Healthy Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

I have had a serious obsession for all things cinnamon for as long as I can remember (hello, eating mixing-bowl sized servings of Cinnamon Toast Crunch as a child). So when my dad used to make his grandmother's cinnamon roll recipe, I would get pretty excited. The only downside is that it was such a long process to make them (it felt like a week but was really more like 36 hours I think). Plus they were filled with actual lard, so my body probably didn't love them as much as I did.

So when I saw this recipe from Rachel Mansfield, that not only claimed to take just 30 minutes to make, but was also healthy, I was on cloud nine. They may not be quite the same as my childhood favorites, but they are pretty close. They satisfy my sweet cinnamon craving without putting me in a sugar coma, which is all that I can ask for.

I adapted her recipe a little bit to suit my taste buds, and the ingredients I had on hand. Feel free to do the same for yourself!

INGREDIENTS

Cinnamon rolls

• 2 and 3/4 cups oat flour

• 3 teaspoons baking powder

• 3 tablespoons coconut sugar (you can also use date sugar)

• 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I recommend almond, oat, or coconut!)

• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 6 tablespoons liquid coconut oil

Cinnamon sugar filling

• 1/4 cup coconut sugar or date sugar

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

• 1/4 cup softened coconut butter, non-dairy butter, or grass-fed butter

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a 9x9 baking dish with parchment paper

2. Whisk together the nut milk and apple cider vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5-10 minutes

3. Add in the vanilla extract then coconut oil and mix again

4. In a large bowl, mix together the spelt flour, baking powder and coconut sugar

5. Then pour the wet mixture into the dry and gently mix with a spatula

6. Form the dough into a round sphere and add to a floured-surface to roll it out (you can use a water bottle if you don't have a rolling pin)

7. Once the dough is in a large triangle, about 1 inch thick, gently spread the vegan butter over the dough

8. Mix together the coconut sugar and cinnamon then sprinkle on top of the butter on the dough

9. Roll the dough from the bottom, up and make sure you seal it well so it all stays together

10. Gently slice into 8-10 rolls, then add to oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown

#cinnamonroll #veganbaking #healthydessert #plantbased #holisticnutrition #healthycooking #glutenfree