Caramel Cinnamon Roll Ice Cream Recipe

This post and recipe were created for #SummerDessertWeek! I was sent samples by some of the sponsor companies but as always opinions are 100% mine.

What’s Great About This Recipe

I shall tell you:

• A creamy, no-churn ice cream base with just a touch of cream cheese in it for easy scooping and delicious, smooth texture.
• Homemade Cinnamon Caramel Sauce layered in with the base.
• Short-cut cinnamon rolls made with Hawaiian rolls. But feel free to use your favorite cinnamon roll recipe or even use store-bought cinnamon rolls for your mix-in

And once you make the caramel sauce, you can pour it on other ice cream or on cake or even stir it into your coffee.

How To Make It

As with any ice cream with mix-ins and swirls, there are a few components to make, but I promise there are no hard-to-source ingredients or weird procedures.

Here’s what you’ll need and what to do:

Ingredients

For the Caramel Sauce

• sugar: Provides sweetness and the caramel flavor once it caramelizes
• corn syrup: Helps prevent crystallization. It is optional, but it does provide a bit of insurance so you don’t end up with grainy caramel. You can substitute a liquid sugar like maple syrup or honey if you prefer.
• water: Just enough to get the sugar wet so it melts evenly. All the water will cook off since temperatures reach well above the boiling point of water
• butter: for body and to help carry flavor
• cinnamon: for flavor
• salt: brings all the flavors into focus and counteracts any bitterness you might get from the caramel

For the Ice Cream Base

• heavy cream:
• sweetened condensed milk: heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk are at the heart of almost every no-churn ice cream. They provide the bulk, the dairy, the body, and the sweetness
• cream cheese: Use at room temperature and whip it until it’s completely smooth. Cream cheese provides extra scoopability and creaminess as well as a subtle tang
• cinnamon: for flavor
• vanilla: nicely tempers and rounds out the cinnamon
• salt: brings the flavors into focus

And of course, you’ll need 3 Hawaiian rolls to use for the base of your quickie cinnamon rolls, assuming you aren’t making yours from scratch or purchasing them.

What’s the Hardest Part To Make?

The caramel is the trickiest part, but it’s not hard to make. Since you’ll be working with sugar that reaches temperatures around 330F, you’ll want to take some precautions, but don’t be deterred from making it. It’s so good, I promise.

Safety When Working with Caramel

• Use a pan that is much larger than you think you need. The sugar will bubble up vigorously once you add the cream, so make sure the pan can contain that.
• Don’t stir until the sugar begins to take on color. Even then, it’s better to swirl the pan than to stir, but nothing bad should happen.
• Do not stir with a metal utensil. The heat will shoot right up the handle. Use a wooden spoon or a heat-resistant spatula.
• Have a bowl of ice water handy. If some sugar does splatter on you–highly unlikely if your pan is large enough and you stand back once you add the cream, immediately dunk the burned part in the ice water.
• If sugar does splash on you, resist the urge to stick your finger in your mouth. You’ll just end up with a burned mouth.

Do I Need a Thermometer to Make Caramel?

No–the color of the sugar will be enough to tell you when the caramel is ready. That does not mean there aren’t many other times you will need an instant read thermometer.

I use mine for everything from checking the temperature of oil for deep frying to making Italian buttercream and marshmallows to checking the internal temperature of bread and cake to make sure they’re fully baked.

Please consider getting an instant-read thermometer if you don’t already own one.

How to Make Mini Caramel Cinnamon Rolls

I thought of a few different ways to make the cinnamon rolls for my ice cream, and I finally settled on a short cut using Hawaiian rolls. They actually turned out so well, I’m showing you how to make them because they’d make a nice, sweet snack all on their own.

• “Butterfly” Hawaiian rolls by making cuts so they open up into thirds.
• Using a rolling pin or clean hand, press the unrolled roll a bit to flatten it.

• Spread each flattened roll with some cinnamon caramel sauce, and then roll up.
• Freeze for 30 minutes to firm up the caramel and then slice. Slice each slice into bits.
• Layer cinnamon roll bits, caramel sauce, and ice cream base together, and then freeze for at least 6 hours before serving.

See? Easy!

If you have questions about this post or recipe, don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can leave a comment on the post and I will get back to you within about 24 hours.

If your question is more urgent, please shoot me an email, and I will respond within 4 hours, unless I’m asleep.

More Summer Dessert Week Recipes

Make the rounds and grab these other fantastic Summer Dessert recipes, friends!

Ice Cream Recipes:

• Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Bites from Big Bear’s Wife
• No Churn Cinnamon Roll Ice Cream from Pastry Chef Online (you’re here!)
• Green Tea Ice Cream from Mildly Meandering
• Cream Puffs from For the Love of Food

Pies of Summer:

• Mini Lemon Meringue Pies from Forking Up
• Lemon Lavender Chess Pie from The Spiffy Cookie

Sweet Summertime Cakes:

• Cinnamon Oatmeal Cake from The Food Hunter’s Guide To Cuisine

No-Bake Treats:

• Lemon Chiffon Raspberry Parfait from Desserts Required
• S’mores Mousse Parfaits from Daily Dish Recipes
• Strawberry Pretzel Salad Parfaits from 4 Sons ‘R’ Us

Baked Desserts:

• Strawberry Glazed Donut Bites from Eat Move Make
• Mixed Berry Fruit Pizza from The Bitter Side of Sweet
• Strawberry Cake Donuts from The Beard and The Baker
• Lemon Doberge Squares from Southern From Scratch
• Mini Blueberry Galettes from Me and My Pink Mixer
• Chocolate Churros from My Sweet Zepol
• Key Lime Fudge from The Domestic Kitchen
• Chocolate Strawberry Eclairs from Kudos Kitchen by Renee
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars from A Blender Mom
• Fruit Pie Jars from A Southern Soul
• Sweet Tea Bread Pudding from Sweet ReciPEAsc

Sweet Sips:

• Cherry Lime Bellini from Comfortably Domestic
• Strawberry Lassi from Shockingly Delicious