These Date Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls are soft, moist, filled with loads of cinnamon and layered with a smooth date puree. This vegan gluten free version may look a little different from your traditional cinnamon rolls but they are equally as delicious!
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If you’re vegan gluten-free, finding delicious baked goods that are moist, soft and light can be difficult. But look no further my friends! I’ve been testing cinnamon roll recipes for the past 6 weeks and these Date Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls are by far the best! The dough is soft and moist and the addition of date puree gives these rolls a natural sweetness with a creamy texture. They’re so good that I’m confident that non vegans and gluten eaters will enjoy these just as much!
If you’re new to baking with yeast it’s important to know that yeast has to be kept at a certain temperature to keep it ‘alive’. Temperatures too high or too low will kill the yeast and your rolls won’t rise. The yeast mixture should get frothy and bubbly as shown above.
I recommend using a thermometer to make sure the wet ingredients are at the right temperature before adding the yeast. Recently I use been using a digital thermometer Thermapen One and let me tell you it has made my life so much easier! I used to use a regular, non digital cooking thermometer but after a handful of uses the red part separated into pieces, making it impossible to get an accurate reading. Since I’ve switched to a digital thermometer, I’ve had no problems at all! It’s so easy to use for baking and cooking. It’s totally worth the investment and I am officially converted to digital thermometers. You can find my favourite one here.
Letting the dough rise is a step that can’t be skipped! I like to let the dough rise on top of a preheated oven, but if it’s very warm in your kitchen it may rise okay on its own. The picture on the top left is after the dough has risen for about 30 minutes. It should expand to about 1/3 of it’s size and have some cracks going through it.
Once your dough has risen and the date puree is made you’re ready to start rolling! I like to roll it out on a piece of parchment paper, as this helps with sticking and the rolling up process.
After your rolls are cut and placed in the baking dish it’s time for their second rise. Place them back on top of the preheated and leave them for about 2 hours. While they won’t rise as much as conventional cinnamon rolls, they will rise about 1/3 of their size. The picture above left is after their second rise and ready for the oven.
Tips For Success
- Make sure the almond milk mixture is warmed to the right temperature (110-115F) when adding the yeast or the rolls won’t rise.
- Roll the dough out on a piece of floured parchment paper. (This will help when rolling them up.)
- Don’t be afraid to generously dust flour on the dough when rolling out to keep it from sticking to the rolling pin.
- Roll the dough into a 12”x 16” rectangle. It’s ok if the edges are a bit scrappy since they will be trimmed them off.
- Spread the date mixture gently (barely putting any pressure on the spoon) because the dough is a bit fragile.
- Roll the dough up tightly.
- Gently shape the rolls with your hands when transferring to the baking dish if they’ve become misshapen.
Want More Vegan Gluten Free Baked Goods?
These Date Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls are soft, moist, bursting with cinnamon and sweetened with a creamy date puree. They take a bit of time to make but it’s totally worth it! Whether it’s a birthday dessert or a weekend treat they are sure to please all cinnamon roll lovers. I hope that you enjoy these cinnamon rolls as much as we do and happy eating always!
Date Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls Vegan Gluten free
Ingredients
Dry
- 1 1/3 cup Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Four
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1 tablespoon organic cane sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 4 tablespoons cold vegan butter (I use Earth Balance)
wet
- 3/4 cup almond milk
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter
- 1 tablespoon organic cane sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons dry instant yeast
date filling
- 15 large Medjool dates
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 6 tablespoons water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
icing
- 1/2 cup icing sugar
- 1-2 teasoon almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 8"x 6" baking dish and set aside.
- Place the dates into a bowl, cover with warm water and set aside.
- Starting with the wet ingredients, put the almond milk, cane sugar and vegan butter into a small pot. Heat on low until it reaches 110-115F. I recommend using a thermometer for this. If the mixture is not warm enough the yeast won't activate and if it is too hot the yeast will be destroyed. The mixture should be lukewarm, not hot. Take off the heat, add the yeast, stir and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl add Bob's Red Mill flour blend, almond flour, cane sugar, baking powder and sea salt. Stir until combined making sure there are no clumps. Cut the cold vegan butter into 1 inch cubes and with a knife or pastry cutter 'cut' the butter into the flour mixture. You want to keep small pea sized pieces of butter in the mixture. It should have a slightly clumpy texture.
- Next take the yeast mixture (it should look frothy and bubbly) and fold it into the dry until incorporated. The dough will be quite sticky. Gently form the dough into a large ball and place back into the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place on the warm oven to rise for about 30 minutes.In the meantime make the date filling. Drain the soaked dates, remove the pits and place into the food processor. Add the oil, water, vanilla and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Process, scraping down the sides as needed until it forms a smooth paste.
- In the meantime make the date filling. Drain the soaked dates, remove the pits and place into the food processor. Add the oil, water, vanilla and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Process, scraping down the sides as needed until it forms a smooth paste.
- Lay a piece of 12"x 16" parchment paper on a flat surface. Lightly dust the paper with flour (I use Bob's Red Mill 1:1). Take the dough (it should have risen about 1/3 of its size) and place in the middle of the paper. Dust the rolling pin with flour and roll out the dough into a rectangle the size of the parchment paper. If the dough sticks add more flour to the rolling pin or dust the top of the dough with flour.
- Once the dough is rolled out take the date filling and dollop spoonfuls on top the dough. Using the back of the spoon carefully spread the date mixture to cover the dough. The dough underneath is quite delicate so you don't want to press to hard. Once the mixture is spread in an even thin layer, generously sprinkle with extra cinnamon to cover the top.
- To roll, tightly roll the edge closest to you and hold the parchment paper underneath, gently lifting it up. Slowly roll the dough, using your fingers to unstick any dough that may be sticking to the parchemnt paper.
- Once rolled, use a serraded knife or floss to trim off the ends of the roll if they're looking a bit scrappy. Cut into 6 pieces. Gently transfer to the greased baking dish. You can gently mold them back into a circular shape if they've become misshapen.
- Once all of them are in the dish, cover with plastic wrap and set on top of the preheated oven for at 1.5-2 hours (I recommend 2 hrs). They won't double in size like traditional rolls but they will expand at least 1/3 of their size.
- Once they've risen, remove the plastic wrap and bake for 30-35 minutes. They should be a nice golden brown when done. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before icing.
- To make the icing, stir together half a cup of icing sugar and 1 teaspoon of almond milk, adding more until you reach the desired consistancy. Pour or spread the icing on the rolls. They will last covered at room temp for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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