Deliciously gooey Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls – made with a blend of chickpea and tapioca flour. Ready in under an hour! Grain Free + Vegan
Finally! Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls that are also vegan friendly and nut free.
This recipe took A LOT of work to get right. I feel like I’ve been working on these on and off for the past year trying to nail. I’ve eaten such a ridiculous amount of cinnamon rolls now it’s amazing I haven’t lost my taste for them. And yet – no matter how many times I made these I still have to stop myself from going back for my.
These babies have taken me long enough to get right so let’s just get right into it already!
How to Make: Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls
Altogether these cinnamon rolls come together with just 10 ingredients and can be made within the hour without too much work going into it. It might look a little intimidating at first glance with the yeast and dough rolling, but it’s really not to hard when you get at it.
First things first: activate the yeast. Warm up your almond milk – you really want the temperature to be warm and not hot. If the milk is too warm it will kill the yeast and prevent it from activating making it useless. I recommend just popping the milk in the microwave for about 7 seconds and that should be fine. Mix in a pinch of sugar and the active yeast and set aside for a few minutes while the yeast foams up.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together all of your dry ingredients to combine, followed by the melted butter and vanilla extract until a dry, clumpy mixture forms. Stir in the yeast mixture and stir until combined. You’ll end up with a soft dough as seen in the final square in the picture above.
Roll the dough out into a large rectangle on a very large sheet of wax paper. Brush a little melted butter over the surface and sprinkle with a cinnamon sugar mixture. Roll up into a log and then cut into 1 1/2 -2 inch pieces.
The rolls will expand in the oven so make sure to leave room to grow and bake for about 20 minutes!
Pull out the cinnamon rolls and let them cool slightly before adding the icing. If you add it too soon it will just melt and disappear into the rolls. While that might be tasty it’s not exactly the look we’re going for here.
Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls
Deliciously gooey Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls - made with a blend of chickpea and tapioca flour. Ready in under an hour! Grain Free + Vegan
Ingredients
Rolls
- 3/4 cup warm almond milk, or milk of your choice (180 ml)
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 2 cups chickpea flour (200g)
- 1 3/4 cups tapioca flour (210g)
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cups white sugar (50g)
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (10 ml)
- 6 tbsp butter (use vegan butter if needed), melted & cooled (84 g)
Filling
- 3 tbsp butter (use vegan butter if needed), melted (42 g)
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 2/3 cup sugar (135 g)
Glaze
- 2 cups powdered sugar (250 g)
- 1 tsp melted butter (vegan in needed) (14 g)
- 1-2 tsp dairy free milk (5-10 ml)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F/180°C. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside.
- In a small bowl, stir a pinch of sugar into the warm almond milk until dissolved. Stir in the yeast and set aside to let the mixture bubble up. If the yeast doesn't foam up it's either no longer active or the milk was too hot.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon and coconut sugar to combine. Set aside.
- Mix the melted butter and vanilla extract into the yeasted milk mixture. Pour the wet ingredients into dry and stir to combine. A thick, slightly sticky dough will form.
- Lay out and lightly flour a large sheet of baking parchment or plastic wrap for rolling. Place the dough on the floured surface. Lightly flour the top of the dough and then place another sheet of parchment/plastic wrap over the top. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. The dough should be about 1/8 inch thick.
- Brush the melted butter over the surface of the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar across the top. Use your fingers to spread out the topping evenly if needed.
- Using the paper or plastic under the rolled out dough as a guide, tightly wrap up the dough in a long cylinder. Cut the dough into slices about 1 1/2 inches thick then transfer to your prepared baking dish. Leave a little space in between each roll so they have the chance to rise up. Cover with a towel and set aside in a warm place to rise, about 30 minutes. The rolls should be almost toughing.
- Uncover and place in the middle of the oven. Let bake for 28-30 minutes. The tops should be golden and the rolls should have puffed up even more.
- While the rolls bake prep your glaze by whisking it all together in a small bowl. Add more powdered sugar for a thicker glaze.
- Let the cinnamon rolls cool slightly before adding the glaze and enjoy! You want them still a little warm so that the glaze can soak in the rolls a little bit.
Notes
Freshness: These are best enjoyed fresh the day you make them. If you have any leftovers I recommend warming them up in the microwave or on a low heat in the oven before eating them and they'll be good as new!Â
Storage: Keep these covered at room temperature. They'll keep up to 4 days.Â
Jenny Ulate says
Is it ok if I dont add the xanthan gum ??
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Jenny! Thanks for the question – I’m going to test that out tomorrow because now I’d really like to know for sure! While I think the dough/bread would hold up well after baking, I suspect that the dough might be a bit too runny without the xanthan to bind things together. I wish I could offer more insight right now, but without testing it out I’m not totally sure and I’d hate to give you bad advice!
Mary says
I have been searching for a gluten free cinnamon roll recipe that doesn’t just call for “GF Flour Blend” – so excited to find this and try it out! Do you happen to have the measurement weights like on many of your other recipes?
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Mary! So sorry it took me a week to get back to you – your comment got stuck in my spam filter. I’ve added the weights to the recipe – sorry it wasn’t already there!
Anupama says
Hi
Can I replace tapioca flour with plantain flour if I don’t mind the taste/flavor it imparts?
Sarah Nevins says
I’m afraid I have no experience cooking with plantain flour so I’m not sure how it would work here. Sorry I can’t be more help!
Jessica says
What could I use to substitute for the yeast?
Sarah says
Hi Jessica! Just leave out the yeast altogether – the rolls will rise a little less but you’ll still be good to go!
Filis says
What can I use as a substitute for tapioca?
Sarah says
Hi Filis! I haven’t tested this with any other flours so I can’t say for sure but I do think arrowroot flour would work here just as well
Mindy says
Will my kids notice the taste of the chickpea flour?
Sarah says
There is a very slight chickpea flour taste but I don’t think you can detect it after you add the glaze
Natalie says
These cinnamon rolls look so delicious and perfect for weekend brunch!
Sarah says
Thanks Natalie!