Cinnabon has been dabbling outside of its mall kiosks for quite some time now. Some Pillsbury Grands Cinnamon Rolls over here, an International Delight creamer over there, and even some K-Cup pods in the room temperature aisles.
Maybe after testing the waters of the Cinnabon brand, it decided enough is enough; it’s time to make a splash! A splash the size of a Mack truck it seems. I like your style Cinnabon. It debuted not just one, not even two, not three, four? (Nope!), not five (Dang!), but six glorious new breakfast creations for America to satisfy their Cinnabon craving between mall visits.
They are all frozen food delicacies but encompassing both the sweet and savory side of things. Please brace yourself as the list includes Caramel Pecan Ooey-Gooey Rolls, Frosting Filled CinnaPastries, Frosted CinnaSweet Swirls, a CinnaBiscuit Chicken Sandwich, Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage Bites, and a CheddarRoll Sausage & Egg Sandwich.
Caramel Pecan Ooey-Gooey Rolls
These are sweet cinnamon rolls filled with Cinnabon ooey-gooey brown sugar cinnamon, covered in caramel sauce with pecan pieces, and baked to golden perfection.
Upon my first tasting, I didn’t flip them out of the tray and came away underwhelmed. So, make sure you do as the package describes to release them as you do get a pretty spot-on product from the image on the packaging.
They definitely live up to their name in regards to the caramel and their ooey-gooeyness. The pecans take a bit of a back seat, but still offer a slight nutty flavor with some good, albeit softened crunch. However, the cinnamon also gets pushed aside by the overwhelming sticky and sweet caramel. These are good, but make sure you are a fan of caramel before taking the plunge.
Purchased Price: $4.83
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Roll) 510 calories, 20 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 30 milligrams of cholesterol, 580 milligrams of sodium, 75 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fiber, 39 grams of sugar, and 7 grams of protein.
Frosting Filled CinnaPastry
This one is described as a light and fluffy cinnamon streusel pastry that is filled with the ooey-gooey goodness of Cinnabon brown sugar cinnamon and irresistible cream cheese frosting.
This one has many components as it is kind of a cross between a Cinnabon, a piece of coffee cake, and a croissant. I have to be honest, I’m digging it. It has a great cinnamon flavor, and I love that the streusel topping comes in and cuts through a little bit of the straight sugar sweetness at times. It could be a little flakier and have more frosting inside, but otherwise, it’s delicious and a neat combo of well-known things.
Purchased Price: $6.68
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Pastry) 450 calories, 23 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 25 milligrams of cholesterol, 430 milligrams of sodium, 55 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 26 grams of sugar, and 7 grams of protein.
Frosted CinnaSweet Swirls
These are two mini cinnamon rolls baked together, swirled with Cinnabon ooey-gooey brown sugar cinnamon, and topped with the chain’s signature cream cheese frosting. But I have a better name for them, Baby Cinnabons. Because that is precisely what they are, smaller versions of its famous mall offerings.
While it has been awhile since I have had an authentic one, I’m pretty sure the flavors and execution here are spot-on. They are incredible, and I couldn’t believe how much they reminded me of a fresh one even though I had just nuked it right after pulling it straight out of my freezer. The dough, frosting, and cinnamon all coalesce into something magical. These are exactly why Cinnabon is a well-known brand to this day.
Purchased Price: $9.24
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 10 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Roll) 280 calories, 12 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 240 milligrams of sodium, 38 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 18 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein.
CinnaBiscuit Chicken Sandwich
Now this is where the true fun begins as we get into the wilder offerings. This is a tender fried chicken sandwiched between a sweet, buttery biscuit filled with Cinnabon cinnamon and cream cheese frosting chips.
I think I had the highest hopes for this one, and unfortunately, they were not really met. The chicken was a little chewy, and I am not sure what happened to the biscuit. It was a tough and kind of dry. Not sure where the frosting chips were or even the cinnamon pockets.
The cinnamon sauce was a nice touch adding some signature gooeyness. But it certainly didn’t have the flavor that I experienced in the Frosted CinnaSweet Swirls. And there’s definitely not enough cinnamon sauce to save this tragedy.
I prepared it in the microwave (damp paper towel wrapped around as instructed), so maybe the toaster oven is how to go on this one. It was disappointing on many levels.
Purchased Price: $4.47
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 4 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Sandwich & 1 Sauce Packet) 320 calories, 12 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 40 milligrams of cholesterol, 700 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of fiber, 13 grams of sugar, and 12 grams of protein.
Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage Bites
Ok, now we’re getting weird in Cinnabon land with Cinnabon-flavored cinnamon chip dough wrapped around a jalapeno and cheddar pork sausage link. So this incorporates spicy, cheesy, and smokiness flavors into a Cinnabon?
Hmm. Now this one couldn’t be more different than the chicken sandwich as the dough is so incredibly soft. It’s divine. The sausage is gloriously cheese-filled, and there is a slight spice kick from the jalapenos at the end of the chew. It’s more like a hot dog though than a breakfast sausage. Is there any cinnamon flavor? Absolutely not. I mean I see the specks on the dough but can’t taste a lick of it. It doesn’t suffer too much as this is a pretty tasty jalapeno cheese pig in a blanket for breakfast.
Purchased Price: $6.28
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Sausage Bite) 170 calories, 8 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 370 milligrams of sodium, 16 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, and 6 grams of protein.
CheddarRoll Sausage & Egg Sandwich
So this one completely baffles me. There is no cinnamon element. I repeat, THERE IS NO CINNAMON ELEMENT. It is a light and flaky croissant rolled with cheddar cheese baked to golden perfection and served with savory sausage and fluffy eggs.
Now, even though I just partially ate five different breakfast items in one sitting when I got to this one, I couldn’t put it down. It’s not amazing, but I do love breakfast sandwiches, and this item is probably the most well rounded of the bunch.
There are some misgivings as the bread is more of a soft bun than a croissant with only a touch of cheese flavor. While the eggs are a preformed patty and kind of on the thinner side, but still slightly on the fluffy side. However, the sausage is the star here, as it is outstanding. It’s your typical breakfast sausage, but I mean that in the absolute best way possible. The flavor is just phenomenal without being too salty as most breakfast sausages can be. While it’s under the Cinnabon brand and there isn’t any sweet about it, it’s a wonderful savory indulgence.
Purchased Price: $6.28
Purchased at: Walmart
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1 Sandwich) 360 calories, 21 grams of fat, 9 grams of saturated fat, 90 milligrams of cholesterol, 590 milligrams of sodium, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, and 13 grams of protein.
Cinnabon has certainly made a splash in the freezer aisle. With the six items, some are in the running for the Olympic team (Swirls and CheddarRoll), some maybe deserve a ribbon at your local swim meet (Sausage Bite and CinnaPastry), one that bellyflopped (Caramel Roll), and one that should be just completely banned from the local lap pool for all eternity (Chicken Sandwich).
If you are looking for the perfect one-two punch in the morning, go for the CheddarRoll and CinnaSweet Swirls for an epic and convenient Cinnabon-branded breakfast.