Years ago, I used to stop at a coffee shop on my way to work every morning to grab a cinnamon roll and hot chocolate. It was the highlight of my boring work day, LOL. So I knew when I set out to create a delicious, soft gluten free cinnamon rolls recipe that it was going to take some work.
I've never been one to shy away from hard work, especially when it involves eating dozens of freshly baked cinnamon rolls. I have been testing this gluten free dairy free recipe for over a year to get it perfect and I am finally at the point where I don't think it could possibly be any better. I have tested it seven times in the last month alone and even with all of those cinnamon rolls making my pants tight, it still hasn't affected my love of this sweet, breakfast treat.
This gluten-free cinnamon roll recipe will be perfect for special occasions, like Christmas morning. I like to top my rolls with a simple powdered sugar frosting, but I've included instructions for a cream cheese frosting at the bottom of the recipe.
If you're looking for more delicious breakfast recipes, I recommend trying my gluten free cinnamon raisin bread or this crowd pleasing gluten free french toast casserole.
Ingredient Notes
To make this yeast dough recipe as simple as possible, I've formulated it using a store-bought gluten-free all purpose flour blend.
- Water - While most cinnamon rolls recipes call for milk, when I tested this recipe with certain milks, this dough came out dense. So to keep things softer and easier, we will just use water.
- Whole Psyllium Husk - Psyllium husk is the ingredient that allows gluten free dough to be more easily handled, like wheat dough. It gels when mixed with liquid helping the dough to hold together for kneading and rolling. I use Anthony's brand of whole psyllium husk. If you use psyllium husk powder, you'll want to reduce the volume to 85% (1 ¾ tablespoon or 10 grams).
- Gluten Free All Purpose Flour - I can only recommend King Arthur's Gluten Free All Purpose Flour for this recipe. I tried it with a few different gluten free brands, but the King Arthur flour blend yielded the best results. Be careful to ensure you get the all purpose flour, not the all purpose baking mix - they have similar packaging.
- Sugar - All cinnamon roll dough needs some sugar. It affects not only the flavor, but also helps with browning and changes the texture of the dough.
- Instant Yeast - I always use Instant Yeast with my gluten free bread dough. It does not require activating before use. Fleischmanns is my favorite brand and is marked gluten free.
- Xanthan Gum - This is an important ingredient in gluten free bread, which allows the dough to stretch instead of crumble. I have not tried this recipe with any substitutions.
- Baking Powder - Although baking powder isn't usually used in yeast breads, here I have added it to help give a softer, fluffier texture to the rolls.
- Salt - A bit of salt compliments all of the sweet flavors in this cinnamon rolls.
- Egg - This recipe uses just one egg, both for the protein to help hold the rise and for the richness it adds to the dough. If you're egg free, I recommend omitting the egg and replacing the water with soy milk.
- Vanilla - Vanilla extract enhances the flavors of the cinnamon roll dough.
- Vegan Butter - Your butter needs to be really soft, softer than room temperature, so it will blend into the dough easily. I used Country Crock plant butter in this recipe. If you're not dairy free, use regular butter in the same measure.
- Honey - I've used honey just for the added golden brown color it yields when the rolls are baked. Without it, the cinnamon rolls comes out very light in color.
- Brown Sugar - Brown sugar is used for the cinnamon filling inside the rolls. I have used light brown, but dark brown sugar will work as well.
- Cinnamon - Use a good quality cinnamon since it's the star of the recipe. I like the Ceylon variety for its smooth mild flavor. If you like more of a cinnamon spice punch, go for Saigon cinnamon.
You will also need cornstarch or another starch for rolling out the dough, powdered sugar and heavy cream for the icing.
See recipe card for full ingredient list and quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- Not Dairy Free - use unsalted dairy butter in the same measure.
- Make it Egg Free / Vegan - Omit the single egg and replace the water with soy milk. Replace the honey with maple syrup or brown rice syrup.
How to make Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls
This dough is fairly easy to make, but I definitely recommend using a stand mixer to save your arms.
STEP 1: Heat the water to 115F. Add the psyllium husk to the warm water and stir well. Set it aside to allow it to get for about 5 minutes.
STEP 2: Add the gluten free flour, sugar, instant yeast, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer. Give it a good stir to mix everything together.
STEP 3: Add the water-psyllium husk mixture, beaten egg, vanilla, softened butter and honey to the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients.
STEP 4: Using the dough hook attachment, mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients on low speed until just combined. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times to get everything incorporated.
STEP 5: Turn the mixer up to medium-low speed and mix for 5 minutes straight.
STEP 6: Cover your counter with a large piece of parchment paper. Dust the parchment paper with cornstarch and turn the dough out onto the surface. Dust the top of the dough with a little more cornstarch.
Expert Tip
Cornstarch, tapioca starch or arrowroot powder are great for dusting the work surface because they won't make your dough dryer like added flour would. You won't need a lot of starch, perhaps 2 tablespoons total for the table and the top of the dough.
STEP 7: Roll the dough out into a rectangle approximately 14 inches wide by 10 inches high.
STEP 8: Spread the soft butter on the rectangle of gluten-free dough.
STEP 9: Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon in an even layer over the butter. Pat it down gently with your hands so the filling sticks.
STEP 10: Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to slice the dough into 9 equal strips, approximately 1 ½ inches wide. Then roll each strip up individually into a cinnamon roll.
STEP 11: Place the rolls into a greased 9x9 baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and leave in a warm place for the dough rise. It will take about 90 minutes to double in size.
STEP 12: Once the cinnamon rolls have doubled in size, remove the covering and bake them in a preheated oven until the internal temperature is 190F.
Remove the baked rolls from the oven. Prepare the icing and spread over the warm cinnamon rolls. Serve immediately.
Storage
We have never had any of these cinnamon rolls last past the first day. But if I did have leftovers, I would store them in an airtight container at room temperature. They are best served warm, so reheat in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds before enjoying.
Note: If you use the cream cheese icing, you will need to store the cinnamon rolls in the refrigerator.
More gluten free bread recipes to consider:
If you try this recipe, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the comments below.
Recipe
Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- Rolling Pin
- 9x9 Baking Pan
Ingredients
For the cinnamon rolls
- 1 Cup 2 Tablespoons Water
- 2 Tablespoons Whole Psyllium Husk
- 2 Cups Gluten Free All Purpose Flour King Arthur brand
- ¼ Cup Sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoon Instant Yeast 1 package
- 1 ½ teaspoons Xanthan Gum
- ¾ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¾ teaspoon Salt
- 1 Egg lightly beaten
- 1 Tablespoon Honey
- 1 ½ teaspoons Vanilla
- 5 Tablespoons Vegan Butter very soft
- Cornstarch for dusting the dough
For the filling
- 3 Tablespoons Vegan Butter very soft
- ½ Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Cinnamon
For the icing
- 1 Cup Powdered Sugar sifted
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Plant Based Cream
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
Instructions
- Spray a 9x9 baking pan with nonstick spray.
- Heat the water to 115 °F (46 °C) Stir in the psyllium husk and set it aside it to gel for 5 minutes.1 Cup 2 Tablespoons Water, 2 Tablespoons Whole Psyllium Husk
- Add the gluten free flour, sugar, instant yeast, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir the ingredients together until well mixed.2 Cups Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, ¼ Cup Sugar, 2 ¼ teaspoon Instant Yeast, 1 ½ teaspoons Xanthan Gum, ¾ teaspoon Baking Powder, ¾ teaspoon Salt
- Add the egg, softened butter, vanilla, honey and water-psyllium husk mixture to the bowl.1 Egg, 1 Tablespoon Honey, 1 ½ teaspoons Vanilla, 5 Tablespoons Vegan Butter
- Stir with the hook attachment until all of the dry ingredients are incorporated. You will need to stop a few times to scrape down the bowl.
- Once the ingredients are combined, turn the mixer to medium low and mix it for 5 full minutes.
- Spread a large piece of parchment paper over your work surface. Lightly dust the parchment paper with cornstarch. Turn the dough out onto your work surface. Dust the top with a little more cornstarch. Pat or roll it out to a rectangle that is ¼” thick. Approximately 10 inches x 14 inchesCornstarch for dusting the dough
- Spread the softened butter for the filling evenly over the rectangle. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl and sprinkle it over the butter. Use your hands to pat the sugar mixture down so it sticks to the butter.3 Tablespoons Vegan Butter, ½ Cup Light Brown Sugar, 1 ½ Tablespoons Cinnamon
- Cut the dough into 9 equal strips, approximately 1 ½ inches wide. Roll each strip up individually to make a cinnamon roll and place it in the prepared baking dish.
- Cover the rolls with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Leave to rise in a warm place for about 90 minutes or until doubled in size.
- When there is 20 minutes remaining in the proofing time, preheat the oven to 350 °F (177 °C) degrees.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown or until the internal temperature reads 190 °F (88 °C) degrees. If the tops get too dark, tent them with aluminum foil for the remaining time.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan while you prepare the icing.
- Combine all of the icing ingredients in a small bowl and stir until the dry ingredients are completely mixed in. Top the cinnamon rolls with icing and serve. The cinnamon rolls are best when eaten warm from the oven.1 Cup Powdered Sugar, 2 ½ Tablespoons Plant Based Cream, 1 teaspoon Vanilla
Video
Notes
- 3 Tablespoons Butter, room temperature
- ¾ Cup Powdered Sugar
- 4 ounces Cream Cheese, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
Tiffany is the recipe developer, stylist and food photographer behind Well Fed Baker. As a lifelong baker who had to go gluten free and dairy free in 2016, Tiffany strives to share allergen friendly recipes that never feel like they are free from anything.
Linda says
Thank you for your dedication and hard work. And love the Blues song in the video! 💖
Thank you for such a sweet comment. I was digging the song too! 🙂
Debbie says
Is it necesssry to use additional Xanthum gum when the flour already has it?
The flour called for in the recipe does not contain xanthan gum. If you're using a 1-to1 blend (sometimes called cup 4 cup or measure for measure), those are not suitable for yeast recipes.
Janet says
Absolutely the best GF cinnamon rolls I have ever had.
My GF friends agree!
Thank you!!
This makes my whole day! 🙂
Cathy says
Could you use the King Arthur GF Bread flour in place of AP? Would you follow the recipe as written except substitute the flour? Thanks