The Best Vegan Cinnamon Rolls Recipe Ever: Fluffy, Sweet & Irresistible Vegan Desserts Breakfast Brunch

I often feel badly for my vegan friends at a party or dinner when I look at the beautiful display of food and see nothing – or next to nothing – that they can eat. So, I’ve been on the hunt for vegan dessert recipes in order to be able to help them feel included, whatever the event.

I don’t cook or bake many vegan recipes (at least not intentionally for vegan guests), so I wanted to find some easy recipes. My family absolutely loves cinnamon rolls (you’ll never find a leftover cinnamon roll at my house!) so I figured that would be a great place to start. I’m grateful to my vegan friends for sharing their recipes with me so I can share them with you!

I love researching the origins of a recipe. It is generally believed that cinnamon rolls originated in Sweden. However, they didn’t become popular until the 1950s. In Sweden, they even have a National Cinnamon Bun Day. Sounds good to me!

Though this vegan cinnamon roll recipe has few ingredients and takes less time than I anticipated, these cinnamon rolls are still light and fluffy and mouth-watering tasty. Even if you’re not vegan, I suspect you’ll like these. While I think the frosting takes the yummy goodness to the next level, I’m not even sure you need it. The rolls are perfectly yummy without it; so that’s up to you. You may choose to cut down on your sugar intake and skip it. In my home, my boys have always had their cinnamon rolls with frosting, so at this point I think they’d protest if I didn’t use the frosting. You do whatever’s best for your eager eaters.

These cinnamon rolls taste best when fresh, though they will keep if covered at room temperature for about two to three days.

Cuisine: Swedish / American
Prep Time: 1 1/2 hours
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours
Servings: 10

Ingredients

Dough

• 3 tablespoons vegan butter 
• 1 packet instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1 cup unsweetened original almond milk (most other milks should work but I prefer almond)
• 1 tablespoon organic cane sugar (granulated)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• olive oil or avocado oil, for coating the bowl

Filling

• 3 tablespoons vegan butter, melted
• 1/4 cup organic cane sugar
• ground cinnamon, to taste (roughly 1/2 - 1 tablespoon)

Topping

• 2 tablespoons vegan butter, melted

Icing (optional)

• 1 cup organic powdered sugar
• 1 - 2 tablespoons almond milk

Here’s how to make it:

1. To make the dough, in a large saucepan (or in a bowl in the microwave at 30-second increments), heat the almond milk and vegan butter slowly until warm and melted (do not boil). Remove from heat and let cool to 110 degrees F or the temperature of bath water. It should be warm but not too hot (which will kill the yeast). Add the mixture to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle on yeast. Let activate for 10 minutes, then add 1 tablespoon sugar as well as the salt. Stir.
2. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time, stirring as you go (you may not need to add all of it). The dough will be sticky. When it is too thick to stir, transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead with hands for 1 to 2 minutes or until it forms a loose ball (be careful not to overmix). Rinse your mixing bowl out, coat it with avocado or olive oil, and add dough ball back in. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour, or until it has doubled in size.
3. To make the filling, on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a thin rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. Brush with melted vegan butter and top with sugar and cinnamon, to taste. Then, starting at one end, roll up the dough, tightly and place seam side down. With a serrated knife, cut the dough into 1 1/2- to 2-inch sections (ideally you should end up with 10 rolls) and place in a well-buttered 8×8-inch square pan or comparable-sized round pan. (If you would like to prep the cinnamon rolls the night before, cover the pan at this point and refrigerate overnight, then proceed with the topping in the morning.)
4. Brush with melted vegan butter (topping) and cover with plastic wrap. Set on top of the stove to let rise again while you preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Once the oven is preheated, bake rolls for 25 to 30 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes and then serve immediately.
5. To make the optional frosting, stir together the powdered sugar and almond milk. Spread on top of the baked cinnamon rolls. You could also use vegan cream cheese icing. 

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