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This old-fashioned French Cinnamon Rolls recipe is quick, doesn’t require yeast, and is easily customized.

Several beige, circular rolls with spirals of dark brown cinnamon sugar sit on a white sheet of parchment paper after baking in this old French Cinnamon Rolls Recipe.

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The fourth recipe card picked, from the Mystery Recipe Box, was “French Cinnamon Rolls”.

This vintage recipe was cut from some newspaper and stapled to an index card. I have no idea what year it is from or anything about the origins of the recipe.

I do know that I absolutely did NOT like it. 😆

I’m not sure if there is any way to fix it. I will play around with my own no-yeast cinnamon roll recipe in the coming months because I think it’s a wonderful idea.

But, I want soft, moist, delicious, no-yeast cinnamon rolls.

Not what this old recipe created… 😬

Simple Ingredients

To the recipe’s credit, it does include simple ingredients.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t give the amount needed for several of them….

Light Brown Sugar & Spices

For the inside of these French Cinnamon Rolls, the old recipe says, “Light brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg to taste”.

TO TASTE?!

On one hand, it’s great that the recipe is easily customizable.

On the other hand, what the…

I need guidance.

I chose to use ¾ cup of light brown sugar, 3 Tablespoons of ground cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.

I chose wrong. 😂 I recommend using more brown sugar and less cinnamon than I did.

My brother complained that the roll had way too much cinnamon. That it was burning. But, he’s not really a fan of cinnamon.

I LOVE cinnamon and also thought my version of the rolls had too much cinnamon.

There is also NO sugar in the outside layer of the rolls - the dough. So the only sweetness in the treat comes from the inner spiced layer.

Definitely use more brown sugar than I did.

Sifted Flour

I absolutely hate sifting flour. For this French Cinnamon Rolls recipe, I used an actual sifter, like this one, and it took FOREVER to sift four cups of flour. It also hurt my hand.

A person used a stainless steel crank sifter to sift flour above a clear, glass pyrex measuring cup.

It is way easier to use a fine mesh strainer, like one from this set of Premium Stainless Steel Colander Sieve Sifters. You just hold the strainer over a bowl, add the flour to it, then tap the side of the strainer.

Possible Changes

If I ever attempt to make these French Cinnamon Rolls again, I would make the following changes.

Reduce Baking Powder

This vintage recipe clearly uses baking powder to rise instead of yeast.

I think the amount should be reduced though. Maybe even to 2 Tablespoons. I could taste the baking powder in the dough.

I also think it may be why the cinnamon rolls had a coarse, crumbly texture.

Increase Sugar

The dough desperately needs sugar. Maybe ¼ cup? Or ⅓?

I would also double the amount of brown sugar in the filling. Or maybe do 1 cup of light brown sugar and ⅓ cup of granulated sugar.

Milk

I would almost double the milk to accommodate the extra dry ingredient (sugar) in the dough.

Reduce Cinnamon

As much as it pains me, I would probably reduce the ground cinnamon, in the filling, by half. Or close to half.

Cutting in the Shortening

I could and should have done better at this. To learn more about cutting in butter/shortening, check out that section in this Apple Betty Pie recipe (Pick #2 from the Mystery Recipe Box).

I am now the proud owner of this pastry cutter though.

I don’t know if it would have helped this recipe. Lol. But, it’s worth a try.

Mystery Recipe Box Series

Each week, I randomly choose another vintage recipe from the old Mystery Recipe Box (that my Grandma found) to make, try, and share.

We never know which recipe it will be or how it’ll come out!

Follow Love Mischka on Youtube, FB, Insta, or TikTok so you don’t miss the next one!

You can also come back here to LoveMischka.com to catch up on all the picks!

A close-up of one French Cinnamon Roll, with a beige, stiff outside and a dark brown cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg swirl on the inside, sits on a white sheet of parchment paper in this vintage recipe.

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Old-Fashioned French Cinnamon Rolls

This vintage recipe for French Cinnamon Rolls is easily customizable, quick, and provides homemade nostalgia without the hassle of yeast or lengthy rising times.

Prep Time20

Cook Time35

Total Time55

Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American

Servings: rolls

Ingredients

For Dough:

4 cups Sifted Flour
3 tablespoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
½ cup Shortening
Milk (I used ¾ cup)

For Filling:

½ cup Unsalted Butter melted
Light Brown Sugar to taste*
Ground Cinnamon to taste*
Ground Nutmeg to taste*

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients.
Cut in enough shortening (about ½ cup) to make the mix flaky.**
Add enough milk for easier spreading consistency (think: pie dough).
Divide in three parts.
Roll out one part of the dough to between ⅛” to ¼” thick.
Brush with melted butter.
Sprinkle heavily with the sugar and spices (I mixed them beforehand, but the recipe doesn’t specifically say to do that).
Roll jelly roll style from the wide side.
Cut into 1 ¼-inch thick pieces.
Stand upright in a greased baking pan (with the pinwheel side showing).
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until pale brown.
Cool on wire cooling rack.
Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Video

Notes

*For more info, click here to jump to how much I used or click here to jump to what I would change.

**I could and should have been better at this. I am now the proud owner of a pastry cutter.

#4 - French Cinnamon Rolls