Having made lactose free cream cheese recently, I was in search of a place to use it. What better place than on cinnamon rolls? On a spur of the moment I decided to post this recipe for gluten free yeast free cinnamon rolls. They’re deliciously sweet and spiced and pair beautifully with a rich cream cheese icing. Nothing better.
Gluten free yeast free cinnamon rolls (no xanthan gum)
This recipe is very similar to my gluten free vegan cinnamon rolls without yeast. There are a few tweaks, however, and I wanted to ensure everyone who needs to avoid both gluten and yeast could enjoy delicious cinnamon rolls.
This recipe is xanthan gum free, egg free and nut free. Because there is a vegan vegan, you can easily make them dairy free as well. With a few tweaks they are also low lactose and low FODMAP.
The buns use a few simple tricks to form a plush and pliable dough. A small amount of scalded flour is added to the dough for elasticity and to add sufficient hydration to the dough. A psyllium husk, butter and milk binder adds fat, elasticity and extra liquid. Finally, the simple flour mix (white rice flour and either tapioca or glutinous rice flour) is combined with baking powder and sugar.
Although there are a few steps, this recipe couldn’t be easier (or more delicious).
Ingredient notes for your gluten free yeast free cinnamon rolls
At this stage I don’t have any rice flour free option. I find white rice flour to be a super helpful, neutral and accessible gluten free flour. I hope to work on a rice flour free version at some point in the future.
In terms of starches, you have the choice between tapioca or glutinous rice flour. Glutinous rice flour is 100% gluten free – it’s made from a sticky (and thus glutinous) rice.
I have no sugar alternatives for either the dough or the cinnamon sugar. White sugar is best in the buns and light brown sugar is best in the cinnamon sugar. We’re having a treat, enjoy it!
This recipe uses a considerable amount of baking powder – 15g or 3 Australian teaspoons. This is to replace the rising and leavening power in a recipe made without yeast. There is no substitute here. Make sure you get gluten free baking powder if you need to.
I use almost exclusively psyllium husk powder these days. However, I buy the flakes and grind them to a powder myself. I find a lot of store bought powders turn people or grey when baked. They can also be so fine that they clump up as soon as they hit the hot milk. This is why I prefer to grind my own – I use a little spice grinder.
FODMAP and dietary requirement notes for your cinnamon rolls
In terms of making these rolls low FODMAP, there are a few easy switches. First, ensure you use lactose free milk. I like to use full cream lactose free to give the buns a nice taste and a lovely brown crust. Use lactose free cream cheese for the icing.
These buns are naturally xanthan gum free, egg free and nut free. To make them dairy free, use my vegan recipe (it differs just a tiny bit to this one).
To make these buns corn free, ensure you use corn free baking powder. Xanthan gum is often derived from corn so I would recommend making your own cream cheese for the icing. Cream cheese contains a number of gums to make it stable.
Hydration notes
As always, it’s worth noting that every single bag of flour will have a different hydration level. My rice flour I have today will be slightly different to the bag I buy next week. This variation is bag to bag, country to country, brand to brand, etc. Keep your wits about you and always be willing to adjust the liquid content if necessary.
An ideal dough consistency is soft and pliable. It should be quite easy to roll out without giving too much resistance or feeling borderline dry/spiky. There should never be any dry spots of dough, but it shouldn’t be a batter either.
If you have mixed up your dough and find that your dough seems a little textured to the touch, add 1/4 cup (60ml) more milk. Conversely, if your dough feels a bit too soft, pop it in the fridge for 15 minutes. This should help firm up the dough and allow the psyllium husk powder time to absorb more liquid.
Within reason, the more hydrated the dough, the more plush and soft your buns will be. Dry, textured dough will result in drier, stiffer cinnamon rolls.
Recipe tips for your gluten free yeast free cinnamon rolls
- The most important thing is to get the hydration right with this recipe. This will afford you plush and delicious cinnamon rolls.
- I find cutting the log of dough with fine sewing string or unflavoured tooth floss to be the easiest way to get a clean cut on these rolls.
- If you don’t have the right size pan, use smaller pans to hold the buns in tightly on whatever you tray bake them in. The buns will spread without being confined, so they need walls to help keep them upright and perky.
- When it comes to rolling out the dough, the longer and thinner you roll piece of dough, the more swirls of cinnamon in the final bun. Dough that has been rolled into a smaller rectangle (which will naturally be thicker as you have rolled less out) will produce a roll with only a few cinnamon swirls.
- I haven’t tried the cream trick from TikTok thus far but I do intend to at some point soon.
More gluten free recipes
- Gluten free croissants from my cookbook Intolerance Friendly Kitchen
- Easy gluten free chocolate cake without xanthan gum
- Gluten free lemon olive oil cake
- Gluten free vegan brownie cookies
- Lactose free creme caramel
Gluten free yeast free cinnamon rolls
Ingredients
For the binder:
- 250-375ml (1 – 1 1/2 cups)* full fat milk, lactose free or regular
- 50 – 75g butter (salted or unsalted) melted
- 20 g psyllium husk powder (see notes)
For the scald:
- 80 g (1/2 cup)* fine white rice flour or sorghum flour
- 125 g/ml 1/2 cup boiling water
For the dough:
- 160 g (1 cup)* fine white rice flour
- 120 g (1 cup)* glutinous rice flour or tapioca flour
- 150 g caster (superfine) sugar
- 15 g (3 teaspoons)* gluten free baking powder
For the cinnamon filling:
- 100 g light brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 20 ml (1 tablespoon)* extra milk
For the cream cheese icing:
- 150 g cream cheese room temperature (lactose free or regular)
- 25-35 g icing sugar sieved
- Vanilla and/or a pinch of salt to taste
- Milk to thin I prefer a thicker icing without added milk but that’s me
Instructions
To make the dough:
- Preheat the oven to 180C/356F.
- Whisk together the wet ingredients for the binder in a medium sized mixing bowl. Sprinkle over the psyllium husk powder, then whisk vigorously until it is fully incorporated and no clumps remain. Set aside for 10-15 minutes to form a gel.
- Next, make the scald by whisking the flour and boiling water together. They should form a paste like consistency quite quickly. Set aside to cool a little.
- Combine the ingredients for the dough in the bowl of your stand mixer. Use the paddle attachment to combine everything on a medium speed for 1-2 minutes or until the scald has ‘dissolved’ into the flour.
- Add the binder, turn the mixer up and beat until completely combined into a smooth dough. There should be no flour left on the bottom of the bowl. The dough should feel smooth rather little a little dry or spiky – see notes in the hydration section of the post for tips.
- The dough might be too wet to handle. If it is, place the bowl into the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up. The psyllium husk should work magic in that time.
- Before we roll out the dough, we need our filling ready to go. Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a medium bowl. We’ll use the milk later to adhere the sugar to the dough.
- Very lightly oil a large piece of baking paper, roughly 40 cm long. Place the scroll dough on the paper and very lightly oil the top of the dough, then roll the dough out into a long, thin rectangle about the size of the baking paper.
- The size of the rectangle isn’t super important, though. The longer and wider you roll it, the more ‘rings’ your scroll will have. Make sure the dough is reasonably thin (roughly ½–1 cm) but without any holes.
- Splash a very small of milk onto the surface of the dough, just to moisten it. Evenly sprinkle the cinnamon sugar across the dough.
- Beginning on one long side of the dough rectangle, use your fingers to fold the 1cm border of the dough up onto itself. You want to create a tight roll, so try and make this first notch as small as possible. Continue folding the dough up until you can begin to use the baking paper to roll the dough onto itself. Take it about 80% of the way, then take the far side of the dough and bring it up over the log. You should have a log of dough with the seam facing upwards. Press the seam to adhere it to the log of dough.
- Line your baking dish with baking paper or grease it with butter. Gently thread your piece of string underneath the log. Eyeball one eighth of the dough log and think of the string as your knife. Holding one end of the string in each hand, pull in opposing directions to slice through one-eighth of the dough. Gently flip that first cinnamon scroll upright and use your hands to gently cup and mould it. Press it down a little so that it has a solid base, then place it into the prepared baking dish. Repeat with the remaining dough and scrolls.
- Place a baking dish filled with boiling water at the bottom of the oven to create a steamy environment. This will help keep them nice and moist during baking.
- Bake the scrolls for 25-30 minutes or until they feel firm to the touch and are lightly golden on top.
To make the cream cheese icing:
- Use hand beaters or a stand mixer and beat your icing until smooth, light and creamy. Add flavourings and milk if you find the consistency too thick.
To finish:
- Spread the cream cheese atop each cinnamon roll, warm or cooled. Serve immediately and keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave or a steamy oven on a low heat to restore them to their former glory.
Notes
- Read the body of the post to make the best scrolls possible.
- The absorbency of gluten free flours varies greatly from brand to brand, country to country. If you find your buns are too dry/wet, adjust the liquid to suit and make a note.
- I buy psyllium husk flakes and grind them to a powder myself. I find a lot of store bought powders turn people or grey when baked. They can also be so fine that they clump up as soon as they hit the hot milk. This is why I prefer to grind my own – I use a little spice grinder.
- Anecdotally, I found that the scald can make the buns taste a little ‘rice floury’. It’s a distinct taste that gluten free people will probably be aware of. I found that the cooled buns lose that taste, though.
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