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Apple Cinnamon Rolls

A plate full of vegan apple cinnamon rolls, seen from above

Cinnamon rolls are a classic that hardly anyone can refuse – this version with apples goes one better. These tasty apple cinnamon rolls are vegan, so they don’t contain any eggs or dairy products, but are still wonderfully fluffy. They smell wonderfully of cinnamon and are perfect as a breakfast, snack or dessert. They are moist, and easy to bake, as is the simple but wonderfully classic icing with lemon.

Cinnamon roll love

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always been a big fan of this round, crazy delicacy and have been making it myself for many years. Over the years, I’ve tweaked the recipe again and again and tried to get the best out of it. I would like to share my findings with you here so that you can take the direct route to vegan apple cinnamon rolls.

A plate full of vegan apple cinnamon rolls with sugar glaze

Ingredients

Let’s take a look at the ingredients for apple cinnamon rolls. As always, you’ll find the exact recipe with the exact quantities at the end of this post.

These apple cinnamon rolls are vegan, which means they are made entirely without eggs or dairy products. Yeast doughs don’t need eggs or other animal “products”, as the sweet coconut milk bread or the savory vegetable pizza rolls prove.

A plate full of vegan apple cinnamon rolls, seen from above

All you need for the dough is the following:

  • flour: I use plain white wheat flour. Sometimes I replace up to half of it with wholemeal spelt flour, for a clear conscience
  • yeast (dry yeast)
  • plant-based milk (e.g. oat milk)
  • oil (e.g. rapeseed oil) or vegan butter
  • sugar
  • vanilla sugar: This is something typical in Austria, sugar combined with vanilla (flavor). Use any other vanilla aroma or skip it.

In this short sequence, you can see the dough after proofing overnight in the fridge:

All you need for the filling is:

  • sugar
  • cinnamon
  • apples

I recently tried reducing the amount of sugar for the rolls and using raisins instead. Unfortunately, this only partially worked because the raisins that stuck out turned black and hard …

The cinnamon roll icing consists of the following two ingredients:

  • powdered sugar
  • lemon juice
A wooden rolling pin with lots of Miffys

Preparation

I have already tested lots of different approaches to make apple cinnamon rolls. What I have stuck with is the following preparation method:

  • Knead the ingredients for the dough (using a kitchen machine *)). After a few minutes, you will have a smooth dough, which you can leave to rise either in a warm place for about an hour or in the fridge overnight until it is approximately twice as big in size.
  • For the filling, mix the sugar and cinnamon.
  • Please peel the apples (even if they would be healthier with the skin on, but the skin is a bit hard after baking, kind of “prickly”) and cut into small pieces, do not grate (otherwise it will be too mushy). Don’t mix them with the sugar and cinnamon beforehand, as they will draw out the moisture – again, mushy.
  • Next, roll out the dough into a rectangle, brush with a little oil or soft vegan butter, and cover with the sugar-cinnamon-mixture and the apple pieces.
  • Roll the topped dough into a long, thick roll and cut into slices. Place all the slices on a baking tray and leave to rise again briefly before putting them in the oven.
  • To make the icing, which is applied on top of the cooled rolls, simply mix the lemon juice with the powdered sugar.

Tips

Baking vegan apple cinnamon rolls is basically easy, but there are still a few things to bear in mind. Save yourself the trouble of figuring out the mistakes over time and read on:

Dough’s & Doughn’ts

  • Not too thin: Please don’t roll out the yeast dough too thinly, we’re not baking pizza here. This is one of my most common mistakes, time and time again. Don’t roll it out too thinly, otherwise the filling will seep through and the rolls will fall apart. At least 0.5 cm thick (thick like a small little finger) is a good guideline.
  • Even rectangle: Roll out the dough as evenly as possible into a rectangle (otherwise you will end up with half-finished roll because there is suddenly no dough to wrap over them).
  • Leave the edge free: Leave approx. 2 cm (about 1 inch) free at the top of the dough, by this I mean that you should not spread any filling on it. This piece is necessary to close the rolls a little. With filling on it, it would not “stick” to the other opposite part.
  • Sufficient flour on the work surface: Before rolling in the dough, make sure that you have used enough flour on the work surface, for example by trying to push the dough a little. If it sticks, you won’t be able to form a nice roll. There is also a risk of the dough tearing.
  • Nice and tight: Please don’t roll the dough too loosely, but as tightly as possible so that you get nice rolls. Otherwise they will split apart, especially if the dough is too thin.
  • Sharp knife: Please use a sharp knife to cut the slices, otherwise they will be squashed too much. I carefully slide it back and forth and try to apply little pressure. Alternatively, you could cut the filled rectangle into twelve strips of dough and roll up the rolls individually.
Raw apple and cinnamon rolls yeast dough, already filled and rolled.

Heat & Duration

  • Convection or top and bottom heat and at how many degrees: Both are possible. I bake the apple cinnamon rolls at 180°C (360°F) top and bottom heat. If you prefer to bake with convection, reduce the temperature to 160°C (320°F).
  • When are the cinnamon rolls ready: After approx. 20 to 25 minutes, when they start to brown slightly. Your apple cinnamon rolls don’t have to be brown all the way through, because then they have been in the oven too long and could become hard and dry.
Unbaked apple cinnamon rolls in the baking dish

Super moist apple and cinnamon rolls

  • One way to bake them is to place the apple cinnamon rolls close together in a baking dish rather than spacing them out on the baking tray. You only separate them after baking.
  • The result are extremely moist USA-style apple cinnamon rolls. However, the whole thing is a rather sticky affair and is less suitable if you want to take the individual rolls with you as a snack.
  • If you don’t mind the stickiness, you could sprinkle sugar on the base before the dough goes in, as with the American cinnamon rolls.
Baked apple and cinnamon rolls with sugar glaze

Storing & baking

Where to store: Of course, apple cinnamon rolls taste best freshly baked. But if you’re not having several guests and eating countless rolls in one sitting or simply preparing apple cinnamon rolls for the next day, I recommend keeping them fresh in the fridge.

I stack them in a large food storage tin and take them out about 30 minutes before eating. Or, what I did when I had a microwave: I reheat the cinnamon rolls for about 20 seconds, and they taste freshly baked.

How to freeze and reheat: If you want to make your vegan apple cinnamon rolls in advance, you can also freeze them. I use a freezer bag to keep them fresh. I take them out about 30 minutes before I want to eat them, leave them to defrost at room temperature, and then put them back in the microwave for about 20–30 seconds. I freeze the rolls baked! Supposedly it also works unbaked. But I haven’t personally tested this.

Last but not least, I would like to show you with whom I love to share my tasty vegan apple cinnamon rolls … 😉

Yield: +/- 12 pieces

Vegan Apple Cinnamon Rolls - moist, soft & easy

A plate full of vegan apple cinnamon rolls, seen from above

This is an easy recipe for homemade vegan apple cinnamon rolls. They are made without eggs or dairy products, but are still wonderfully fluffy and moist.

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Additional Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes

Ingredients

Dough

  • 500 g (17.65 oz or 4 cups) all-purpose flour
  • 1 packet of dry yeast (7 g or 0.25 oz or 2 1/4 teaspoon)
  • 50 g (1.75 oz or 1/4 cup) sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar (see notes
  • 250 ml (8.45 oz or 1 cup + 1 tablespoon) plant-based milk (e.g. oat milk) (see notes)
  • 80 ml (2.7 oz or 1/3 cup) oil (e.g. rapeseed oil) or 80 g (2.8 oz or 1/3 cup or 5.5 tablespoons) vegan butter (see notes)
  • Optional: another piece of vegan butter to brush on the baked rolls

Filling

  • 2 tablespoons oil (e.g. rapeseed oil) or approx. 30 g (1 oz or 2 tablespoons) soft vegan butter
  • 2 tablespoons cinnamon (ground)
  • 4 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 apples

Sugar glaze

  • 100 g (3.5 oz or 0.8 cup) icing sugar (powdered sugar)
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice (approx. ½ lemon)

Instructions

  1. Knead all the ingredients for the dough for about 5–10 minutes (using a kitchen machine) until a smooth dough forms.
  2. Cover the dough and let it rise for about 1 hour at room temperature or 8–12 hours in the fridge. (If you are proofing the dough overnight, allow it to "acclimatize" at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before continuing.)
  3. Roll out the dough into an even rectangle, at least 5 mm thick (about a small finger thick). (See my tips above in the post.).
  4. Mix the cinnamon with the sugar, and peel the apples before cutting them into small cubes (the smaller, the better).
  5. Brush the pastry with oil (or soft vegan butter) and sprinkle it with the sugar-cinnamon mixture and the diced apples. Leave about 2 cm (1 inch) free at the top long side.
  6. Roll up the dough tightly, starting from the bottom and rolling towards the top long side.
  7. Cut the roll into slices about 2 to 3 cm (1 inch) wide to create the rolls. Depending on the size of the rectangle and the slices, you will get approximately 12 pieces.
  8. Place the apple and cinnamon rolls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or in a greased baking tin. Cover them with a tea towel and let them rise for another 30 minutes at room temperature.
  9. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F) using top and bottom heat.
  10. Bake the rolls on the middle rack for about 20–25 minutes, or until they start to brown.
  11. Switch off the oven and open the door. If desired, brush the rolls with a little melted vegan butter. (To melt the butter, place a small piece on a plate or bowl and briefly leave it in the warm oven.) Allow the rolls to cool slightly.
  12. While the rolls cool, prepare the icing. Mix the powdered sugar with the lemon juice until smooth, and drizzle it over the rolls using a spoon. Let the icing set briefly before serving.

Notes

  • Flour: Sometimes I also use a mixture of white flour and wholemeal (spelt) flour. At half half, sometimes I use a bit more white flour than wholemeal flour. The apple cinnamon rolls are then still fluffy and moist, but slightly less, but also “healthier”. Wholemeal flour absorbs slightly more liquid than white flour. If the dough is too dry, add 1–2 tablespoons of milk.
  • Milk or butter (if you are using it instead of oil): Use warm milk or soft butter at room temperature if you are letting the dough rise at room temperature. Use cold milk or cold butter cut into pieces if you want the dough to mature overnight in the fridge.
  • Vanilla sugar: That is something typical you can buy in Austria. It is sugar mixed with artificial vanilla flavor or mixed with real ground vanilla. I make my own vanilla sugar from ground vanilla bean powder *), which I combine with sugar and store in a sealed jar. You can also use whatever other way for some vanilla aroma or simply skip it.


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Linda
Linda
1 year ago

I haven’t made them yet but they look delicious. Thank you for your lovely recipes, you sound more like an angel to me, not the other thing the other poster intimated.

Yolo Yearwood
3 years ago

RAPESEED OIL? RAPE SEED OIL. seriously you could not find a more appropriate oil to use for this??? ALSO WITCH CRAFT AND YOU LOOK LIKE A WITCH SPELLS ALALLA BAMMA TO ME.