You Can Easily Upgrade Your Store Bought Cinnamon Rolls To Give Them A Homemade Touch

While there's really nothing quite like the taste of fresh cinnamon rolls, unfortunately not everyone has the time to make them from scratch. So, if there's an option to pop open a tube and make cinnamon rolls in a matter of minutes, we will take it, especially as there are plenty of easy hacks to make store-bought rolls taste homemade. The trick for creating the most decadent canned cinnamon rolls using heavy cream took over every foodie's social media feed a few months ago, yet the tops of these rolls seemed a little neglected; the dinky little pouch of icing that comes with store-bought rolls was insufficient to properly top them. To right this wrong, and upgrade store-bought cinnamon rolls even further, you can mix the icing packet with some softened butter and one block of cream cheese to create a thick and rich cream cheese frosting — the only kind of topping that belongs on cinnamon rolls.

First, measure out the cream cheese and butter and let them both come to room temperature — this makes it easier to mix them together. Then, place the cream cheese, butter, and icing in a medium-sized bowl and, using a hand mixer, mix them at a medium-high speed until you've created a smooth and luscious cream cheese frosting. Bake the cinnamon rolls according to the package directions. Once they're hot out of the oven, generously dollop the top of each cinnamon roll with the cream cheese frosting and lightly spread it across the surface. For a sweeter frosting, you can also add some powdered sugar to the mixture. 

You can get creative by adding different mix-ins to the cream cheese frosting, transforming the cinnamon roll's flavor. To create cinnamon rolls with a nutty, toffee flavor, you first need to make brown butter. Once the browned butter has cooled to room temperature, add it to the rest of the frosting ingredients (in place of the softened butter) and mix well. (If you're feeling more ambitious, you can always make brown butter cinnamon rolls from scratch.) 

For cinnamon rolls topped with a fruit-flavored cream cheese frosting, mix no more than 2 tablespoons of pureed fruit into the frosting mixture — 1 cup of powdered sugar may also be needed to balance out any excessive tartness from the fruit and to maintain the frosting's thick consistency. Similar steps can be followed to make a variety of other flavored icings, including chocolate icing. Of course, your topping journey need not end there. Feel free to sprinkle all kinds of additional ingredients on top of the frosting, including nuts and chocolate pieces. 

So, the next time you have a craving for decadent cinnamon rolls or need an impressive breakfast for a crowd, remember that this store-bought cinnamon roll hack — and a few other hacks — have your back. As an added bonus, you can also take most of the credit if anyone asks if they're homemade. After all, you did make the delicious frosting!