place a clean kitchen towel under the lid to catch condensation. Cook on Low 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, until puffed and about 190 degrees Fahrenheit in the center.
Rest, lift, ice
Rest 10 minutes, lift out with parchment, transfer to a plate and drizzle with warmed icing.
How the Cooker Is Layered
Everything is assembled before the cooker is switched on, and two of the four layers are not food at all.
Parchment, first
A lined and lightly greased 6-quart cooker. This is what the finished bread is lifted out on; without it a set, syrupy loaf does not leave the pot intact.
The coated dough
Two cans of cinnamon rolls cut into quarters and tossed with 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon, then layered in loosely rather than pressed down.
The syrup, poured over
1/3 cup brown sugar, 6 tbsp melted butter, 1/3 cup heavy cream and a pinch of salt stirred together and drizzled evenly, so it runs down between the pieces.
The towel, under the lid
A clean kitchen towel laid across the pot before the lid. It catches the condensation that would otherwise fall onto the dough and soften the top.
1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours on LOW to about 190F in the centre, then a 10-minute rest before it is lifted out and iced.
Success Tips
- Start checking at 1 hour 45 minutes because slow cookers vary.
- Lay the towel flat across the rim so it catches drips rather than dangling near the element.
- Warm the icing before it goes on so it drizzles rather than sits in lumps.
Serving Ideas
Ten servings, lifted out whole onto a plate and drizzled with the warmed icing from the cans.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why put a towel under the lid?
A sealed cooker makes condensation, and without the towel it drips onto the top of the bread.
How do I know it is cooked?
Puffed, set, and about 190 degrees Fahrenheit in the centre with no raw dough remaining.
When does the icing go on?
After the rest, once the bread is out of the cooker and on a plate.
