These gluten-free cinnamon rolls are fluffy, creamy, and bursting with fall and winter flavors. They have no gluten or refined sugars, and take less than an hour to make.
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Updated January 2023
An Easy Recipe for Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls
There are few things in life that are as comforting and delicious as a warm, freshly-baked cinnamon roll. The soft, chewy dough, the sweet, sticky icing, and the strong flavors of cinnamon and vanilla make cinnamon rolls a perfect treat. They can be part of breakfast or brunch, be eaten as an afternoon snack with a cup of coffee, or serve as a decadent dessert. And these gluten-free cinnamon rolls are as good as any that I’ve ever had.
Unlike many gluten-free baked goods, these cinnamon rolls don’t use a pre-made gluten-free flour blend. Instead, tapioca flour, almond flour, and psyllium husk powder are used in place of all-purpose flour. The result is a luscious and tender dough that’s jam-packed with cinnamon flavor.
What You’ll Need
Here are all the ingredients that you’ll need to make these festive gluten-free cinnamon rolls.
For the Dough:
- Tapioca flour
- Almond flour – Make sure to use superfine blanched almond flour.
- Psyllium husk powder
- Baking powder
- Fine salt
- Large eggs
- Maple syrup – You can use any type of sticky liquid sweetener that you want.
- Apple cider vinegar
- Ghee – If you don’t want to use ghee, you can use butter, non-dairy butter, or refined coconut oil.
- Vanilla extract – Make sure that you’re using pure vanilla extract.
- Warm water
The Filling:
- Coconut sugar – You can use brown sugar if you prefer.
- Ground cinnamon
- Ghee – Just as in the dough, you can substitute butter, non-dairy butter, or refined coconut oil for the ghee.
For the Glaze:
- Powdered maple sugar – You can replace this with any powdered sweetener.
- Ghee – The same previously mentioned ghee substitutions apply here as well.
- Almond milk – You can use any type of milk that you want, just make sure that it’s unseasoned and unsweetened.
- Vanilla extract
What is Ghee?
Originally from India, ghee is a form of clarified butter. In recipes, ghee and clarified butter are often used interchangeably. Ghee is essentially just butter that has had the milk solids removed from it. You can buy ghee in the store, or you can make it yourself out of butter.
How to Make Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls
Here’s how to make these creamy and chewy gluten-free cinnamon rolls.
Prep and Mix
- Prep. Preheat your oven to 350F, and grease a small casserole dish or pie pan.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Place the tapioca flour, almond flour, psyllium husk powder, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir to combine.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, add the eggs, vanilla extract, vinegar, maple syrup, and ghee. Whisk until well combined.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Pour the bowl of wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients, and mix until everything is well combined. Add a little bit of warm water to the dough, and mix it in.
Prepping the Dough
- Rest. Let the cinnamon roll dough rest for about 8 minutes.
- Make a dough ball. Working on top of parchment paper with tapioca flour on it, form a ball out of the cinnamon roll dough.
- Turn and roll out the dough. Turn the dough ball into a rectangular shape, and roll it out until it’s about 8×12 inches.
- Make the filling. Combine the coconut sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, and mix.
- Add the filling. Use a brush to cover the gluten-free cinnamon roll dough with melted ghee, then pour the coconut sugar and cinnamon mixture over it, thoroughly covering the dough.
- Rolling up the dough. Work from the short side of the cinnamon dough rectangle, and start rolling up the dough. Do this as tightly as possible until the dough is fully rolled up into a log.
- Cut the log. Use a sharp knife to cut the gluten-free cinnamon roll log into 9 pieces, then place them flat-side down in the prepared baking dish.
- Bake. Put the gluten-free cinnamon rolls in the oven and bake until the edges are slightly brown. This should take 18-20 minutes.
- Cool. When the cinnamon rolls are done baking, remove them from the oven and place them on a wire rack.
- Make the glaze. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sweetener to a bowl, and whisk to combine. Adjust the ingredients until the glaze is your desired consistency.
- Glaze the cinnamon rolls. Pour the glaze over the cinnamon rolls, and serve while they’re still warm.
Tricks and Tips
Here are a few tricks for making the best possible gluten-free cinnamon rolls.
- Use room temperature eggs. When baking, it’s almost always a good idea to use room temperature eggs. Eggs straight out of the fridge won’t be able to mix as well with ingredients, and can leave your baked goods a little dense. Room temperature eggs will mix with other ingredients much better, and will help the cinnamon rolls have a light and airy texture.
- Use room temperature water. Be sure to use water that is room temperature or a little bit warmer when making the dough. You don’t want the water to be hot or cold, or it can mess with the texture of the cinnamon roll dough.
- Use a sharp knife. When cutting the cinnamon rolls, use the sharpest knife that you have (but be careful not to hurt yourself!). You want to make sure the dough is cut cleanly or else your cinnamon rolls won’t be as pretty or cook as consistently. If the dough is sticking to the knife when you’re cutting, add a touch of lukewarm water or neutral oil to the knife.
How to Store Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls
You can keep these cinnamon rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also place them in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat by cooking in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
Can I Freeze This Recipe?
You can definitely freeze gluten-free cinnamon rolls. Store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or overnight in the fridge before eating or reheating. You can also freeze uncooked cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months. When you want to bake them, just thaw them overnight in the fridge, and then bake them in the oven for a few minutes longer than usual.
More Gluten-Free Treats to Bake
Here are a few other delicious gluten-free foods that you can bake.
- Low Carb Sweet Potato Casserole
- Gluten Free Sugar Cookies
- Keto Bagels
- Peanut butter blossoms
- Gluten-free stuffing
These gluten-free cinnamon rolls are soft, pillowy, and chewy, with a sweet glaze and a strong cinnamon and vanilla flavor. They take less to an hour to make, and don't have any refined sugars.
- 1 ⅔ cups tapioca flour , plus more for rolling out
- ⅔ cup superfine blanched almond flour
- 2 tbsp psyllium husk powder
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ⅛ tsp fine salt
- 2 large eggs , room temperature
- 3 tbsp maple syrup , sub with sugar-free maple syrup or any sticky liquid sweetener of choice
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup melted ghee , or sub with melted butter, vegan butter or refined coconut oil for dairy-free
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tbsp warm water
- ½ cup coconut sugar , or sub with brown sugar substitute of choice
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- ⅓ cup melted ghee , to brush on the rolls – , or sub with melted butter, vegan butter or refined coconut oil for dairy-free
- 1 cup powdered maple sugar , or sub with powdered Swerve or preferred powdered sweetener
- 1-2 tbsp melted ghee , or vegan butter
- 2-3 tbsp unsweetened almond milk , or any milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a small rectangle casserole dish (about 8×6") or small pie pan (about 6-7”) with coconut oil or coconut oil (avocado oil) spray.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the tapioca flour, almond flour, psyllium husk powder, baking powder and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, maple syrup, vinegar, coconut oil and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until fully combined.
Add 1.5 tablespoons of the warm water to the dough and mix well. Allow the dough to rest for about 8 minutes to firm up.
Place a large piece of parchment paper on a large cutting board or baking sheet, then sprinkle 1 tablespoon of tapioca flour over the parchment paper. Sprinkle more tapioca on your hands and the top of the dough, then take your dough and roll it into a ball with your hands.
Use your hands to shape the dough into a rectangle. Then, use a rolling pin to roll it evenly into an 8×12" flat rectangle.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the coconut sugar and cinnamon for the filling. Brush the melted ghee evenly all over the dough, then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture on top, making sure to get as close to the edges as possible.
Use the short side (8 inch) and use the parchment paper as needed, to carefully roll the dough into a log, as tightly as possible. Cut the log into nine even pieces.
Place each roll, flat side down, into the prepared baking pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the edges are slightly brown.
Remove your rolls from the oven and let them cool slightly.
Whisk together the powdered sweetener, milk and vanilla. Adjust the amount of sweetener and milk as needed for a slightly thick consistency to cover the rolls.
Pour the glaze over the slightly cooled cinnamon rolls and serve warm.
Recipe Video
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days, in the fridge for 5 days, or in the freezer for 3 months.
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