Vegan Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls

Fluffy and just like the classic, these vegan gluten free cinnamon rolls are smothered in a cream cheese icing and perfect hot from the oven. They’re easy to make, naturally dairy free but loved by all types of eaters!

Vegan gluten free cinnamon rolls have been on my recipe list for a long time. But to be honest I was kind of intimidated!

Baking with yeast can be a little tricky at times, and when you remove the gluten AND the eggs, well, things don’t always go very well.

And they definitely didn’t my first few attempts! I was tempted to ditch the vegan idea and make these with eggs, but I was determined since I knew you’d be asking for a vegan option anyway!

But I finally perfected a roll thats buttery, fluffy, light, sweet with gooey centers. They’re topped with a silky smooth cream cheese icing that is absolute essential with any good cinnamon roll!

I made these rolls gluten free and vegan, but if you are not vegan, you can use regular cow’s milk and regular cream cheese in place of the dairy-free options. If you love this recipe, try my cinnamon roll pancakes next!

How to make vegan gluten free cinnamon rolls

Combine the two tablespoons of vegan egg replacer with 4 tablespoons of water. If you are using something other than Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer, follow the instructions for whatever equals 2 eggs. Set aside to thicken.

Add the bread flour (but discard the yeast package from the mix, we want instant yeast here), sugar, baking powder, instant yeast and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer.

Mix using the dough hook until combined. Melt the butter then let cool slightly.

Warm the milk to 110 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s very important it is no hotter than 120 or it will kill the yeast, but should be at least 100 degrees to activate the yeast. I like to combine the warmed milk and melted butter, then check the temperature with a meat thermometer.

With the mixer running on low, pour in the milk and butter, egg replacer and vanilla extract.

Let the dough mix together, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed. Let knead on low/medium speed for about 5 minutes.

Transfer to a generously floured piece of parchment paper. Roll into a roughly 12×15 rectangle.

Brush the butter on top, then mix together the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle on top. Pat into the butter so it combines a bit.

Use a pizza cutter and slice into 9-12 strips, depending on how thick you want each roll. Roll each strip into a roll and place in a baking dish. Cover and let rise for 90 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit, then bake for 22-27 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges.

Whisk together the ingredients for the icing, then let the cinnamon rolls cool for about 5 minutes, then top with the icing and enjoy!

Tips to prep ahead of time

I won’t lie, these vegan gluten free cinnamon rolls are best served fresh. You can make them fully ahead of time (not more than a day before would be ideal), then keep them covered and warm them up before serving.

Serving warm is essential to get that gooey center, even after a few days! Just pop them into the microwave for about 30 seconds, then top with extra icing if you have it!

However, if you want to prep ahead of time and not bake right away, you can follow all of the steps up until baking. So, let the dough rise, roll it out, fill with cinnamon sugar, slice and place in your pan.

Then, instead of sitting in a warm environment to rise for an hour and a half, let them sit out for about 30 minutes, then place in your fridge overnight.

Then, in the morning, preheat your oven and let the pan sit on top of the oven to quickly come to room temperature, then bake as usual. Perfect if you want these Christmas morning (which I always do!).

How to mix without a stand mixer

I highly recommend using a stand mixer with the dough hook for this recipe. If you don’t have one, you can mix all ingredients by hand and then knead by hand.

I don’t recommend a handheld electric mixer because we don’t want to beat the dough together, just knead it using the dough hook.

Ingredient swaps

Yeast: Unfortunately, you cannot make these without yeast. These cinnamon rolls rely on yeast for their fluffy texture since there are no eggs or gluten. Without the yeast, they will turn out too dense.

Butter: I used Earth Balance dairy free butter, but Miyoko’s is another great brand. I do not recommend coconut oil here as the flavor will not be great.

Sugar: For a more refined sugar free option, you can sub the white sugar in the filling for coconut sugar. I don’t recommend subbing the white sugar in the dough for coconut sugar as the yeast is more easily activated by regular sugar.

Flour. This recipe calls for the Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Bread Mix. This is a very specific flour blend and unfortunately, I do not recommend any flour substitutions here. A gluten free all purpose flour blend will not work.

You’ll also love…

• Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins
• Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
• Gluten Free Bagels
• Cinnamon Roll Blondies
• Gluten Free Coffee Cake

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