These easy, one rise bakery-style Paleo Cinnamon Rolls are big, soft, gooey, and taste like Cinnabon copycats!
I've been working on this paleo cinnamon roll recipe for more than a year and I'm so excited to finally share it with you!
These are big, bakery-like traditional cinnamon rolls that taste just like Cinnabon copycats!
Or if you prefer low-carb, I have a killer Keto Cinnamon Roll Recipe you might want to also check out!
Yeast
Sometimes working with yeast can be intimidating. However, by using instant yeast instead of active dry yeast, we can skip having to dissolve it in warm water with a sweetener first - YAY!
We're simply going to add the yeast to the dry ingredients, then let the fully assembled rolls rise in a warm oven over boiling water. Easy peasy!
Substitutions
- Xanthan gum: While I prefer using xanthan gum, since there are varying thoughts on whether xanthan gum is paleo or not, you can replace it with psyllium husk powder. However, it results in more of a whole-wheat tasting cinnamon roll and the dough can be just a tiny bit harder to roll out. Also, be sure to use psyllium husk POWDER, not whole psyllium husks as they will not work in this recipe. Psyllium can usually be found in the colon cleansing section of health food stores, due to it being so high in fiber.
- Almond flour: Unfortunately, almond flour is very unique and the only replacement I know of would be sunflower seed flour, but I've never tested it.
- Gelatin: If you can't find unflavored gelatin, you can replace it with pectin. In fact, this recipe originally called for pectin, however, I've found gelatin works a tiny bit better and is easier to find. While it's not a 'make or break' ingredient, it helps to firm up and hold the dough together. Which immensely helps when rolling it up!
- Butter: You can replace the butter with dairy-free butter or ghee. If those aren't an option for you, you can replace the butter with a mild-tasting oil such as avocado oil or refined (to reduce the coconut taste) coconut oil. However, I highly recommend butter, ghee, or a butter substitute! It's a taste you can't achieve with oil.
Preparing the dough
In a large bowl, mix together some non-dairy milk and vinegar. Set aside. This will be our homemade buttermilk mixture.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
This includes blanched almond flour, arrowroot or tapioca flour, gelatin, xanthan gum or psyllium, salt, baking soda, coconut palm sugar, and instant yeast.
Next, add 2 eggs, melted butter (can use non-dairy or ghee), and vanilla to the milk mixture.
Then, add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well.
Stir well. The dough will be thick and sticky, so you might need to switch over to your hands and knead until it comes together.
Then wrap tightly in plastic wrap.
Allow the dough to rest in the fridge until thoroughly chilled and firm enough to roll out. This can take up to 2 or 3 hours. Or the dough can be left in the fridge overnight.
Filling
In a small bowl, combine some softened butter, cinnamon, coconut palm sugar, and xanthan gum.
The xanthan gum is optional but helps keep the filling from oozing out during baking. Set aside.
When the dough is finished resting in the fridge, tear off a piece of parchment paper that's at least 20 inches long. Generously sprinkle the parchment with tapioca or arrowroot flour.
Cover with plastic wrap and use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to around 12 x 18 inches.
Spread the filling ingredients over the dough, leaving the bottom inch dry lengthwise.
Then, start rolling the dough tightly making at least 4 or 5 rotations towards the bottom dry end of the dough. You can lift up the parchment paper to help get the dough up and rolling.
When you come to the end, pinch the bottom edge of the dough so it creates a seal.
Proofing the cinnamon rolls
Cut the dough into 8 equal-sized rolls and place in a parchment-lined baking dish. Slightly press down on each roll.
Cutting them into 8 rolls makes 8 huge rolls, however, you can cut them into 10 to 12 if preferred. If you do this, you will need to slightly reduce the baking time.
To proof the yeast: Tightly cover the rolls with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
When the oven is preheated, turn the oven off, add the rolls, and leave the door cracked. After 30 minutes, close the door to finish rising. Allow to rise for 60 to 90 minutes.
Baking
After they have finished rising, remove the rolls from the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Once preheated, bake the cinnamon rolls for 30 to 35 minutes. Rotate after 20 minutes to ensure even baking and check to make sure they're not baking too fast since all ovens are different.
Bake until the paleo cinnamon rolls are nicely browned to prevent the centers from being doughy.
Frosting
Frequently asked questions
Yes, they can! To do this, fully assemble the rolls and allow them to rise. Then, tightly cover and place in the fridge until ready to bake, up to 2 days. Allow them to set on the countertop while the oven is pre-heating to slightly warm up before baking.
Leftovers can be stored, unfrosted, covered at room temperature 2 to 3 days, or frozen up to 3 months. To freeze, individually wrap the unfrosted rolls in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer-safe baggie. To reheat: Unwrap the rolls and place them in a lined baking dish. Then, loosely tent with foil and heat in a 350-degree oven for 10-15 minutes, or until hot.
These allulose and monk fruit keto powdered sweeteners (Note- I don't recommend erythritol or erythritol blends for frostings) are natural and are acceptable on a paleo diet. Or, you can add xylitol to a coffee grinder or very dry blender, along with 1 Tbsp arrowroot or tapioca per cup. Then, blend until powdered. I've tried this method with coconut palm sugar and we didn't really like it, but it could just be our taste buds! I know many people use coconut palm sugar all the time to make powdered sugar 😀
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📖 Recipe
Paleo Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For The Dough:
- 3 cups Blanched Almond Flour very finely ground
- 2 ½ cups Tapioca Flour + More For Rolling Dough or arrowroot
- 2 tsp. Unflavored Gelatin
- 1 tsp. Xanthan Gum recommended, or 2 Tbsp psyllium husk POWDER (see notes below)
- 1 tsp. Sea Salt
- ¼ tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tsp. Instant Yeast
- 2 Tbsp Butter (can use non-dairy or ghee) melted
- 1 cup Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk
- 1 tsp. Distilled White Vinegar Or Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 large Eggs
- ¼ cup Coconut Palm Sugar
- 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla
Filling:
- ½ cup Butter (can use non-dairy or ghee) softened, almost melted
- 2 Tbsp. Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ cup Coconut Palm Sugar
- 1 Tbsp. xanthan gum optional, keeps the filling from seeping out
Traditional Frosting:
- 3 cups Paleo Powdered Sugar see notes below
- ¼ cup Butter (can use non-dairy or ghee) melted
- ¼ - ½ cup Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk start with ¼ cup and add more as needed to thin
- 1 Tbsp. strong brewed coffee optional
- 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla
Paleo "Cream Cheese" Frosting:
- ¼ cup Non-Hydrogenated Shortening
- ¼ cup Butter (can use non-dairy or additional shortening) slightly softened, ghee will work ONLY if it's the right consistency
- ¼ cup Honey
- ½ tsp. Creamy Almond Or Cashew Butter
- ¾ tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
- ¾ tsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
- ⅛ tsp. Sea Salt omit if nut butter is salted
- 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla
- 1-2 drops Liquid Vanilla Stevia optional, as needed
Instructions
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the non-dairy milk with the vinegar (we're making buttermilk). Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the blanched almond flour, tapioca flour, gelatin, xanthan gum, coconut palm sugar, salt, soda, and yeast... all the dry ingredients.
- Add the eggs, butter, and vanilla to the milk mixture and mix well. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir to combine. The batter will be thick and sticky (it's not like traditional dough). Knead with your hands if necessary. *Note- If the batter is too thick and sticky to work with, you can add a tiny bit more tapioca flour, a few tablespoons at a time, until the dough comes together. However, it should still be fairly soft and sticky.
- Scrape/pour batter into plastic wrap and wrap tightly. Place in refrigerator 2 to 3 hours, or until dough is thoroughly chilled and firm enough to roll out. Or it can be left in the fridge overnight.
- Tear out a piece of parchment paper that is at least 20 inches long and sprinkle generously with arrowroot or tapioca flour. Cover with plastic wrap and use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rectangle that is approximately 12 x 18 inches.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the filling ingredients. This includes the softened butter, cinnamon, coconut palm sugar, and xanthan gum (if using). Spread evenly over the dough, leaving the bottom inch dry lengthwise. See pictures in the post if needed.
- Carefully start rolling the dough tightly making at least 4 or 5 rotations towards the bottom dry part of the dough. You can lift up the parchment paper to help get the dough up and rolling, moving slowly and patching up any cracks as you go. When you come to the end, pinch the bottom edge of the dough into the log so it creates a seal. *Note- If the dough is too sticky to roll up, pop it in the freezer for about 15 minutes, or until firm enough to work with.
- Using a very sharp greased knife, cut the log into 8 equal-sized rolls. Cutting them into 8 rolls makes 8 huge rolls, however, you can cut them into 10 to 12 if preferred. If you do this, you will need to slightly reduce the baking time.
- Transfer rolls to a large parchment-lined or greased baking dish and slightly press down on each roll.
- To rise: Tightly cover the rolls with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and preheat the oven to 150 degrees. When the oven is preheated, turn off the oven, add the rolls, and leave the door cracked. After 30 minutes, close the door to finish rising. Allow to rise for 60 to 90 minutes.
- Remove rolls and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until nicely browned. Rotate after 20 minutes to ensure even baking and check to make sure they're not baking too fast since all ovens are different.
- Top with traditional frosting or paleo "cream cheese" frosting (recipes below) and serve hot. Only frost the ones you plan on eating.
Traditional frosting:
- Whisk all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Start with ¼ cup non-dairy milk and add more as needed to thin, however, the frosting should be fairly thick. Pour over hot rolls.
Paleo "Cream Cheese" Frosting:
- Sightly soften your butter. I prefer this method from Sally's Baking Addiction. Then, blend all ingredients on low or until well combined.
- Turn speed to medium-high and blend until smooth. Thin with non-dairy milk as needed. Pour over hot rolls. Unused frosting can be stored covered in the fridge for 2-3 days. Slightly warm before using.
Notes
- Xanthan gum: While I prefer using xanthan gum, since there are varying thoughts on whether xanthan gum is paleo or not, you can replace it with psyllium husk powder. However, it results in more of a whole-wheat tasting cinnamon roll and the dough can be just a tiny bit harder to roll out. Also, be sure to use psyllium husk POWDER, not whole psyllium husks as they will not work in this recipe. Psyllium can usually be found in the colon cleansing section of health food stores, due to it being so high in fiber.
- Almond flour: Unfortunately, almond flour is very unique and the only replacement I know of would be sunflower seed flour, but I've never tested it.
- Gelatin: If you can't find unflavored gelatin, you can replace it with pectin. In fact, this recipe originally called for pectin, however, I've found gelatin works a tiny bit better and is easier to find. While it's not a 'make or break' ingredient, it helps to firm up and hold the dough together. Which immensely helps when rolling it up!
- Butter: You can replace the butter with dairy-free butter or ghee. If those aren't an option for you, you can replace the butter with a mild-tasting oil such as avocado oil or refined (to reduce the coconut taste) coconut oil. However, I highly recommend using butter, ghee, or a butter substitute! It's a taste you can't achieve with oil.
- The dough needs to sit in the fridge for several hours to overnight, so plan ahead!
- To make the rolls ahead of time: Fully assemble the rolls and allow them to rise. Then, tightly cover and place in the fridge until ready to bake, up to 2 days. Allow them to set on the countertop while the oven is pre-heating to slightly warm up before baking.
- To make paleo powdered sugar: These allulose and monk fruit keto powdered sweeteners (Note- I don't recommend the erythritol or erythritol blends for frostings) are natural and are acceptable on a paleo diet. Or, you can add xylitol to a coffee grinder or very dry blender, along with 1 Tbsp arrowroot or tapioca per cup. Then, blend until powdered. I've tried this method with coconut palm sugar and we didn't really like it, but it could just be our taste buds! I know many people use coconut palm sugar all the time to make powdered sugar 😀
- Leftovers can be stored, unfrosted, covered at room temperature 2 to 3 days, or frozen. To freeze, wrap each cinnamon roll in plastic wrap then place in a large freezer-safe baggie. To reheat: Unwrap the rolls and place them in a lined baking dish. Then, loosely tent with foil and heat in a 350-degree oven for 10-15 minutes, or until hot.
- If you prefer Keto, check out my Keto Cinnamon Rolls
- Also, you might want to check out my Keto Cinnamon Rolls YouTube Video! While the recipe is slightly different, it's the same basic process 🙂
Nutritional information is approximate and may vary.
Looking for more information on the keto diet? Check out these resources:
Hello Cassidy! I am excited to try this recipe and it is the first one one that I found that will rise. I have couple of questions. Have you ever substituted Cassava flour for the Tapioca Flour? If yes, how did it work? If no, do you like Tapioca flour or Arrowroot better? Is there a difference in the results? Thank you for your time!
Hi Jennifer!
No, I've never tried these with cassava flour. Cassava and tapioca are a bit different though, so I don't think replacing the tapioca with cassava would work.
Even though they're really similar, I've found that when baking, arrowroot is a bit more binding than tapioca. Meaning that arrowroot flour makes a tighter crumb and you may need to add a tiny bit more tapioca than arrowroot. However, both will work really well. I hope this helps!!
Please let me know how they turn out 🙂
-Cassidy
Thank you! It does! Have a blessed day!
These were AMAZING!! Like unbelievable.... so easy and came out PERFECT!! Definitely will make again!!! thank you so much for this gift of a recipe on Christmas!
Oh my goodness, thank you!!! I'm so excited you liked them so much! Thanks for letting me know ?
-Cassidy
Hi thanks for the data. I ordered pectin online! I could use it in other receipes as well. I’ll let you know what was the final result ?
Hi! Thank you for the exact receipe! I have a question, how crucial is the pectin? It’s hard to find in EU and wonder what will happen if I skip it or is there a substitute for it? Thanks again! Maya
Hi Maya! The pectin helps the dough hold together. While you could skip it, the dough might be harder to work with and turn out a bit crumbly. I'd try replacing it some gelatin (not collagen)! Let me know what you think!!!
-Cassidy
I want to cry. My oldest went to college and misses my cooking. Only she has POTS and I've kinda figured out the gluten free baking thing but not the cinnamon rolls. Note: been baking my whole life I'm a farm girl. You just gave me the missing piece. Never occurred to me to proof a la Bain Marie how very fancy of you even not actually in the water thank you thank you!!! and we freeze regular abs gf and give as xmas gifts with frosting in frosting tubes with xmas ribbon.
I was very surprised to see you mention your daughter has POTS. I have it also and have been gluten free since a few years before I was diagnosed with POTS. I hope to try this recipe before this Christmas.
Greetings Cassidy!!!
The pectin that you use, is it regular pectin or low/no sugar pectin, also the yeast that you use, is this an instant/fast acting?
Thanks
Hi Stacy! I used regular pectin and instant yeast. Hope this helps!!!
Hi there. So far, I've really loved your baked goods. They are a far cry from most GF recipes and they turn out delicious; better texture and flavor. I'm in the process of making these and am wondering about the rise. While the dough did get a little lighter, they didn't puff up much in the oven. I'm wondering how the yeast interacts with the gluten free flours? Does it actually create a rise? Or is it more about the flavor the yeast imparts? I've had similar outcomes with other GF recipes made with almond flour. Thanks.
Hi Jen, gluten free flours don't rise the same as traditional baked goods but the yeast still makes them rise slightly and adds flavor which is why I still use it. I hope that answers your question and you liked the cinnamon rolls!!!!
I've been searching for a paleo/primal sweet yeast bread recipe I could adapt to recreate my mom's Christmas Bread (an enriched bread, flavored with cardamom, filled with whole pecans & candied cherries, then braided, or if a small amount, made into a rolled loaf, like cinnamon bread, then decorated with a glaze & more cherries). Since her bread dough recipe is similar to cinnamon roll dough, I think it just might work... with minimal substitutions. I'll replace some of the almond flour and tapioca/arrowroot with some sorghum flour. I'll skip the gum since I don't do well with any of them. I'm also thinking I might reduce the milk & add another egg (thoughts?), since Mom's recipe is really an egg bread enriched with a little sugar, and milk. I'll probably still use vinegar to balance the ph, but won't add it to the milk. I'm also not sure about the pectin (don't have any)/gelatin (have a bunch) issue, but in either case, would you recommend an addition since mine will lack the gum?
My mouth is watering just thinking about having Christmas Bread (slathered in butter!!!) again. A couple years ago, my mom sent a box of GF baking mix. That loaf turned out hard as a rock! A tasty, yet very ugly & disappointing rock. LOL It's been a long time... You've given me hope!
I'll fill you in on results after Christmas.
Hi Willow! I really can't tell you how the substitutions will work without trying it for myself, sorry. From other peoples comments though, it seems that the recipe is very forgiving and substitutions seem to work well 🙂 Please come back and let me know how it turns out, I can't wait to hear!!!
XO,
Cassidy
I made these today for my father-in-law's birthday, and they were amazing. Definitely the best gluten-free/grain-free cinnamon rolls we've ever had! I used gelatin instead of pectin since I didn’t have any, regular milk instead of coconut milk, apple cider vinegar instead of white, and erythritol instead of sugar. I also cut the amount of frosting in half and added a little extra milk as it was quite thick, and the rolls were still plenty sweet. This recipe is definitely a keeper! Will be making these again.
YAY Kristy!!! I'm happy to know your substitutions worked and you liked them 🙂
I made these this morning – yum! Definitely the closest thing to “real” cinnamon rolls I’ve had! I’ll be honest, the tapioca mixture looked a little gross at first, and I didn’t think they would turn out, But after kneading the dough, it rolled out and cut perfectly! I added a tablespoon of ghee to the filling and also 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract to the frosting. My husband thought the texture was a bit gummy, but he did like the taste, and I will be making these again! Thanks!