These easy upside-down cranberry cinnamon rolls include flaky cinnamon rolls topped with a caramelized brown sugar glaze, dried cranberries, and chopped pecans.
Y’all, there are some awesome recipes on the internet! And I want you to know that I greatly appreciate you coming to Southern Plate time and again. My goal is to share recipes that I love and feed my own family in hopes of inspiring you and making it a little easier to gather around the table with your family.
Today I’m sharing my version of a recipe that I found on Pillsbury’s website. As much as I love making homemade cinnamon rolls (especially my easy stuffed cinnamon rolls), I use these little canned flaky cinnamon rolls on a regular basis. I generally make them as a quick dessert in the evenings with coffee. If you’ve been serving them as breakfast only, you’re missing out!
Anyway, today I’m sharing my version of this cranberry orange cinnamon roll recipe. I’m using plain cinnamon rolls with buttercream icing, but feel free to use Pillsbury’s orange rolls with orange icing instead, which is what they use in the recipe. To be honest, they’re my favorite, but any type of cinnamon sweet roll works.
Quick, easy, and low-fuss cinnamon rolls
This is a quick, easy, and great low-fuss holiday dish. Instead of using a made with jarred , , or , we’re opting for sprinkled on top of our instead.
All you need to do is combine the brown sugar and melted butter in the bottom of a cake pan to make our caramelized glaze. Then we scatter dried cranberries and chopped pecans on top before adding the cinnamon rolls. All that’s left to do is bake the cinnamon rolls before turning them upside down so all that delicious flavor is on top of the flaky cinnamon rolls. Add the icing and you have yourself the most delicious cranberry cinnamon buns imaginable.
By the way… this post is in no way sponsored by Pillsbury, but I did request and receive permission from them to share this recipe on SouthernPlate.
Recipe Ingredients
- Canned cinnamon rolls
- Dried cranberries
- Dark or light brown sugar
- Chopped pecans
- Melted butter
How to Make Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls
Stir together melted butter and brown sugar.
Spread this over the bottom of a nonstick 9-inch round cake pan.
You don’t have to grease it because of the butter, but it does need to be nonstick.
Sprinkle with dried cranberries and nuts.
Open the rolls and arrange the in the pan.
Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Oh goodness, get ready for some prettiness!
Remove them from the oven and turn them upside down onto a large serving plate. Do not remove them from the !
Let the pan sit for five minutes before removing the cranberry cinnamon rolls from the inverted pan.
If the icing is in a packet, snip the end off of it and drizzle it over the warm rolls.
If it is in a little tub, spoon it into a ziplock bag, seal it, and snip off the corner to drizzle over the rolls.
Serve warm.
Storage
- Store leftover in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week. I recommend quickly reheating them in the air fryer or oven.
- Visit this recipe for freezing instructions, as there’s a trick to freezing cinnamon rolls.
Recipe Notes
- Instead of kneading the bag of icing until warm, you can also microwave it on medium (50%) for 5 to 10 seconds or until thin enough to drizzle.
- Check out this recipe for homemade frosting instead.
- In the Pillsbury recipe, they add 2 tablespoons of honey and 2 teaspoons of orange juice to the brown sugar glaze to enhance the orange flavor. If you want to do this and you’re using orange rolls, go right on ahead! are a delight!
- If you’re using fresh orange juice, add some freshly grated orange zest too to really embrace that zesty citrus flavor.
- Feel free to substitute the pecans for chopped walnuts or omit them completely if there’s a nut allergy.
- On the other hand, feel free to substitute the dried cranberries for dried cherries, raisins, or golden raisins.
Check out these other cinnamon-spiced treats:
Easy Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls (With Icing)
Cinnamon Roll French Toast Bake
Ingredients
- 1 can Pillsbury cinnamon rolls with icing in the flavor of your choice
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup light or dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
- Stir together the brown sugar and butter. Spread this into the bottom of an ungreased 9-inch round cake pan.¼ cup light or dark brown sugar, 4 tablespoons melted butter
- Sprinkle with cranberries and pecans.1/2 cup dried cranberries, ¼ cup chopped pecans
- Open the rolls and arrange the dough in the pan. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top.1 can Pillsbury cinnamon rolls with icing in the flavor of your choice
- Remove the pan from the oven and turn it upside down onto a large serving plate. But do not remove the cinnamon rolls from the baking dish yet! Let them sit for five minutes before removing them from the inverted pan.
- Place the cinnamon roll icing in a plastic bag and knead until warm and pliable. Cut the corner off and drizzle over cinnamon rolls. Enjoy!1 can Pillsbury cinnamon rolls with icing in the flavor of your choice
Nutrition
The original recipe for that inspired this one can be found here.
If everyone is thinking alike then someone isn’t thinking.
~General George Patton
WOW! These sound and look so inviting and delicious. I love that they are also easy. Think I’ll be making these soon. Thank you!
I made them and posted a picture and link to your recipe. Delicious.
Thank you so much Joan!!!
This recipe couldn’t come at a better time! I like to make the orange ones for Christmas morning and was wanting something a little different. Can’t wait to make these!
Could I make them with frozen dinner rolls? They sound delicious.