Cinnamon Rolls- 4 ways

My family are big fans of cinnamon rolls, so we've tried a number of recipes. Here are our favorites:
The classic yeast cinnamon roll I've been making for years is from a 1998 Ladies' Home Journal magazine:
Cinnamon Rolls
1 pkg yeast
1/4 C warm water (105 F. to 115 F.)
1 C milk
10 Tbsp butter, divided
1 C granulated sugar, divided
2 large eggs
5 to 5 1/2 C flour, divided
1 tsp salt
4 tsp cinnamon

Frosting:
1 1/2 C powdered sugar
1 Tbsp butter, softened
3 Tbsp milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
pinch cinnamon

1. Sprinkle yeast over warm water, add a pinch of sugar, let stand 10 min. Heat milk and 6 Tbsp butter over medium heat until warm (105 to 115 F.) (butter may not melt completely).
2. Combine dissolved yeast, milk mixture, 1/2 C granulated sugar and eggs in large bowl. beat with a spoon until combined. Add 3 C flour and salt, beat until smooth. Stir in 2 C flour, 1 cup at a time, then knead dough 3 minutes until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if needed. Place dough in large greased bowl, cover and let rise in warm place until doubled, 1 1/2 hours.
3. Melt remaining butter. Combine 1/2 C granulated sugar with cinnamon in a cup.
4. Grease a 15" x 10" jelly roll pan. Punch down dough and roll out on a floured surface into a 20x14-inch rectangle. Brush with 2 Tbsp of melted butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Roll up from the long edge and pinch seam. Cut with a serrated knife into 18 slices, about 1 inch thick, arranging them in pan. Brush with remaining melted butter. Cover with wax paper and let rise until doubled, 45-60 minutes.
5. Heat oven to 350F. uncover rolls and bake 22-25 minutes until lightly browned. Cool 15 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, make frosting by beating powdered sugar and butter in mixer, then adding milk, vanilla and pinch cinnamon. Drizzle over rolls.
   

For a version using a biscuit-style dough that doesn't require yeast or a rise period, this Cooks Illustrated recipe is great:

Patting this dough out on a silicone mat makes for less stick and easier clean up.

Dough patted out

I added a little cardamom to the filling- halved filling amount from recipe

Rolls placed in cast iron skillet

After baking

This Ginger Cinnamon bun recipe from Penzey's is good:

I've also made a Cinnabon copy-cat recipe:

 Version of Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Dough
1 cup warm milk
2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1 package yeast (1/4 ounce)

 Version of Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Filling
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

 Version of Spread for Cinnamon Roll Dough
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

 Version of Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Icing
3 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

Version of Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Recipe Instructions

Microwave the milk for 45 to 60 seconds. Then, dissolve yeast in warm milk in a large bowl. Add sugar, butter, salt, eggs, and flour. Mix well. Dust your hands lightly with flour and then hand knead the cinnamon roll dough into a large ball.

Put the ball of dough into a bowl that is sprayed with cooking spray.  Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for roughly 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.  We turned the oven on and then put the cinnamon roll dough on top of the stove.  The heat generated caused the dough to rise.

Once your dough has risen, it’s time to move on to the next step.  In a new, small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter.  Mix them well.  Spray a flat surface with cooking spray or sprinkled flour.  Roll out your dough ball into a 16″ x 21″ rectangle roughly 1/4 inches thick then spread a 1/4 cup of softened butter on the dough.  Next, sprinkle the rolled, buttered dough evenly with the sugar/cinnamon/butter mixture you prepared in your small bowl.

Roll up the dough starting with the longer side and cut into fourteen (14) cinnamon rolls (or more smaller rolls, if you prefer). Place the cinnamon rolls in a lightly greased 11″ x 15″ pan. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and let the cinnamon rolls rise until nearly doubled, which should take around 30 minutes.  

Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.  Once your cinnamon rolls have risen, bake them in the preheated oven until golden brown, approximately 18 to 20 minutes (we used a professional General Electric gas-range oven at 20 minutes exactly).  The dough should still be soft, though fully cooked, especially toward the center of the rolls.

As your cinnamon rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and salt for the Cinnabon cinnamon roll icing.  The icing should be spread on your cinnamon rolls when they are still warm, shortly after being taken out of the oven so that the frosting melts into the cinnamon rolls.  This is reportedly part of the official Cinnabon process according to some of the employees.

When the cinnamon rolls are still warm, serve, and enjoy!

Cinnabon copy cat version

Another batch of the biscuit-style