Overnight Caramel Rolls

Overnight Caramel Rolls are the perfect make ahead breakfast.  Wake up, pop them in the oven, and you’ve got homemade caramel rolls to serve for a delicious and memorable holiday breakfast or fun weekend breakfast so you can still sleep in (if your kids allow it — if they do, please tell me your secrets, I need to know them.) This post contains affiliate links.

I want to make a new category of breakfast called the “wake and bake”.  I love special breakfasts for weekends or holidays, but like I’ve said here, I don’t exactly rise and begin shining.  I just rise.  So when I see a breakfast that involves hours of morning prep, I think, hmmm … hard pass.  I like a breakfast where I can just roll out of bed and really mainline some coffee before I’m asked to do too much else.  

Good news, if that’s your speed as well, the morning work involved on these overnight caramel rolls constitutes taking the plastic wrap off the pan and turning on the oven.  They would be worth a lot more effort, but they don’t require it.  So that’s a huge breakfast win in my book. Woo hoo!

Overnight Caramel Rolls Using Rhodes Dough How To

Grease up your 9 x 13 pan — I always use Baker’s Joy.  Then sprinkle toasted nuts along the bottom of the pan.  The original recipe calls for pecans, but I use a mixed nuts packet that I find in the end cap of the ice cream aisle at Walmart.  Because I’m super cheap and they’re super tasty.  Now you can do it without toasting the nuts — but it does add a really good layer of flavor.  If you’re interested in toasting them, just melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet and cook the nuts on medium heat until toasty and brown — about 10 minutes.  Let them cool a bit.

Top the toasted nut layer with a box of butterscotch pudding and some cinnamon.  Add the frozen balls of Rhodes bread dough on top.  I fit about 15 in the pan.  Use a pastry brush to brush each ball with melted butter — making sure to coat each dough ball and then drizzle the remaining butter over the dough.  Sprinkle the tops with brown sugar.  

Grease a piece of waxed paper.  Now for whatever reason, I have a rebellious streak and when I see recipe instructions, I always think, “Hmmm, but are they really serious?”   So the first round I did not grease the waxed paper, and it was a sticky dough disaster.  So definitely grease the waxed paper and lay it on top of the pan.  Let the dough rise at room temperature overnight.  

Overnight Caramel Rolls Morning Prep

So literally wake and bake.  In the morning, turn on the oven to 350°, remove the sheet of waxed paper and pop them in the oven for 25-30 minutes.  

Get ready to serve a delicious overnight breakfast

I tried this recipe a few times.  Fail number one was the wax paper incident.  Well, fail, or failure to follow the instructions, it’s a toss up.  Fail #2 was one batch was just like a batch of dinner rolls with nuts on the bottom.  The pastry brush butter step helped with this, but what really took them next level was adding a delicious glaze.  Now we’re talking!  Super duper simple — 1 c. of powdered sugar stirred with some water, vanilla and cinnamon.  Easy even if you’re bleary-eyed.  Drizzle it on the rolls while they’re still warm. 

Now you probably should wait for these to cool down a little.  But when I hear something’s done, I come to the table sprint speed.  My husband will lollygag around and come that direction when he gets a chance.  Umm, what?!  So I don’t wait — I eat these rolls the second I’ve finished the glazing.  If you don’t wait for them to cool, the brown sugar/nut layer doesn’t stick to the rolls 100%.  Now, I’m totally fine with just scooping anything that falls off onto my plate vs. waiting a few extra minutes but your call!

That’s it for Overnight Caramel Rolls!  My main goal for you here, even if you’re an early bird, is that you get to enjoy the leisurely pace of the weekend or the holiday too.  Why choose between enjoying some downtime and serving a delicious breakfast?  Why can’t we have both?  Looking for more easy breakfasts?  Try Homemade Biscuit Donuts and Toaster Oven Bacon or if you need more easy holiday recipes, check out my Amazon ebook that’s all Christmas cookies that start with a mix!  Let’s wow people this holiday, but also have time to relax too :).

Overnight Caramel Rolls

2018-10-04 21:20:29

Serves 12

Write a review

Save Recipe

Print

Prep Time

8 hr 15 min

Cook Time

30 min

Total Time

8 hr 45 min

Prep Time

8 hr 15 min

Cook Time

30 min

Total Time

8 hr 45 min

Ingredients

1. Stick and a half of butter, melted but not hot
2. 1 cup of chopped nuts, toasted
3. 1 3.4 oz. box of butterscotch pudding mix (not instant)
4. 1/2 c. brown sugar
5. 12 pieces of frozen Rhodes bread dough
6. Cinnamon to taste
7. Glaze: 1 c. of powdered sugar mixed with 1/4 c. of water with cinnamon and vanilla to taste

Instructions

1. Lightly grease a 13 x 9 pan
2. Sprinkle the nuts evenly on the bottom
3. Sprinkle the box of pudding mix over the nuts
4. Sprinkle cinnamon over to taste
5. Add the balls of frozen dough on top of the mixture
6. Use a pastry brush to brush each ball with melted butter and then drizzle the remaining butter over the dough
7. Sprinkle the tops with the brown sugar
8. Grease a sheet of waxed paper and cover the rolls and let stand overnight at room temperature
9. In the morning, remove the sheet of waxed paper, heat the oven to 350°
10. Bake for 25-30 minutes
11. Top with the glaze while still warm

Notes

1. Toasting the nuts isn't essential to the recipe, but I think it makes a great addition to the flavor. Melt 1 T butter and add the nuts in a skillet over medium heat stirring constantly for a few minutes until toasted.

By Carissa Nelson | Spoonful of Easy

Spoonful of Easy https://spoonfulofeasy.com/

Tools I used to make Overnight Caramel Rolls