Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls And Cream Cheese Icing Recipe

When it comes to a gluten-free diet, there are some sweet treats that work really well with gluten-free flour. Brownies, for example, can easily be made gluten-free and still retain that deliciously fudgey, gooey texture that we all know and love. Then there are those baked goods that seem almost untouchable outside of the gluten-filled world, such as perfectly flaky pastry and pretty much any bread-based bake. Homemade gluten-free cinnamon rolls seem like one of those delicious dishes we have to wave goodbye to when cutting out gluten, but, as long as you have the right flour mixture and a little patience, a mouthful of pillowy-soft frosted cinnamon roll is joyfully within reach.

This gluten-free cinnamon rolls and cream cheese icing recipe, from the kitchen of recipe developer Jennine Rye who is herself gluten-free, is everything you could ever want from a cinnamon roll. Cloud soft and perfectly squidgy, with a warm sweet cinnamon finish and a rich cream cheese frosting on top, these cinnamon rolls are so good you won't even notice that they are gluten-free. With a well-balanced flour mixture, and a little extra help from some heavy cream, these buns end up impossibly moist and fluffy, and are absolutely perfect when served still warm from the oven.

To begin this gluten-free cinnamon rolls and cream cheese icing recipe, first, you will need to gather the ingredients. For the buns, you will want milk, yeast, honey, psyllium husk powder, granulated sugar, ground cinnamon, and heavy cream to cook the buns. For the gluten-free flour mixture, you will want tapioca starch, rice flour, sorghum flour, cornstarch, xanthan gum, and sea salt. To make the cinnamon filling you will need ground cinnamon, brown sugar, white sugar, and softened butter. Finally, for the topping, you will want cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and milk.

In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, brown sugar, white sugar, and butter to make the cinnamon filling.

Set aside.

To make the buns, heat the milk in a saucepan to 110 F.

Whisk together the warm milk, yeast, and honey in a bowl.

Let the mixture sit and proof for 10 minutes.

Whisk in the psyllium powder and let the mixture sit for another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the tapioca starch, rice flour, sorghum flour, cornstarch, granulated sugar, ground cinnamon, xanthan gum, and salt.

Once the psyllium husk and yeast mixture has formed a gel-like consistency, combine it with the flour mixture in a stand mixer.

Mix well for 3 to 4 minutes until all the ingredients are well combined and a sticky dough has formed.

Dust a clean surface with a little rice flour and turn the dough out onto the surface.

Roll the dough out using a rolling pin, to a rectangle of roughly ¼-inch thickness.

Spread the dough with the cinnamon, sugar, and butter mixture.

Carefully roll the dough up tightly into a log.

Slice the roll into 9 even buns.

Line a 10x10-inch square baking tray with baking paper.

Place the cinnamon rolls into the baking tray.

Cover the cinnamon rolls with plastic wrap and leave them to proof for one hour, or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Pour the heavy cream all over the cinnamon rolls.

Cover the cinnamon rolls in aluminum foil.

Place the cinnamon rolls in the oven to bake for 25 minutes.

Remove the foil and bake for another 25 minutes until golden brown.

Remove the buns from the oven and set to one side to cool for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a stand mixer, combine the cream cheese, confectioner's sugar, vanilla extract, and milk, to form your glaze.

Liberally spread the glaze over the top of the still-warm buns.

Serve the cinnamon rolls.

While we don't recommend altering the finely tuned gluten-free flour mixture for this dish, there are plenty of other ways you can alter this cinnamon bun recipe so that you never get bored. The easiest way to add variation to your cinnamon rolls is by switching up your fillings, which will give you endless varieties to enjoy. With a simple spice switch you can add warming ginger to your rolls, or if you are a pumpkin spice fan, why not replace the cinnamon in this recipe with pumpkin spice and add a little pumpkin puree as well to really lean into Fall flavors? Alternatively, adding some diced apple to your dough before rolling it up will give you an incredible apple cinnamon filling.

For a more adventurous choice, why not use a chocolate spread such as Nutella on your dough, with an addition of some chopped hazelnuts? Sprinkle the nuts on top of the finished buns along with a chocolate drizzle to give you chocolate hazelnut rolls. Maple with pecan makes for another delicious flavor combination to add to your rolls. For a particularly Christmasy recipe, why not try adding homemade cranberry sauce like these extra fluffy cranberry cinnamon rolls? With a seasonal mixture of cranberry, orange, and cinnamon, this would make the perfect filling for the winter season.

While many stores these days offer their own versions of a gluten-free flour mix, oftentimes this mix will not be entirely suitable for every recipe you want to make. When it comes to gluten-free substitutions, it is important to choose flours that will replicate the consistency that wheat flour would naturally create in your baked goods. No gluten-free flour by itself can recreate that soft, springy, and light texture, so the next best thing is to make your own flour mixes. This might lead you to some slightly more unusual ingredients that have the qualities that you seek.

This gluten-free flour mixture utilizes tapioca starch, rice flour, sorghum flour, cornstarch, xantham gum, psyllium husk powder, and salt, to recreate the soft, airy, and slightly elastic finish we want from cinnamon buns. Each ingredient plays its part. The tapioca starch gives both lightness and elasticity to finished baked goods. Sorghum flour is wonderful for baking, creating a soft, tender crumb and adding a lovely light nutty flavor to the buns. Cornstarch adds smoothness and helps to bind the gluten-free dough together, and rice flour is a great base in gluten-free baking and flour mixes, helping to balance out the qualities of the other flours and make bakes less crumbly. Xantham gum and psyllium husk both add incredible structure and elasticity to gluten-free dough, you won't want to miss out on these if you are looking for pillowy-soft and chewy buns.