Go Back
+ servings
Print Recipe
5 from 11 votes

Healthy Cinnamon Rolls

Healthy cinnamon rolls made with whole wheat flour, and coconut sugar. Topped with a maple icing!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Rising Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 356kcal

Ingredients

For the filling

  • ¾ cup (3 ½ ounces) coconut sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 Tbs. unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the dough:

  • 1 ¼ cups almond milk (110 degrees)
  • 4 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
  • 2 ¾ - 3 cups (330- 360g) white whole wheat flour
  • 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 Tbs. unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled

For the glaze

  • 1 cup (120 g) confectioners sugar
  • 1-2 Tbs. almond milk
  • 2 Tbs. maple syrup

Instructions

  • For the filling: Combine coconut sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Stir in coconut oil (or butter) and vanilla until mixture resembles wet sand; set aside.
  • For the dough: Grease 9-inch round cake pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paperand grease parchment. Whisk warm milk, yeast, and coconut sugar in a bowl and let sit until bubbly about 5 minutes.
  • Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Stir in yeast mixture and 2 Tbs. melted butter (or coconut oil) until dough forms. Dough will be sticky. Transfer dough to well-floured counter and knead until dough ball forms, about 2 minutes.
  • Roll dough into 12 by 9 inch rectangle with long side parallel to edge. Brush dough completely with 1 tablespoon melted butter, leaving ½-inch border on far edge. Sprinkle filling over butter and press filling firmly into dough. Cut dough into 8 strips. Roll each strip into a tight roll. Place each roll spiral side up. Place buns into prepared pan. I place one in the middle and 7 buns in a circle around the middle one. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes, until dough springs back when gently pressed. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Remove plastic wrap and place buns in the oven until edges are well browned - 23 to 25 minutes. Rotating pan halfway through baking. Loosen buns from sides of pan with paring knife and let cool for 5 minutes. Flip buns out of pa and then flip again, right side up, onto platter. Let cool for 5 minutes.
  • For the glaze: In a small mixing bowl, whisk together all glaze ingredients until smooth. Adjust consistency by adding more milk or more sugar, if needed. Drizzle glaze evenly over buns and serve.

Video

Notes

  • Freezing instructions: After rolling and cutting you can wrap the pan in plastic wrap (and then a layer of tin foil to ensure no freezer burn). When ready to bake, allow to thaw overnight in the fridge, or at room temperature for 2 hours then continue with the rise and bake as directed. You can also freeze baked cinnamon rolls. After baking, allow to cool completely before wrapping up and freezing.
  • Make ahead: You can also make the cinnamon rolls and shape them and let them rise overnight in the fridge, covered. Then allow to rise on the counter at room temperature for 1-2 hours until puffy and then bake the next morning.
  • Storage: Keep them wrapped at room temperature for up to 2 days. Just warm them ( I do this in the microwave for a few seconds until warm and gooey again). You can also try warming them in the oven for a few minutes (200oF). 
  • Test the milk temperature. You want to use a thermometer to test the temperature of your milk before adding to the yeast. Yeast is a living thing, which means if the milk is too hot, it will kill the yeast. If the milk is too cold the yeast will not proof properly. Because this mixture uses Rapid Rise Yeast, it can be at a higher temperature than use for other types of yeast. The mixture can be between 120-130°F. You can read more here from Bob’s Red Mills about what temperature kills yeast. 
  • Measure your flour accuratelyEither measure using this method described in this post, or use a kitchen scale for best accuracy. You will notice a range of flour. Start with the lower end and then sprinkle in a little bit more if it's too sticky.
  • Use A Stand Mixer. You can use your stand mixer with a dough hook attachment to make kneading this bread easy or make your bread dough in a mixing bowl with a dough whisk, and knead your bread dough by hand.
  • Easy On The Flour. Once the dough is ready to be rolled out, make sure to not add too much flour to the dough. It's fine to add a little extra if it's sticky, but add as little as much as possible. Too much flour could result in a tough cinnamon roll.
  • Let Rise In A Warm Spot. Your kitchen needs to be on the warmer side, otherwise your rolls may take longer to rise. 
  • Active dry yeast: You can swap and use but your rise times will be longer.
  • Vegan cinnamon rolls: Swap out the butter and use vegan butter, melted coconut oil, or olive oil.
  • Milk: I used almond milk but any type of milk will work.
  • Coconut sugar - You can swap and use brown sugar instead.

Nutrition

Calories: 356kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 346mg | Potassium: 240mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 219IU | Calcium: 149mg | Iron: 1mg