Vegan Cinnamon Rolls - The Plant Based School (2024)

Vegan cinnamon rolls are a delicious treat with a soft, pillowy dough flavored with swirls of cinnamon sugar and topped with a luscious glaze.

Their light and fluffy texture and buttery flavor and aroma are divine; as you bake them, they’ll fill your kitchen with an inebriating scent.

Table of Contents

• What are vegan cinnamon rolls?
• Vegan cinnamon rolls video
• How to Make Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
• Serving suggestions
• Variation
• More Vegan Desserts
• More Brunch Ideas
• Vegan Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

Vegan cinnamon rolls are made with rolled sheets of yeast-leaveneddough and are similar in looks, texture, and taste to regular cinnamon rolls but are made without eggs, milk, and butter.

Because they are so popular, we also made apple cinnamon rolls and a variation without added sugar.

Like our other yeast-leavened dough recipes, such as vegan brioche, Italian croissants, brioche rolls with vegan custard, and Italian cream buns, our vegan cinnamon rolls recipe is easy to make with simple pantry staples.

You’ll love their light, airy, and pillowy texture, moist buttery dough layers, and pleasant cinnamon aroma.

With our vegan crepes, vegan french toast, Italian almond cookies, and vegan biscotti, they are a popular recipe for the winter holidays and the cold winter months, when you can cozy up wrapped in a blanket and enjoy them with a steaming cup of tea or coffee.

With our recipe, you can make about nine rolls, so that’s an excellent recipe for sharing with friends and family.

The steps you’ll find below should be easy enough to follow with step-by-step pictures and a recipe video, but if you have any questions, let us know in the comments below.

While this recipe requires a little more effort than many of our other vegan desserts – think of our super easy chocolate glazed donuts, vegan apple cake, pear cake, vegan lemon cake, apple muffins, and banana nut bread – it’s still easy to do, and you can totally pull it off!

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

For the dough

Non-dairy Milk

We use almond milk.

Substitute any non-dairy milk for almond milk. You can use soy milk, oat milk, rice milk, and cashew milk.

Sugar

We use white sugar for the dough and brown sugar for the filling. You can also use all brown sugar.

Note: Some sugars might not be 100% vegan; if that’s a problem, try to find sugar made from beets or certified organic cane sugar.

Yeast

We recommend using instant dry yeast or active dry yeast.

We recommend instant dry yeast because you don’t need to activate it; you can mix it with the other ingredients immediately.

Either case, read the instructions on your packet when using the yeast.

Instant dry yeast looks like fine granular dust. You can find it in most grocery stores or online.

You can substitute fresh yeast for instant or dry yeast. However, you need 3X fresh yeast compared to dry yeast.

Fat

We recommend using a neutral-flavored vegetable oil such as avocado oil, light olive oil, canola, or sunflower oil for the fluffiest rolls.

Alternatively, you can use dairy-free butter made from oils such as sunflower oil, canola oil, and olive oil.

You can also use vegan butter made with saturated fats like palm oil and coconut oil; however, we tried, and the rolls turned out to be less fluffy and heavier.

Flour

All-purpose flour is best for this vegan cinnamon roll recipe.

We haven’t tried making this recipe gluten-free, so we’re not sure how it would turn out.

Salt

We add a pinch of sea salt to enhance the flavor of the dough. If you are on a low-sodium diet, you can omit salt.

For the filling

Vegan butter

You can use any vegan or dairy-free butter for the filling. It needs to be soft at room temperature.

Brown sugar

We use brown sugar to add sweetness and color to the vegan cinnamon rolls.

Substitute coconut sugar for brown sugar.

Cinnamon

Ground cinnamon is mixed with sugar and butter.

For the topping

Simple icing

Make it with:

• powdered sugar
• dairy-free milk
• vanilla extract of the seeds in a vanilla pod.

Cream cheese frosting

Make it with:

• vegan cream cheese
• powdered sugar
• vanilla extract of the seeds in a vanilla pod.

Here’s the full vegan cream cheese frosting recipe.

Butter and cream cheese frosting

Make it with:

• vegan butter
• vegan cream cheese
• powdered sugar
• vanilla extract

Here’s the full recipe for vegan lemon frosting and vanilla frosting.

Equipment

• You can use a 10×10 inch (25×25 cm) squared baking dish or a 9-inch (23 cm) round cake pan.
• Dental floss or a serrated knife for cutting the vegan cinnamon buns.

US cups + grams measurements in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Start with the dough

To a large mixing bowl, add lukewarm milk, sugar, oil (or lukewarm melted vegan butter), and instant yeast.

Stir and let the yeast bloom for 1 minute.

Tip: the milk should be lukewarm, not hot or cold.

Add flour and salt and mix with a wooden spoon or a silicone spatula until you get a dough ball.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface.

Knead vigorously for 5 to 8 minutes until the dough is elastic and smooth.

Note: if you prefer, use a standing mixer for kneading the dough. Add the ingredients in the same order and knead with a dough hook.

Tip: The dough should be as soft as possible without sticking to your hands. So try not to add more flour.

Proofing

Shape the dough into a ball, and transfer it into a large bowl you previously brushed with oil.

Cover the dough with a damp cloth or plastic wrap, leaving enough space between the dough and the cloth for the dough to rise.

Let the cinnamon roll dough proof for about one hour and a half until it has doubled in size.

Cinnamon filling

To a bowl, add softened vegan butter, sugar, and cinnamon.

Incorporate with a fork until the ingredients are mixed, spreadable, and set aside.

If the vegan butter starts to melt, keep the mixture in the fridge.

Shaping and cutting

When the dough has doubled in volume, transfer it to a work surface, trying not to add flour.

Fold the dough five times on itself, then shape it into a ball.

Tip: folding gives the dough structure to the vegan cinnamon rolls, making the dough easier to work with.

Dust the work surface with a small amount of flour, and roll out the dough, first with your hands, then with the help of a rolling pin.

Make a 12 x 16 inches rectangle or 30 x 40 cm.

Make the corners as square as possible.

Spread the filling on the dough with a spoon or a silicone spatula.

Spread it over the rectangle, leaving just a quarter of an inch at the edges.

Roll the dough on itself. Start from the shorter side and form a tight roll.

Stretch the rolled dough with your hands to reach 11 inches (28 cm).

Take a piece of dental floss, wrap it around the roll, and tighten it as if you wanted to tie a knot.

Cut each roll to a thickness of just over an inch (about 3 centimeters) to make 9 rolls.

You can also cut it with a serrated knife, but the floss produces a cleaner and even cut.

Transfer each roll to the baking sheet you previously brushed with oil or vegan butter.

We use a 10 x 10 inches (25 x 25 cm) square pan that fits nine rolls.

Second proofing and baking

Let rolls proof a second time (best if in a warm place) for 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Brush the rolls with a little bit of non-dairy milk. When the oven is hot, bake them for about 20 to 25 minutes.

Take the cinnamon rolls out of the oven and let them cool for 15 minutes before devouring them.

One important thing: if you use a low-sided pan like the one in our pictures, the cinnamon rolls will bake in about 20 minutes. If you use a high-sided pan, the rolls will take around 25 minutes.

You can serve vegan cinnamon rolls without any topping, sprinkle them with powdered sugar, or topped with icing or frosting.

They are super fluffy, slightly gooey, and melt in your mouth. We recommend serving them with the following:

Simple icing glaze

In a small mixing bowl, whisk powdered sugar, dairy-free milk, and vanilla extract until you have a smooth glaze.

Pour over the vegan cinnamon rolls; it’ll drizzle down to the rolls’ core, making them sweet, gooey, and with an irresistible stickiness.

Cream cheese frosting

In a mixing bowl, beat the vegan cream cheese with powdered sugar and vanilla extract. You can use a hand whisk or an electric mixer.

Butter and cream cheese frosting

In a bowl, whip your favorite vegan butter with vegan cream cheese. The butter should be softened.

Add powdered sugar and vanilla, and keep whipping until you have a smooth frosting.

Spread the frosting on the vegan cinnamon rolls. Optionally, you can garnish with toasted slivered almonds.

If you love apple and cinnamon flavors, try our delicious vegan apple cinnamon rolls.

These delicious pillowy rolls are packed with tender and juicy apple pieces and are simply irresistible.

Check out our apple cinnamon rolls recipe.

Cinnamon rolls without added sugar

In this variation, we substitute date paste for sugar and butter.

To make a date paste, blend pitted dates previously soaked in hot water for 30 minutes with a high-speed blender until they turn into a smooth paste.

FOR THE SUGAR-FREE DOUGH

Replace the sugar in the dough with equal amounts of date paste.

For the dough, mix the date paste with the plant milk, oil, and yeast until the date paste is fully dissolved in the liquid.

Then, add the flour and salt and continue as described in the recipe above.

FOR THE SUGAR-FREE FILLING

Thanks to its smooth and spreadable texture and lovely flavor, date paste is suitable for filling our cinnamon rolls. It will replace vegan butter and sugar in one fell swoop.

You’ll need 160 grams (5.6 oz) of date paste to mix with the cinnamon.

Mix date paste and cinnamon, and your filling is ready to be spread on the dough. Continue the recipe as described previously.

These also turned out super cute, tall, and fluffy. Since we’re eating these without frosting on top, we immediately brush them with a bit of water to keep them soft longer. They are perfect for breakfast or as a snack.

And even though there are no refined sugars and much less fat, these vegan cinnamon rolls are perfectly sweet and soft.

Room temperature: If you don’t eat your vegan cinnamon rolls right away, then store them at room temperature in plastic bags, airtight, so they don’t dry out. They keep for 2 to 3 days. Warm them in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute before eating to make them fluffy again.

Freezer: You can freeze baked cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes before serving them.

Are you looking for some easy vegan desserts? Here are some delicious ones:

• Vegan apple muffins
• Vegan cake donuts or chocolate glazed donuts
• Banana Zucchini bread
• Vegan pumpkin bread
• Easy vanilla cake
• Vegan lemon cake

Love Sunday breakfast and brunch? Get inspiration from these easy and delightful brunch ideas:

• Easy vegan pancakes three ways with vanilla, blueberry, or banana.
• Vegan apple cake: 8-ingredient reader’s favorite cake with tender apple pieces.
• 1-bowl banana bread: only 8 ingredients are needed for this easy and airy banana bread.
• Oatmeal pancakes with blended oats and a quick apple compote.
• Quick zucchini muffins with shredded zucchini and chocolate chips.
• Apple cinnamon rolls with sweet and tender apple pieces.
• Tofu scramble: an excellent savory brunch idea.

For many more easy dessert ideas, check out our desserts category page.