Gluten-Free Cinnamon Bun Recipe (Vegan) (2024)

I first developed this recipe back in 2011. I was craving one of those gooey buns I remembered from back in the day. I thought I had mastered this recipe and then went ahead and included a variation of it in my first book, UnDiet. I had made them a few times since and, shamefully, never had amazing results. I feared this may have been the case for many of you, so I spent some time recently playing with the recipe because, well, aren’t we all baking these days?Below I have provided my updated recipe, and here is an update to the whole post.My cinnamon obsession began back around 1994 or 1995. High school. (Yeah, go ahead and do the math. I’m 40, proud and letting the greys fly.) When I took the bus to and from my high school, I had to pass through Toronto’s Yonge & Eglinton subway station. Inside the station was a Cinnabon bakery. It still might be there. I’m pretty sure it’s been about 20 years since I went through there. For those of you who live outside the 48 countries where Cinnabons are now located (note: when I first wrote this, they were just topping 30 countries. I slowly shake my head), or managed to avoid shopping malls your whole life (and for that I would envy you); Cinnabon is the sweetest smelling cinnamon bun bakery there ever was. They are steamy hot, oooey, gooey, chewy, sugary and dripping in the sweetest icing.Passing through the subway station, smelling these at 3:30pm, feeling extremely fatigued after a day under the fluorescent school lights, was torture.Cinnamon buns have always been a weak point for me but gluten and white sugar (and whatever else is likely in them aside from actual cinnamon) is on my non-negotiable never-ever list. I highly recommend, by the way, making a never-ever list and sticking to it. By doing that, you’re instantly removing any and all should you or shouldn’t you negotiations with yourself, and simultaneously eliminating loads of decision-making.For example, if you decide that you are not touching processed sugar (white, cane, brown, etc.), then just like that you’re wiping out most of the foods that we all know we’d be better off with less of or none.Anyway, we’ve gone off track a little.I am not a fan of nutrition labels as for the most part, ingredients mean way more, but I thought I’d share the nutritional profile of a Cinnabon:

Now, you’re probably looking at that total fat and thinking nasty thoughts about those smart Cinnabon people for blowing the sweet cinnamon and sugar into the air as you walk by. But check out the calories from carbohydrates. In a single classic Cinnabon, there are 58 grams of straight-up sugar. That’s the equivalent of 14 teaspoons of sugar, or a little over a quarter of a cup.Needless to say, the smell has long since become nauseating and chemical to me, and my search for something easy to make and delicious without making me want to barf and take a nap from sugar overload is what inspired me to take a look at my own cinnamon roll recipe- and give her the old one-two update to make it more moist and easier to roll.Keep in mind that as a gluten-free and yeast-free roll, you won’t see the thick, cakey, gooeyness that you might be accustomed to from the processed variety, but this will absolutely hit that cinnamon roll craving.I wanted this treat to be free of any other garbage vegan ingredients like vegan-margarine, shortening, or other oil co*cktails. Of course, I also wanted the rolls to be made with unprocessed flours, unprocessed sweetener, and a bonus would be a recipe that is egg-free so my son could enjoy too. I also worked out a super easy and creamy icing that is the perfect addition.These fibre-rich, just sweet enough, whole food-based cinnamon buns are amazing. Really, very, very amazing. You might be the type to go for icing, but I go for some organic butter or a few slices of sheep cheese.Print

Enjoy these Cinnamon Buns with:

• Yogi Tea
• Almond Milk
• Turmeric Tea
• Vanilla Bean Hemp Milk
• Bay Leaf Tea

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