If you like brownies and cinnamon rolls, then my Cinnamon Roll Bars are for you.
These bars combine the fudgy texture of brownies with the warm spice of a cinnamon rolls.
And they’re asolutely amazing.
Cinnamon Roll Bars: the Secret Ingredient
The secret ingredient that makes these bars so irrestistable is Crisco.
I’m not usually one to bake with Crisco or vegetable shortening—unless it’s pie crust we’re talking about—but the circumstances of 2020 led many of us to get creative with ingredients that have long pantry shelf lives.
For me, that meant baking with Crisco.
I’ve made these bars with butter, and though still delicious, the texture is just not the same. With butter, these Cinnamon Roll Bars lose that fudgy brownine texture. There’s something about Crisco that makes these bars fudgy once they’ve had a chance to cool.
So definitely don’t skip this step!
Cool these bars for at least 30 minutes. But if you can let them cool longer, say for an hour or two, do it. The texture will just get fudgier.
"The Most Important Invention"
Remember that scene in The Help (2011) when Minnie tells Celia that Crisco is a miracle product for just about anything imaginable?
Well, I’m not going to tell you to go rub some Crisco on your face, but when it comes to these bars, it’s definitely Crisco all the way.
Make These Cinnamon Roll Bars!
Make these bars as a delicious dessert to look forward to, or enjoy them as a sweet mid-day pick-me-up.
And if you’re like me, you may even find yourself sneaking a bar or two for breakfast before your daughter wakes up and gets you in trouble… 😆❣️😋
One Thing: The Cinnamon
If you have it, use Ceylon cinnamon here. I much prefer the taste of Ceylon cinnamon to cassia cinnamon (the one you find in the grocery store). Ceylon cinnamon is a bit sweeter, and it’s actually healthier than cassia cinnamon. If you don’t have ceylon cinnamon you can find my favorite brand here on Amazon [aff. link]. But of course, feel free to use cassia cinnamon/whatever cinnamon you have on hand. These bars will still be delicious.
Cinnamon Roll Bars
Ingredients
For the wet ingredients:
- ¾ cup Crisco or vegetable shortening, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¾ cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup almond milk, (or milk of choice)
- 2 tsp vanilla
For the dry ingredients:
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 3 tsp cinnamon
For the icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp almond milk
- ¼ tsp vanilla
- dash of salt
Instructions
Mix the wet ingredients
- To a large mixing bowl, add the Crisco/vegetable shortening, sugar, and brown sugar. With a fork, mix the shortening and sugars together until the mixture gets clumpy.
- Now whisk in the oil and almond milk, until the mixture is mostly smooth.
- Next, add the eggs and vanilla extract, and again whisk until the batter is smooth. There will still be a few lumps of shortening, and that's ok.
Add the dry ingredients
- Now add the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix until the dry ingredients are just incorporated into the we ingredients, taking care not to over-mix.
Bake the bars
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a 9x13 inch glass baking dish, and pour the Cinnamon Roll Bar batter evenly into the baking dish.
- Bake the Cinnamon Roll Bars for 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean.
Make the icing
- While the Cinnamon Roll Bars cool, make the icing.
- To a medium-sized bowl, add the powdered sugar, vanilla, almond milk, and salt. Whisk together with a fork until the icing is completely smooth. The consistency should be thick but pourable.
- If the icing seems too thick, add just a touch (a little goes a long way!) more milk. If the icing seems too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.
Ice the bars
- Let the Cinnamon Roll Bars cool for five minutes, then ice them as desired. Ice the top of the bars completely, or dip a butter knife in the icing, and drizzle it over the top of the bars.
Serve and enjoy!
- Let the bars cool for at least 30 minutes, then cut in squares and serve!
This Post Has 11 Comments
Haha! I have totally snuck food from our 4-year-old here, too. I’ve grabbed a handful of chips and snuck around the corner to eat them before he notices. I suspect I’d be doing the same thing with these bars! (In truth, though, I would be glad to share!) I absolutely love all things cinnamon and cinnamon roll, so the thought of a chewy cinnamon roll brownie bar is making my mouth water – and it’s only 6:30am here. I suspect this might become a baking project with the little guy soon!
Haha yesss! So glad you can relate David! 😆 I should probably be a better example with my breakfast choices, but when these bars are in the house, I can’t resist sneaking one or two before my daughter notices!
As soon as the stay in place is lifted in MI, I’m making these and bringing them to my Mom. She’ll love them!
Rick
That is so so sweet, thank you for your kind comment Rick! Hope you and your family are staying safe and healthy!
Wow these look and sound amazing, I love cinnamon. These bars look so soft and fudgy.
Thank you so much Emma! These bars are certainly the perfect treat for lovers of cinnamon and fudgy brownies! They never last long at our house haha. 😆
Combining the cinnamon roll and brownie flavours has got to be the best idea EVER! I don’t use vegetable shortening at all but you might have just convinced me to add it to my next shopping list! Another winner!
Thank you Katerina! Oh I know, vegetable shortening is something i basically never use haha (with the exception of pie crusts!) It’s crazy how much it contributes to the fudgy texture in this recipe though, so now I’ll definitely be using vegetable shortening on a regular basis. 😆
Cinnamon rolls are among my favorite things, so I could see myself going for this. (And I always keep a secret stash of Crisco sticks around that I don’t tell anyone about.)
Haha, I do the same thing Jeff, your secret is safe with me! 😄
Love these! Such a great idea.