Melt the butter (you can melt it all together and then split it for the dough and filling) and warm the milk. Wait for the butter to cool to room temperature before adding it to the dough.

Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk with the sugar, mix it evenly and wait 4 or 5 minutes for it to form small bubbles on top to ensure the yeast is activated.

Add the egg and the room temperature butter for the dough, and mix everything evenly with a fork.

Slowly add the flour and the pinch of salt. When it is too dry to keep working with the fork, move the dough to the counter and knead with your hands for 5 to 10 minutes until smooth. Add flour to the counter as needed to avoid sticking.

Put the dough in a bowl, cover it, and let it rise for 2 or 3 hours until doubled in size. (A good spot is inside an oven that is turned off but has the light on).

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Roll the dough out with a rolling pin into a rectangle half a centimeter high. Fill it evenly with the room temperature melted butter for the filling, the brown sugar, and the ground cinnamon. Add dark chocolate chips if desired.

Gently roll up the dough starting from the long edge and slice it into 3cm pieces with a sharp knife. (Tip: if the dough is sticky, dip the knife in cold/ice water before each slice).

Place the cinnamon rolls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving space between them. Cover with a cloth and let them rise for another 30 minutes to puff up.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden, then let sit for a couple of minutes. Alternatively, bake in an airfryer at 310°F (160°C) for 10-12 minutes, placing parchment paper on top of the rolls after 6-7 minutes so they won't dry out.

For the optional cheese cream: mix the room temperature butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, crumbled almonds, and ground cinnamon evenly for 5 or 6 minutes with an electric mixer on medium speed. Frost the baked cinnamon rolls.