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These gluten-free cinnamon rolls are out-of-control delicious! They taste like Cinnabon copycats, but with zero gluten. They’re soft and tender with a perfect swirly filling and cream cheese frosting. Perfect for Christmas morning breakfast or anytime!
What Makes This Recipe So Good?
- We love having cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning, and these are perfect when you are catering for overnight guests. For a stress-free morning, you can also make these ahead of time.
- These cinnamon rolls taste just like the ones from Cinnabon, but they are 100% gluten-free. Because they are GF, they won’t rise as much as dough with gluten would, but I promise you they taste exactly the same! The cream cheese frosting is to die for! Seriously, it’s so good, this is the only cinnamon roll recipe you will need!
- They can be made ahead of time and reheated for an easy breakfast or brunch option. Keep them in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days; 5 days in the fridge. To reheat, warm in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Microwaving produces more moist and more tender reheated cinnamon rolls than the oven.
Can You Freeze This Recipe for Later?
Absolutely! I’m all for getting ahead of the game. I recommend doing this one of two ways:
- You can freeze the rolls, baked but unfrosted. Later, you can thaw them out, warm them for just a few minutes in the oven, and ice them while warm.
- If you’d rather freeze the cinnamon rolls completely iced and finished, you can do that, too. Just allow them to cool, cover them with plastic wrap and foil, and pop them in the freezer.
Chef’s Tips
- Make sure your warmed milk and melted butter are not too hot; they should feel warm to the touch but not hot.
- Gluten-free flour behaves differently from brand to brand! You may experience different results based on your gluten-free flour. Use the recommended flour from Bob’s Red Mill for the best results.
- If your dough seems overly sticky or unmanageable, gradually add in more flour. Start with just one tablespoon, and add more by the tablespoon as needed.
- Take care not to over-bake the gluten free cinnamon rolls! It’s easy to do and will throw off the taste and texture.
For More Gluten Free Recipes
- Gluten Free Stuffing
- Gluten Free Cornbread with Honey
- Perfectly Crispy Gluten Free Fried Chicken
- Gluten Free Paleo Blueberry Muffins
- Perfect Paleo Brownies (Gluten Free)
- Crispy Gluten Free Onion Rings
- Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookies
Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls (Cinnabon Copycat)
These gluten free cinnamon rolls are out-of-control delicious! They taste like Cinnabon copycats, but with zero gluten. They're soft and tender with a perfect swirly filling and cream cheese frosting
cinnamon rolls
Equipment
- Large bowls (2)
- Stand mixer with bread hook (or knead by hand)
- Medium bowl
- Fork
- 9×13 baking dish
- parchment paper
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 cup warm milk or alt-milk (like almond, oat, macadamia milk), warmed to 110°-115°F, see Notes
- 1 packet active dry yeast 2 ¼ teaspoons
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled until just warm to the touch, about 110°-115°F, see Notes
- 2 eggs whisked
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 3 ½ cups Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour see Notes
- 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum only if flour doesn't contain it already, see Notes
- 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the Cinnamon Filling
- 1 packed cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, or margarine
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 6 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add the white sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer (or large mixing bowl if you prefer to knead by hand) and pour warm milk over. Stir to combine. Sprinkle the yeast over and set aside until bubbly or frothy; you should see a sort of film on the top of the mixture at least. This will take about 5 minutes.
- Add the melted butter (About 110º F; warm to the touch but not hot) to the yeast mixture. Stir in whisked eggs and apple cider vinegar. Add in gluten-free flour, baking powder, salt, and xantham gum if your gluten-free flour does not contain it (See Note). Attach the bread hook to the mixer and mix on medium speed for about 5 minutes or until dough pulls away from sides of the bowl and is soft. It should not feel dry but a bit sticky. See Note to mix by hand.
- Lightly oil a large mixing bowl and transfer dough to bowl. Cover and place in a warm spot. Let rise 1 hour. If your spot is cooler, it may take a little longer to rise, but the dough should be a bit puffier and should leave an indentation when poked. It will not double in size.
- Meanwhile, make the cinnamon filling. In a medium bowl, add all ingredients and use a fork to mix very well. Alternately, beat all ingredients together with a stand mixer and paddle attachment.
- Preheat oven to 350º F. Lightly coat a 9×13” baking dish with softened butter or cooking spray.
- Cut a piece of parchment paper to about 12×18” and lay on the counter. Scrape the dough on top. Press the dough to fit the parchment sheet; the dough should be about 12×16” as well. It’s OK if it doesn’t quite fit the entire sheet.
- Evenly spread the cinnamon filling on the rectangle of dough, leaving ½” bare at one end (short side, not long side).
- Carefully, use the parchment sheet to begin tightly rolling the dough. Use the parchment to fold over the first 1” or so of the short side with filling all the way to the edge. Continue rolling the dough by folding the parchment over to the other side. It will roll naturally.
- Cut the roll into 12 equal pieces. Place evenly into baking dish and bake 25-30 minutes. They will not puff up like cinnamon rolls with gluten in them but will become a bit fuller and should be a little golden brown. Do not overbake!
- Meanwhile, make your cream cheese frosting. Add cream cheese and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl and beat until completely combined. Cream cheese should be totally smooth with no solid lumps. Add in powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt; beat on medium speed until combined.
- When cinnamon rolls are finished baking, remove from the oven and let stand 10 minutes before slathering tops with cream cheese frosting (A butter knife or offset spatula work well). Serve with additional cream cheese frosting.
Video
- IMPORTANT: Make sure your warmed milk and melted butter are not too hot; they should feel warm to the touch but not hot. If they’re too hot, they can kill the yeast. Check them with a thermometer before each step in which they come in contact with the yeast for foolproof gluten-free cinnamon rolls!
- Flour: I recommend using Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten Free Baking Flour. Gluten-free flour behaves differently from brand-to-brand, so you may experience different results based on the type of flour you use. Use the recommended flour from Bob’s Red Mill for best results.
- Xanthan Gum: If your gluten-free all-purpose flour blend does not have xanthan gum, add 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum to the mixer when adding flour blend and baking powder. The recommended gluten-free flour (Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten Free Baking Flour) already has xanthan gum and does not need this ingredient added.
- Sticky Dough: If your dough seems overly sticky or unmanageable, gradually increase the amount of flour. Start with one additional tablespoon of flour, adding more as needed to make the dough workable.
- Mixer: If mixing by hand instead of using a stand mixer, add all ingredients as directed in steps #3 and #4 to a large mixing bowl. Stir with a spatula until mixed well. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 1-2 minutes. You are not creating gluten by kneading this dough, but kneading will help incorporate all ingredients as smoothly as if you used a stand mixer.
- Frosting: This recipe makes plenty of cream cheese frosting because I’m pretty sure that’s the best part! You will not need all of the frosting when glazing the cinnamon rolls in the baking dish; keep for serving and reheating!
- Storage & Reheating: Keep in an air-tight container at room temperature up to 3 days; 5 days in the fridge. To reheat, warm in the microwave about 30 seconds. Microwaving produces moister and more tender reheated cinnamon rolls than the oven.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Serving Size: 1cinnamon rollCalories: 536calProtein: 6gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 245mgPotassium: 56mgTotal Carbs: 74gFiber: 5gSugar: 47gNet Carbs: 69gVitamin A: 632IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 143mgIron: 2mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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My dough came out really dry? Help please
Hi Amie, we’re sorry your dough came out dry. This typically happens when someone uses too much flour, or even if the surface the dough is rolled out on is over-floured. Could this have happened? It’s also important to mix the dough by hand using the bread hook so it’s not over-mixed. Hope this is helpful!
This dough was really hard to work with. I did everything to a T, including using the Bob’s Red Mill 1-1, using my thermometer to have the right temps, etc. and the dough was like soup and never came off the sides of the mixing bowl. I had to use an extra cup of flour for it to be somewhat stiffer. It didn’t rise or anything. I had to use a ton more flour just to knead it after the hour was up so I could roll it and cut it, and it was still super sticky. I was able to roll them and bake them, and they somewhat kept a shape. They looked pretty distorted, though. Flavor wise… just okay. Texture was sorta fluffy, but dry and crumbly at the same time. I’ll have to play around and experiment more with this recipe.
We’re sorry you had this experience, Amie, but we do appreciate you sharing it with us. We hope it works out better next time.
I was looking forward to this recipe because of the claim that, “They taste like Cinnabon copycats.” Unfortunately they do not at all, are very dry and break up very easily. I totally get that this recipe being gluten free is as good as it gets but would have liked to be told to not expect Cinnabon type cinnamon rolls. I just wish that the recipe lowered the standard for the claim. I had guest over in excitement and everyone was trying to be nice and tell me that they understand that they are gluten free. FYI, do not let them sit over night, they got so dry and could not be worked with. I made a second batch of dough and stuck to the recommended time of 1 hour to let the dough sit.
We’re sorry that you had this experience, as that’s never our intention when creating recipes. It can definitely be hard to satisfy cravings for foods that no longer comply with our new eating habits, like gluten-free. We appreciate the honest review.
This is a great recipe! If your dough is really sticky while trying to roll out, don’t add a lot more flour! Just roll it out between two lightly floured pieces of parchment paper and it should be easier. Watch them after 23-25 minutes so they don’t brown too much. They were the best and softest right after baking! Will definitely be making again!
So glad you enjoyed it, Kate!
Love these! Can the dough be made ahead?
Glad you love this recipe! Yes, the dough should be fine refrigerated ahead of time for up to 24 hours!
Hi, I usually do regular yummy cinnamon rolls and orange rolls which are my favorite. My nephew was visiting he wanted some but my son’s girlfriend has severed Celiac. I was so glad to have found your recipe due to baking Gluten Free is new to me. The cinnamon rolls came out outstanding. My nephew was amaze that it was GF. My son’s girlfriend was so thrill, it had been four years that she had not had rolls. I am going to try the same recipe but for Orange Rolls. This recipe it’s a kkeeper and gluten free is delicious.
So happy to hear you all enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for the great review.
My son has Celiac Disease and has been begging for cinnamon rolls. THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE. Three things we did slightly different that made this an awesome experience and treat for our family.
1. I didn’t have enough of Bob’s 1-1 GF baking flour, so I substituted the last cup of flour with Bob’s GF pancake mix. I baked for 23 minutes and they were perfectly moist and delicious!!!
2. We used a piece of parchment paper on the top and bottom of the dough while rolling it out. This kept the dough from sticking to the rolling pin and made the process super easy for my 7 and 9 year old to roll out the dough.
3. I put a dollop of icing on each roll while they were hot and then placed them back into the 350 degree oven for 30 seconds. This made the icing easy to spread.
ENJOY!
You’re very welcome! So glad this recipe worked for you and your son. Thanks for the great review!
I need to update my rating… initially I gave it 1 star because it was such a nightmare to make. Dough would not roll, middle would not spread. It stuck to the parchment paper. I managed to half ass make 6. And they actually taste great… But it was so stressful to make them, and loose half the dough that I don’t know if I would ever attempt these again.
I’m sorry the process was stressful for you, that’s never our intention when creating recipes! I am glad they tasted great though. I appreciate the honest review.
Good for gluten-free! I’d recommend backing off on the cinnamon sugar mixture.
Thanks for the review!
My husband thought he would never have cinnamon rolls again since he’s gluten free. These were amazing!!! Thank you!!
A life without cinnamon rolls would be tough! I am so happy you enjoyed them!
The flavor was really great and as promised, the cream cheese frosting was addictive. I was a little nervous about the 3 Tablespoons of cinnamon for the filling, but it was not overpowering. I have done some gluten free baking but not this type, so I was worried about it being as easy as depicted to work with the dough, but it really was almost as easy as it looked!
I had a problem with it being dry and grainy, though. But there were a couple things that likely contributed to that: 1) I don’t have a stand mixer so I mixed by hand and kneaded, using sweet rice flour to flour the surface, not too much but enough to make it not sticky. And 2) my oven only uses the lower element when baking, so I couldn’t get a golden color on top and wasn’t really sure when they were done so I added a few minutes. Plus I made them on Saturday without the frosting, then reheated Sunday morning so the frosting would get melty on top. After putting all that in writing, it seems obvious why they were dry! If I make them again I will try some of the suggestions here. Aside from the texture it was delicious. Oh, and definitely put ALL the frosting on! Maybe even use the whole stick of butter and the whole brick of cream cheese.
Glad it was flavorful and you enjoyed the frosting. Hopefully, it works out better the next time you make it!
I appreciate this recipe so much! Cinnamon rolls are in the oven now. I’m using a little orange zest in the icing to recreate a childhood favorite. Thank you!!!
Hope you enjoyed them!