This fluffy cinnamon roll focaccia has a buttery brown sugar filling swirled throughout every bite, not just sitting on top. Vanilla glaze drizzled on while it's still warm keeps it soft and moist. No stand mixer and no overnight rise!
This Bread Smells Like a Bakery and Takes Half the Effort
I love baking cinnamon rolls, but sometimes I just can't be bothered to roll, swirl, and cut each individual one. So to capture those nostalgic, cozy flavors without all the work, I created my cinnamon roll focaccia!
A brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter filling gets folded into the dough after the first rise, so it runs throughout every bite like a real swirl, not just a topping. I also add cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar directly into the dough to get those warm, cinnamon roll flavors from the inside out. Then I give the dough a full hour to proof after shaping, so it still puffs up properly and bakes airy and open, not dense. Finally a vanilla glaze goes on top while the bread is still warm so it soaks in and keeps it moist instead of drying out by day two.
One thing I learned the hard way in my first test is to line your pan with parchment paper then add melted butter to grease it. Without both, the filling caramelizes against the hot pan and the focaccia can stick. And to really get that parchment paper laying flat, I rub a cold stick of butter along the bottom & edges of the baking dish first.
If you're in a cinnamon spiral now (because same), my loaf pan cinnamon roll bread bakes mini cinnamon rolls into a sliceable loaf! Same flavors, completely different experience. And my cinnamon pull apart bread is basicallyyy mandatory if you haven't made it yet.
Let's Bake Cinnamon Roll Focaccia Together
For the full step-by-step directions, scroll down to the recipe card.
Same Day vs Overnight
I have two focaccia methods I switch between, depending on my schedule. I used my quick same-day method here, but if you want a hands-off method, you can swap in my overnight focaccia dough, which has a cold ferment in the fridge for 12-16 hours.
My Tips for Focaccia that's Just as Good for Breakfast as it is Dessert
- I prefer using active dry yeast so we can activate it in warm water + brown sugar before adding the rest of the dough ingredients, to make sure it rises nicely.
- After testing this a couple ways, I found that folding the cinnamon sugar filling into the dough in the baking dish creates beautiful swirls in each bite.
- While I go for olive oil to grease my pan for savory focaccia, I prefer the flavor of butter in sweet focaccia, so it doesn't clash.
Glazed Cinnamon Roll Focaccia
developed & tested by:
Equipment
Ingredients
Focaccia Dough
- 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (one packet)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1¾ cups warm water (between 105-115°F or 40-46°C)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons salt (use fine sea salt or table salt)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (for greasing the baking dish)
Cinnamon Filling
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Vanilla Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch table salt
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon milk
Instructions
Mix and Rise the Dough
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the yeast, brown sugar, and warm water. Set aside for 10 minutes, until it's foamy on top.
- Add the olive oil and stir it into the foamy yeast mixture.
- Add the flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and mix for a minute with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula until it forms a soft, wet dough.
- Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel for 30 minutes.
- Stretch and Fold 1: Use your hand to scoop a handful of dough from underneath, up one side, up out of the bowl as far as you can stretch it without tearing, then fold it over itself on top. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees and repeat another stretching of the dough up and folding over itself. Repeat rotating the bowl and stretching & folding the dough twice more, until you've completed four stretch-and-folds.
- Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel for 30 minutes.
- Stretch and Fold 2: Repeat the process for four stretch-and-folds. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel for 30 minutes.
- Stretch and Fold 3: Repeat the process for four stretch-and-folds. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel for 30 minutes.
- Stretch and Fold 4: Repeat the process for four stretch-and-folds.
- Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel for 1 hour until it doubles in size and looks bubbly on top.
Mix the Filling
- In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter with a spoon until it forms a thick mixture. Set aside.
Shape, Fill, and Proof the Dough
- Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper, then pour four tablespoons of melted salted butter into it to generously grease it.
- Dump the dough from your mixing bowl onto the center of the baking dish and spread it out to all the edges.
- Spoon little dollops of the filling evenly all over the dough. Since focaccia dough is sticky, it won't spread much on the surface.
- From a short end, fold one-third of the dough over the middle, then fold one-third of the dough from the other short end over the middle, like a letter. Gently press the dough out again to all the edges of the baking dish.
- Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 1 hour, or until it's puffed up and jiggles on top when you shake the baking dish.
Bake the Focaccia
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C).
- Lightly coat your fingers in olive oil (don't skip this, or else the dough will stick all over your fingers.) Use your fingers to press dimples into the dough, pressing all the way to the bottom of the baking dish.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the focaccia is puffed up and golden brown.
- While the focaccia bakes, mix the glaze by combining the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and one tablespoon of milk until it's smooth. If it's too thick to drizzle, add another half tablespoon of milk at a time.
- Cool the bread for at least 10 minutes then drizzle the glaze on top. Cool for another 20 minutes then slice and enjoy!
Notes
- Baking Pan: I like baking this sweet focaccia in a glass or light ceramic baking dish, which has less aggressive heat than metal or dark-colored dish.
- Stretch-and-Folds: Focaccia is a high-hydration dough, so it's going to feel wet and sticky. My biggest advice when doing the stretches and folds is to wet your hands with cold water first. I know it sounds counterintuitive, but wet hands really make the dough stick less to them!
- Glaze: Drizzle the glaze from a spoon after the focaccia has cooled for 10-15 minutes. You want the bread warm, not piping hot, so that glaze doesn't dissolve into the dough completely, but can still soak in a bit.
Nutrition
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