The elusive cinnamon bun. Years of successfully making fluffy gluten-free cakes, buttery flavoured dairy-free cookies and somehow, every time I tried them, my gluten-free, dairy-free cinnamon buns would come out of the oven smelling great but looking like little brown hockey pucks – and tasting worse. Ten years (and several disasters later) I’ve finally nailed them. And honestly, they’re super easy. The trick is remind yourself at every step that the dough will look and act differently than its gluten-full cousin. Keep that in mind and you’re in for delicious cinnamon buns that even my gluten-eating partner devoured in minutes.
Details
9 servings
1 hour
35 minutes
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Ingredients For the dough:
2 3/4 cups gluten-free 1:1 flour blend
1 tbsp psyllium husk
1/4 warm water (100-110 degrees)
1 packet instant/ quick rise yeast
1 cup full fat canned coconut milk (warmed to 100-110 degrees)
2 tbsp vegan butter melted and cooled (I used earth balance)
4 tbsp white sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 egg (room temperature)
1 egg white whisked to foamy
- FOR THE FILLING
2/3 cup brown sugar
1.5 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 cup vegan butter at room temperature
Directions
- Grease a baking pan (I recommend using a square pan or a 9 inch round cake pan) and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine your filling: mix together the 2/3 cup brown sugar and 1.5 tbsp of cinnamon and set aside (don’t add your vegan butter, you’ll be spreading it right onto the dough later)
- In the bowl of your stand mixer mix together your yeast and 1/4 cup warm water and leave it alone for five minute. Don’t worry if it looks the same.
- While your yeast and water are sitting, in a separate bowl mix together all of your dry ingredients.
- Add the dry ingredients to yeast mixture. Then add all the wet ingredients (milk, butter, egg, egg white). Now it’s time to mix your dough: using the paddle attachment on your stand mixer, mix on medium-low speed for 2 minutes. You may have to stop it a few times to remove the dough from the paddle and scrape down the sides of the bowl – I did. This dough is sticky – but should solidly become a dough.
(note that medium-low speed is fast enough that the paddle is moving quickly, but not so fast that the mixer is wobbling on the counter). - Warm your oven. I heated mine to 100 degrees (most ovens don’t go that low, so you have to watch the temperature climb) and then TURN IT OFF. If your oven has a proofing setting, you’re super lucky, use that. The key here is not to get your oven so hot that it’s going to bake your cinnamon buns, you’re just trying to create a nice warm box.
- While your oven is heating, it’s time to make our cinnamon buns. Between two pieces of parchment paper that are lightly floured, roll the dough out to an even rectangle (I did not do this and regretted it, you’ll do better). You want your dough to be 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Spread your room temperature vegan butter (I used earth balance) on the dough and then sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon filling mixture you made earlier so the dough is evenly covered. You should have way more than enough filling. Tightly roll the dough into a log and cut (using dental floss or a sharp serrated knife) into nine even pieces. Place all nine pieces into your prepared baking pan – carefully reshaping each bun as necessary (tip: your buns are going to retain every flaw as they rise and later as they bake, so this is your only chance to make sure they’re round and smooth out any imperfections that are bothering you).
- Cover your pan loosely with plastic wrap and then lay a kitchen towel over top and place your pan in your previously warmed oven that has been turned off. Set a timer for 50 mins.
- Remove your cinnamon buns from the oven and preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Uncover your cinnamon buns and brush lightly with melted vegan butter or a little oil of your choice. When your oven has reached 350, place on the middle rack and bake for 30-35 minutes. Here is what you have to keep in mind at this stage: these buns will not rise any more in the oven. They will come out exactly as they went in – only changing in colour from pale to golden brown. So keeping an eye on them, once they’re golden brown they’re ready. they won’t look like they’re gooey and fluffy yet – but they are.
- When your cinnamon buns are golden brown and the sugar mixture is bubbling, remove them from the oven and make sure to let them cool for AT LEAST 15 minutes. Gluten-free dough does not taste good at all when it’s hot, warm yes, hot NO. Trust me, you want to wait. When the buns have cooled enough that you can touch the pan, it’s time to frost them however you want. I just made a simple mixture out of some of the remaining coconut milk, icing sugar and vanilla but feel free to do whatever you want.
