These cozy cinnamon rolls are gluten free, vegan and made with no refined sugar or yeast. That means they can be made in an hour! If you're looking for a gooey, delicious and easy cinnamon roll for your Sunday morning or holiday dessert, you have to make these! They are enjoyed by everyone, even regular eaters.
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INGREDIENTS IN VEGAN GLUTEN FREE CINNAMON ROLLS
All Purpose Gluten Free Flour
Baking Powder
Sea Salt
Vegan/Dairy Free Butter
Cinnamon
Coconut Sugar
Non Dairy Milk
Apple Cider Vinegar
Powdered Sugar or sweetener
Vanilla Extract
Vegan Cream Cheese
SUBSTITUTIONS AND SWAPS
1. I used Bob’s GF 1:1, but I think GF King Arthur 1:1 will work too. You may also try cassava for a paleo version but I’d reduce the recipe by 1/4 the amount. I haven’t tried it but it may work.
2. For dairy free butter, I used Earth Balance sticks and Miyoko’s brand. Real grass fed butter will work, too.
3. Coconut Sugar is my go to for all my baking. It’s low glycemic, safe on most diets and does not taste like coconut! If you can't tolerate coconut sugar, you can substitute the coconut sugar in the dough for organic cane sugar, and and coconut sugar in the filling for brown sugar, and I also recommend adding 2 Tbsp of cane sugar as well to the filling.
4. Any unsweetened non-dairy milk will work. I always bake with Oatly. But you can use regular milk here too
5. You can use real confectionary powdered sugar, but I always make my own unrefined powdered sugar by putting any granulated sweetener in a high speed blender for 30 seconds. Any powdered sugar works here. Powdered monkfruit would give you the most neutral flavor, or maple sugar would be good too. This is the base of your icing.
6. Dairy free cream cheese: This is for your dairy-free cream cheese frosting. I use Violife, it has a great texture and is a nice bright white color. Real cream cheese of course works too!
How to make vegan cinnamon rolls in these easy steps:
1. Make the dough by activating apple cider vinegar with baking powder.
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together to form a dough.
3. Roll out the dough between two pieces of parchment paper into a rectangle shape.
4. Sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mix over the dough. Carefully roll it up, slice it up, and bake!
5. Prepare the cream cheese frosting with a hand mixer.
6. Spread over warm rolls and enjoy!
(Keep in mind these cinnamon rolls are less stretchy, and more doughy and bread-like in texture due to the lack of gluten and yeast. You can pull them apart or eat them with a fork!)
FAQ!
What baking tools are needed for gluten free cinnamon rolls?
Rolling pin
9" baking dish, circle or square
Hand mixer for the frosting
Why no yeast? Will they rise?
I stopped eating yeast when I got a bad Candida overgrowth years ago. It feeds yeast you already have in your gut, and there is a component of yeast that is meant to cause migraines. So I substitute yeast in my recipes. A great substitute for yeast is apple cider vinegar. Combined with a bicarbonate like baking powder, the bubbles will create a rise and give you a nice crumb in your breads and doughs. It does not rise as MUCH as yeast, but it gives that nice bready texture.
Remember those packaged Spinwheels by Little Debbie? This is what these cinnamon rolls remind me of.
Are these vegan cinnamon rolls also paleo?
These gluten free cinnamon rolls are made with gluten free all purpose flour. I have not tried to make them paleo or grain free. These can also be made with all purpose flour if you are not gluten free, and real butter as well.
Are these cinnamon rolls easy to make?
Yes! No fuss. No waiting for the dough to rise and warming the yeast. These can be made in under an hour. The dough is easy to roll and I have no trouble with it being too sticky or too crumbly.
Any other questions? Ask in comment box below!
Other recipe notes and tips:
To make unrefined powdered sugar for the frosting, place any granulated sweetener in a high speed blender (preferably dry container) for 30+ seconds until it becomes a powder.
You can substitute the GF flour for all purpose flour. You can also try to substitute cassava flour for grain free, but I would reduce the flour to 1 3/4 cups and add more if the dough is too wet. Cassava absorbs a lot of moisture so you always add a bit less when using it. I haven’t tried this yet but if you do please leave me some feedback!
Carefully roll up your dough into a log shape, starting with the shorter end of the dough rectangle. You may need to use your fingers to help tuck the dough in as you begin to roll.
Keep in mind, these do not have yeast or gluten so they will not be very stretchy. They are more doughy and bready in texture but you can pull them apart or cut into them with a fork.
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