Soft, fluffy, and swirled with sweet cinnamon sugar - these vegan cinnamon rolls are pure bakery bliss, made right at home. No dairy, no fuss, just irresistible comfort in every bite.
Ah, cinnamon rolls. Truly the key to my heart. There's nothing quite like the nostalgic smell of cinnamon rolls waking you up on a lazy weekend morning, or grabbing one off the counter before a busy weekday to enjoy with your coffee.
And it's one of the few breakfast treats that my whole family can agree on. Cinnamon rolls truly are one of those simple things that make life special!
Well, some people may disagree with the simplicity factor. Vegan cinnamon rolls, after all, have a reputation for being complicated.
But fear not, because even if you're a complete beginner when it comes to baking, you definitely can't mess these up. So, if you need a last-minute treat to impress non-vegans, this may be a perfect option for you.
Making Vegan Cinnamon Rolls (Step-by-Step)
You want to start by stirring together warm plant based milk and dry yeast, and setting that aside for 10 minutes to allow the yeast to activate.
Then, add sugar and salt, stir until they dissolve, and then gradually start adding in the flour. Add it around ½ cup at a time, and stir continuously until all of the flour has been incorporated. Now add the olive oil and continue mixing until thoroughly combined and a dough forms.
The dough will be fully combined, but still soft and fluffy in texture. See the picture below for an example of what it should look like.
Knead the dough for around 5 minutes, then cover with a paper towel or cloth, and set aside for around 20 minutes.
When this time is almost up, make the cinnamon roll filling by stirring together cinnamon and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Also preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 C).
Transfer the dough onto a large, floured surface and roll it out into a thin rectangular sheet. The rectangle shape doesn't have to be perfect, but make sure that it's even in width throughout to make sure that the cinnamon rolls are an even size, with a consistent ratio of dough to filling.
Now sprinkle the filling onto the dough and spread it out using a spoon. If you wish, you can make some extra and add a little bit more.
Roll the rectangle up tightly into a log, and slice it into approximately 12 even-sized cinnamon rolls. Transfer these to a round baking dish, cover with a paper towel or cloth, and set aside to rise for 20 minutes more.
When done, proceed to bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. You can use this time to make the glaze, which requires just 2 ingredients: icing sugar and water. Simply add the water to the icing sugar around 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency.
Allow the cinnamon rolls to cool down for around 10 minutes before adding the icing. Serve and enjoy!
Storing and Freezing
You can keep these vegan cinnamon rolls on the countertop, covered for up to 3 days. Or you can keep them in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week.
These cinnamon rolls are also freezer-friendly. Allow them to thaw fully in the fridge before warming up in the microwave and serving.
Helpful Tips & Tricks
Make sure to leave the yeast to activate and the cinnamon rolls to rise in a reasonably warm place. Room temperature should be fine in the summer, or leave them on a windowsill or next to a radiator if you're in cooler weather.
Don't attempt to make these with a gluten-free flour blend, as the results will not be the same. Stay tuned as I am working on a perfect gluten-free vegan cinnamon roll recipe!
Any sugar will work for this recipe, but don't attempt to use a liquid sweetener such as maple syrup. It won't work well here.
While this recipe is not the quickest, for most of it the cinnamon rolls are either rising or baking. So, you can use that time to make other additions to your brunch table, such as banana bread baked oats, or scrambled tofu.
More Vegan Baking Recipes
If you love these vegan cinnamon rolls, be sure to check out these other delicious recipes:
- No-bake cookie dough bars are always a good idea!
- Start your day with chocolate granola bars.
- It's so easy to make fudgy sweet potato brownies.
- If you want something super simple, make 6-ingredient almond cookies.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup plant based milk
- 1 tablespoon dry yeast
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 cups flour
- ¼ cup olive oil
Filling
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ⅓ cup sugar
Glaze
- 1 cup icing sugar
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- Stir together warm plant based milk and dry yeast. Set aside for 10 minutes.
- Add sugar and salt, stir until they dissolve, and then gradually start adding in the flour. Add it around ½ cup at a time, and stir continuously until all of the flour has been incorporated. Now add the olive oil and continue mixing until thoroughly combined and a dough forms.
- Knead the dough for around 5 minutes, then cover with a paper towel or cloth, and set aside for around 20 minutes.
- Make the cinnamon roll filling by stirring together cinnamon and sugar in a small mixing bowl.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 C).
- Transfer the dough onto a large, floured surface and roll it out into a thin rectangular sheet. Make sure that it's even in width throughout.
- Sprinkle the filling onto the dough and spread it out using a spoon. Roll the rectangle up tightly, and divide it into around 12 even-sized cinnamon rolls.
- Transfer to a round baking dish, cover with a paper towel or cloth, and set aside to rise for 20 minutes more.
- Bake the rolls in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- Make the glaze: add the water to the icing sugar around 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency.
- Allow the cinnamon rolls to cool down for around 10 minutes before adding the icing. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- You can keep these vegan cinnamon rolls on the countertop, covered for up to 3 days, or in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week.
- Freeze these cinnamon rolls for up to a month. Allow them to thaw fully in the fridge before warming up in the microwave and serving.
Sara says
Made these with my daughter last weekend. So fun and they were delicious.
Marci says
I was a little scared to try this, but they came out so good. It was not neearly as hard as i thought it would be.