Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls

For many years, delicious gluten-free cinnamon rolls were an oxymoron. I’d try every bread mix, every recipe, and end up with heavy, dense, tough rolls, or rolls with a grainy texture.

this recipe!

This was especially disappointing around certain family holidays. My mom always made a special Christmas stollen with deliciously sweet yeast dough, layered with cinnamon sugar and pecans.

But after my youngest child was born with an anaphylactic allergy to wheat, we could not risk having wheat passed around the table.

No more of my mom’s famous dinner rolls and hot-crossed buns served at family celebrations. We tried having both wheat and GF versions for a while but two trips to the ER around the holidays ended that habit.

Everyone in our family was so supportive and accommodating, and we are eternally grateful for them! But we ALL missed the nostalgic and delicious baked goods.

The Quest for Good Gluten Free Yeast Dough

Challenge Accepted. The GF version that my mom so lovingly made for our family was good, but admittedly not great. It often fell apart and resisted shaping, or was too dense and dry. It frustrated her to no end.

But she didn’t give up! She perfected her GF pie crust recipe and continued to chase the elusive tender, elastic, yeasty, rollable, pliable Gluten Free dough, making batches with different flours until it was closer to the wheat original.

Secret Ingredient Saves the Day!

It sounds like an infomercial, but it’s true. During a Gluten Free Baking class at Fennel Cooking Studio discovered the secret ingredient: Psyllium Husk Fiber. We felt like we had found the Holy Grail. It has changed our baking lives forever.

When using Psyllium Husk Fiber, you mix the powder with warm water; it absorbs that water and becomes a gel. When mixed with the GF flours, it acts similarly to gluten, binding the flours together, adding moisture, and making the dough perfectly elastic.

This enables you to roll, braid, and shape the gluten free dough just as you would wheat dough without it falling apart or becoming tough.

How to Make Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls

This recipe is adapted from the one we used at Fennel Cooking Studio, but I suspect it has roots in the Brioche Dough Recipe from Katarina Cermelj’s The Elements of Baking Cookbook. Her book is a great resource for food allergy families!

I’ve played with both recipes and have arrived with tweaks at the one I’m sharing with you.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons Psyllium Husk Powder (widely available online, Target, Walmart)
• 3/4 cup warmish water
• 1 1/3 cup cornstarch (or tapioca or potato starch)
• 1 cup millet flour (or brown rice flour)
• 1/4 cup sorghum flour (or buckwheat or oat flour)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Active Dry Yeast
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk (lukewarm for activating yeast)
• 1 egg
• 3 Tablespoons butter, melted *if using salted butter, decrease salt by 1/2 teaspoon)

For the Cinnamon Sugar Filling

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (if desired)

Making the Gluten Free Dough

Use a stand mixer with a dough hook to make your life easier. Alternatively, you can mix by hand and work on your muscles.

1. In a small bowl, mix the psyllium husk powder and warm water together. Stir until fully combined. It will form a gel.
2. In a small measuring cup, warm the milk and butter in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds. Aim for 105°F-115°F.
3. Stir in the yeast and allow to activate for about 10 minutes.
4. In the large bowl of the mixer, stir or whisk together all the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
5. Place the bowl on the stand of the mixer, then add the milk/butter/yeast mixture and the psyllium gel.
6. Mix on low to medium speed with the bread hook for 1 minute, then use a spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
7. Continue mixing the dough for 3-4 more minutes until smooth and elastic, occasionally scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl to prevent unmixed flour.
8. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface dusted with some millet flour. Flour your hands before kneading gently. If the dough feels too sticky, it may be too warm. Set it aside in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to chill.

To Make the Cinnamon Rolls

1. Butter or place parchment on a baking dish. You can use a 9×13 inch glass dish, a round 9″ pie pan, or even individual muffin tins (buttered or with paper liners).
2. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about 14×18 inches.
3. Melt the butter and stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt.
4. Spread the mixture evenly over the rolled dough and sprinkle it with the chopped pecans if you wish.
5. Roll up the entire length of the dough lengthwise. Pinch the edges so it will stay in place.
6. Slice into 1 1/2″ rolls and place them on the buttered baking dish. They can touch but should not be crowded.
7. Allow the dough to proof or rise in a warm place covered with a clean towel for 1-1 1/2 hours before baking. They should double in size.
8. Bake in the oven at 350°F for 15-20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool before icing. If you can wait:)

Icing Options

A simple powdered sugar glaze with a touch of vanilla or almond extract tastes awesome on these. But my kids love a little modified cream cheese icing. See both recipes below.

Glaze: Mix 1/2 cup powdered sugar with 1 Tablespoon cream or milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir to combine. It will thicken as it stands, so you can add more milk or sugar to make it the consistency you prefer.

Cream Cheese Glaze: Mix 1/3 cup cream cheese with 2 Tablespoons butter. You can soften it in the microwave for 10 seconds. Add 1/3 cup powdered sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract. Stir until smooth or use a hand mixer.

Variations

This recipe is perfect for variations. You can use the basic dough recipe to make many baked goods. Here are a couple I’ve tried.

Garlic Knots– Melt butter and garlic salt and substitute for the cinnamon sugar. Reduce sugar in dough by 2 Tablespoons. Braid or roll the dough. Let rise and bake as above.

Dinner Rolls– Roll dough into 2″ balls and place in buttered dish. Let rise and bake as above. Brush with melted butter before baking.

Filling Variations

In addition to using the dough different ways, you can also play with the filling. Try one of the following or get creative on your own!

• Pistachio Orange– Substitute ground pistachios for the pecans. Instead of cinnamon, use pumpkin pie spice (or 1/2 cinnamon, 1/2 ginger, 1/2 nutmeg, 1/4 cloves). Zest 1/2 orange into the glaze for the icing.
• Rum Raisin– Add 1/3 cup chopped raisins and 1 teaspoon of rum or rum extract to the cinnamon sugar filling. Substitute rum for the vanilla or almond extract in the icing.
• Chocolate Chip Rolls: Add 1/2 cup chocolate chips to the filling and omit the cinnamon for ooey goey chocolate goodness.

GF Baking Tips

I have tried this GF Yeast Dough recipe with various flour substitutions, each with varied levels of success.

I’ve tried substituting All Purpose Gluten Free Flour, made primarily of brown rice flour and sorghum flour, in place of the millet flour. And while the taste is great and the tenderness and elasticity are spot on, it does not rise as much. I highly recommend following the recipe as written.

If you want to do a deep dive into the why and how of gluten free baking, I highly recommend the Elements of Baking Cookbook mentioned above. The recipes have been hit or miss for me, but it has helped me become a much better improvisor when adapting recipes to make them Gluten Free.