A lazier (but just as delicious) way to enjoy cinnamon rolls! These cinnamon roll blondies are ready in 30 minutes and finished off with a dairy free cream cheese glaze.
Ughhhh cinnamon roll blondies!! Why did I not think of this sooner. After making my actual cinnamon rolls 800 times before getting them exactly perfectly right, I thought I needed a recipe that tasted like cinnamon rolls, but didn’t require several hours of rising and rolling and rising again.
Don’t get me wrong, the rising and rolling and waiting is well worth it for those cinnamon rolls, but tbh when my sweet tooth has a craving, I usually need something ASAP.
That’s where these gluten free blondies come in! They’re SO easy to make, gluten free with a vegan option, swirled with cinnamon sugar and finished off with a simple cream cheese glaze. May or may not have eaten three of these in one day. Not mad about it.
A traditional blondie is essentially a chocolate chip cookie in bar form, but these blondies don’t have any chocolate and instead have a cinnamon swirl for lots of flavor.
How to make blondies
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small dish, combine the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the egg, sugar, apple sauce, melted butter and vanilla.
Add in the remaining ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flour, don’t scoop from the bag. Stir together with a wooden spoon until combined.
Add half of the batter to an 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment paper and spread evenly. Sprinkle on half of the cinnamon sugar mixture on top.
Add the rest of the batter on top, spreading evenly, but don’t worry if it’s not perfect. It helps to use a rubber spatula. Sprinkle on top the rest of the cinnamon sugar and use a toothpick to make swirls. You can easily skip the swirling step, but it does look nice to include it!
Bake for 21-28 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before slicing,
Whisk together the ingredients for the glaze, then drizzle on top of the blondies once cool. Cut into 16 slices and enjoy!
Ingredient substitutions
Egg: Since there is only one egg in this recipe, it’s very easy to swap with either more apple sauce or a flax egg or other egg replacer. If you are going to use applesauce, you’ll need about 3 tablespoons to replace the egg.
Flour: I have not tested this recipe with any other flour other than all purpose flour (I of course use gluten free), and I don’t think other flours will work. Regular all purpose flour will work just as well, but almond or oat flours will completely change the recipe so I don’t recommend trying those!
Sugar: You can swap the brown sugar in the actual blondies for coconut sugar and swap the white sugar in the swirl for coconut sugar as well. I do not recommend a liquid sweetener like maple syrup here.
Butter. I suggest butter for the best flavor, whether vegan or regular, but you can use refined coconut oil if you’re in a pinch.
Storage tips
Whenever a recipe calls for apple sauce, I have found that it needs to be stored in a very particular way or it can turn kind of mushy really quickly.
With these cinnamon roll blondies, I find it best to store them on a plate or in a container with the lid slightly ajar or with foil on top. If you seal the container too tightly, they almost get too moist/soggy. You can also store these in the fridge, where they will keep for about 5 days vs. 3 on the counter.
Why is my blondie cakey?
That is usually due to too much flour or too much baking powder or soda. This recipe does not use any baking powder or soda and instead utilizes just one egg to get a little bit of rise, but not so much that the blondies are cakey.
Over baking can also lead to cakey blondies, so if you prefer them more gooey, bake for a shorter amount of time or just until a toothpick comes out clean.
Try these gluten free desserts next!
Lastly, if you want more recipes straight to your inbox, be sure to subscribe to my email list. As always, if you make this recipe, be sure to tag me on instagram and leave a comment below so I can see your creation!
Gluten Free Cinnamon Roll Blondies
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Blondies
- 1 egg see notes for vegan
- ¼ cup apple sauce
- ½ cup butter, melted dairy free or regular
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups gluten free all purpose flour regular works too
- ¾ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
Cinnamon Swirl
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp + 1 tsp cinnamon
Glaze
- 3 tbsp plain cream cheese dairy free or regular
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tbsp milk dairy or non-dairy
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a small dish, combine the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the egg, sugar, apple sauce, melted butter and vanilla.
- Add in the remaining ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flour, don't scoop from the bag. Stir together with a wooden spoon until combined.
- Add half of the batter to an 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment paper and spread evenly. Sprinkle on half of the cinnamon sugar mixture on top.
- Add the rest of the batter on top, spreading evenly, but don't worry if it's not perfect. It helps to use a rubber spatula. Sprinkle on top the rest of the cinnamon sugar and use a toothpick to make swirls.
- Bake for 21-28 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before slicing,
- Whisk together the ingredients for the glaze, then drizzle on top of the blondies once cool. Cut into 16 slices and enjoy!
McKenzie says
Delicioussss!!
Michelle says
I tried these with Bob’s 1 to 1 baking flour. The taste was really good, but I’m not sure if it should have been quite so doughy. Almost like it didn’t cook all the way. The toothpick came out clean when I removed them at 25 minutes. Should I have used gluten free all purpose flour and add xanthum gum per directions on flour? Flavor is great, just not sure on the texture.
Claire Cary says
I would suggest just baking them for longer next time. It could be that your oven temperature was a bit lower than it actually read. But yes, this recipe does call for gluten free all purpose flour with xanthan gum, you do not need to add extra xanthan gum. You can also try adding in 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder if you prefer a more cakey texture.
Ciara M says
These are so delish! Everyone was asking for the recipe!
Rachel says
I made these last night for my family and they turned out so amazing!
Claire Cary says
Yay! So glad to hear that, thanks Rachel!