Vegan Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls (2024)

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Vegan sourdough cinnamon rolls. These dangerously addicting sourdough cinnamon rolls are light, fluffy, and filled with amazing cinnamon flavor. They are made without dairy, but if you are not avoiding dairy, I included an option for classic sourdough cinnamon rolls.

My Vegan Sourdough Cinnamon Roll recipe is:

Light & Fluffy
Easy to make
Dairy free

Okay so I just jumped on the sourdough train after 3 attempts to make a sourdough starter and I am LOVING it! I have made traditional cinnamon rolls for awhile and let me say, these vegan sourdough cinnamon rolls are the best I've ever made!!

Make sure to read myUltimate Guide on Making Healthy Easy Dessert Recipesat Home featuring healthy cookie dough bars.

If you're a fan of cinnamon rolls, you're going to LOVE my vegan sourdough cinnamon rolls.

And if you're not vegan, don't worry! You don't have to go out and buy special ingredients that you wouldn't otherwise use. Everything in this recipe can be substituted out 1:1! (example, if it says 2 tablespoons vegan butter, just use 2 tablespoons regular butter, etc.)

Click here if you need a sourdough starter recipe!

TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST VEGAN SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLLS

HAVE AN ACTIVE BUBBLY STARTER. Before you start, make sure you have an active and bubbly sourdough starter! This is a MUST for this recipe.

IF YOUR DOUGH IS VERY STICKY ADD ⅛ CUP FLOUR AT A TIME. Don't be tempted to add a bunch of extra flour all at once, too much flour will give you tough and chewy cinnamon rolls.

STRETCH AND FOLD YOUR DOUGH. This is necessary to help aerate the sourdough and develop the gluten. Stretch the dough up towards the ceiling and then in towards the center. Work your way around each side of the sourdough.

INSULATE YOUR BOWL. If your house is cold and drafty, you might have trouble rising your sourdough. Wrap your bowl with a thick towel and put it in the oven (turned off) during the rising times.

LEAVE ROOM AROUND YOUR CINNAMON SUGAR FILLING. Leave ~¼ inch around the edges so that you don't have the mixture leaking out and burning on the bottom of the pan while it bakes!

MAKE SURE TO ROLL THE FILLED DOUGH TIGHTLY.

RISE THE ROLLS IN THE PAN BEFORE BAKING. This really helps develop a soft and fluffy texture.

FAQ's

Frequently asked questions about my vegan sourdough cinnamon rolls.

How can I make gooey sourdough cinnamon rolls?

If you want gooey sourdough cinnamon rolls, double the filling!

Can I make sourdough cinnamon rolls in cast iron?

Yes! You can bake these cinnamon rolls in a cast iron pan. Just be sure to line the pan with parchment paper to prevent them from sticking.

What makes these sourdough cinnamon rolls vegan?

I used plant milk and plant butter in the dough, coconut oil instead of butter in the filling, and plant butter & cream cheese in the frosting.

Can I use regular dairy in these sourdough cinnamon rolls?

Yes! If you are not vegan or dairy sensitive, you can easily substitute the dairy equivalent for all the ingredients in this recipe.

More Healthy Baked Dessert Recipes you're going to love!

Pink Cinnamon Rolls
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Surprise Carrot Cake
Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts
Blue Marble Donuts
Almond Flour Funfetti Cupcakes
Healthy Strawberry Poptarts
Healthy Zucchini Cake with Avocado Frosting
Twix Bars with Date Caramel
Healthy Sweet Potato Brownies
Healthy Pumpkin Brownies

MAKE MY VEGAN SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLLS

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED

Cinnamon roll dough:

⅔cupvanilla soy milksubstitute milk if you aren't vegan
2tablespoonsvegan buttersubstitute regular butter if you aren't vegan
½cupbubbly active sourdough starter
2tablespoonsraw cane sugaror coconut sugar
2 ½cupsall-purpose flour, unbleached
½teaspoonpink sea salt
2tablespoonolive oil or avocado oil for coating the bowl

Cinnamon filling:

2tablespoonvegan butter or coconut oil
½cupraw cane sugaror coconut sugar
4teaspoonground cinnamon

Frosting (optional):

2tablespoonvegan butter
⅓cupvegan cream cheese
½-3/4cuppowdered sugar
1tablespoonplant based milk (I used flax milk)
1teaspoonpure vanilla extract

EQUIPMENT YOU NEED

Standing mixer
Rolling pin
Pastry brush
Springform pan (or other round pan for baking)

Vegan Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls, here we go!

NOTE: This is an overnight rise so plan accordingly!

I like to start my sourdough in the evening around 7 or 8 pm, and then finish them in the morning around 7 or 8 am.

Don't worry about being exactly at 12 hours. Actually, it varies anyway. If your house is colder, it will probably take longer to rise. If it is warmer, your dough will rise faster, around 8-10 hours.

HOW TO MAKE DOUGH FOR THE SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLLS

Heat the milk and butter in a dish in the microwave until the butter is just melted. Allow it to cool, but not so much that that the butter starts to harden. If you want to check the temperature it should not be hotter than 110 degrees F or it can kill the bacteria in the sourdough.

Fit your standing mixer with the paddle attachment. In the bowl of the standing mixer, add ½ cup of your bubbly active starter and the sugar. Mix until it is just combined.

While the mixer is still running, slowly pour in the milk/butter mixture.

Then, turn off the mixer and add the flour and sea salt.

Turn the mixer back on and mix just until a rough dough forms which takes about 1 minute.

Scrape the sides down and cover the bowl with a damp towel.

REST THE DOUGH FOR 30 MINUTES.

After 30 minutes, switch to a hook attachment.

LET YOUR DOUGH REST ANOTHER 30 MINUTES.

After 30 minutes, stretch and fold the dough to the center ~ 4 times. This helps to aerate it.

Cover the bowl again with a damp towel.

REST YOUR DOUGH FOR 8-12 HOURS AT ROOM TEMPERATURE.

After 8-12 hours, your dough should be double in size like this picture below!

Look at that perfect texture!

Turn the dough onto a floured counter top.

Stretch and fold the dough a few times to aerate it again.

REST THE DOUGH ON THE COUNTER FOR 15 MINUTES.

Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough into a rectangle (roughly ~12" x 18").

HOW TO FILL YOUR VEGAN SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLLS

Melt the butter for the filling. Mix together the filling sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl.

Using a pastry brush, brush the dough with the melted butter. Sprinkle the cinnamon mixture over the top.

Roll the dough up lengthwise.

Tuck the open ends together and under. (see below)

Score the roll with a knife so that you have 8 even pieces:

Cut it up!

Isn't it so pretty!

Add parchment paper to the bottom of a pan.

Gently place the cinnamon rolls inside. Space them out evenly so that they have room to grow!

LET THE FORMED SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLLS RISE AT ROOM TEMPERATURE FOR 1-2 HOURS BEFORE BAKING. UNTIL THEY ARE DOUBLE IN SIZE.

One of my cinnamon rolls got loose and fell over LOL!

I tried to use a knife to save it:

They look good enough to eat!

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Make sure the rack is in the center of the oven.

Bake the sourdough cinnamon rolls for ~35 minutes or until they are golden brown on top!

Look at these beauties!

I was so hungry after smelling them all day I ate one immediately!

VEGAN SOURDOUGH CINNAMON ROLL FROSTING

I LOVE frosting. But, you can totally skip it if sweet isn't your thing.

To make the frosting, just beat softened butter and cream cheese until it is fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

More sugar= fluffier frosting so adjust your sugar according to how you like your frosting!

Store them wrapped AND with a plate over the top. They can get stale quickly if they are exposed to air.

Enjoy these tasty cinnamon buns!

Try these easy sourdough recipes next:

How to Make a Sourdough Starter for Beginners
Vegan Banana Bread with Sourdough Discard
Sourdough Discard Banana Walnut Muffins
Healthy Blueberry Muffins with Sourdough Discard
Sourdough Rainbow Bagels
Sourdough Discard Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

If you try thisVegan Sourdough Cinnamon Roll Recipe, please let me know your thoughts by leaving a rating and comment below!Ready for more?Subscribe to my newsletteror follow along onPinterest,Instagram,Facebook,andYoutube!

Vegan Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

These are THE BEST sourdough cinnamon rolls you will ever make! The sweet dough is super fluffy and tender from the sourdough. And they are made vegan! If you are not vegan, you can easily swap anything out for the dairy version. This is an overnight rise recipe so plan accordingly!

5 from 13 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 2 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

overnight rise 12 hours hrs

Total Time 15 hours hrs

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 8 rolls

Calories 339 kcal

Equipment

Standing mixer
2 mixing bowls
Rolling Pin
pastry brush
9" circular baking pan (can use a cake pan, springform pan, or even a square pan if you don't mind the shape of the roll) lined with parchment paper

Ingredients

For the dough:

⅔ cup vanilla soy milk sub milk if you aren't vegan
2 tablespoon vegan butter sub regular butter if you aren't vegan
½ cup bubbly active sourdough starter
2 tablespoon raw cane sugar sub coconut sugar
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ teaspoon pink sea salt
2 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil for coating the bowl

For the cinnamon filling:

2 tablespoon vegan butter or coconut oil
½ cup raw cane sugar sub coconut sugar
4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the frosting (optional):

2 tablespoon vegan butter
⅓ cup vegan cream cheese
½-3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon plant based milk (I used flax milk)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

For the dough:

In the microwave (or in a pan over the stove), heat the milk and butter just until the butter has melted. Allow it to cool to room temperature (but not so cool that the butter starts to harden again)
Fit your standing mixer with the paddle attachment.
In the bowl of the standing mixer, add the active starter and sugar. Mix until it is just combined (I used the slowest speed setting). Slowly pour in the warm milk mixture with the machine running.
Turn the mixer off and add the flour and salt. Mix on speed 2 just until a rough dough forms.
Scrape the sides of the bowl down. Cover it with a damp towel and rest for ~30 minutes.
Next, add the hook attachment to your mixer. Mix on speed 2 or 3 for ~8 minutes. The dough should be very soft and have pulled away from the sides of the bowl to form a ball.
TIP: If your dough is very sticky still, add ⅛ cup flour at a time.
Coat a separate bowl with the olive oil. Place your dough in the bowl. Turn it over once and rub the oil to completely coat the dough.
Cover the bowl with the damp towel and let sit for ~30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, stretch and fold the dough towards the center 4-5 times to help aerate it.
Cover the dough again with the damp towel and let it sit at room temperature for 8-12 hours.
TIP: The warmer it is in your kitchen, the faster your dough will rise! You can wrap the bowl with a thick towel to help insulate it if you have a cool and drafty kitchen or if is winter time. You can also wrap it with a towel and place it in the stove to keep it very warm.

Filling and preparing the cinnamon rolls:

After 12 hours (typically made the previous evening and prepared the following day in the morning) your dough should be double in size. If it is not double in size.. it was either too cold, or you don't actually have an active starter.
Turn the dough onto a floured counter surface. Stretch it and fold it over a few times to help soften it and aerate it. Let it sit on the counter ~15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, use a rolling pin dusted with flour and roll it to a large rectangle. The larger the rectangle, the thinner the dough of your cinnamon rolls will be. You can eyeball it, but if you want to grab the measuring tape mine was ~18" x 12"
Melt the 2 tablespoon butter in the microwave (or over the stove). Mix the ½ cup of sugar and 4 teaspoon cinnamon together in a separate bowl.
Using a pastry brush, brush the melted butter evenly over the top of the dough. Leave ~¼" at the edges. You don't want the mixture to squeeze out while baking and burn on the bottom of your pan!
Sprinkle the cinnamon evenly over the top of the butter.
Roll the dough up lengthwise. You should end up with a very long skinny log.
Tuck and seal the ends under. Use a knife to score the dough before you cut it. I did it by dividing in half, and then each of the sections in half and half again!
Slice the dough. It helps to wipe off the knife each time you cut a slice. Some bakers like to use a thin piece of string to cut their dough.
Place the pieces spaced evenly apart into your parchment paper lined pan.
Let the dough rest ~1-2 hours. It will be double in size.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bake for ~35 minutes or until the tops are a nice golden brown.
Allow them to cool completely before you frost them. (Or if you are like me, grab one out and frost it immediately hehe!)

For the frosting:

Soften your butter to room temperature or in the microwave. Don't melt it though!
Beat the butter with the cream cheese until fully incorporated. Add the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Beat again until it is smooth and creamy.
If you like thicker fluffier frosting, simply add more powdered sugar.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we did! If you loved them, please leave a comment below and let me know how your baking experience went!

Notes

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Nutrition

Serving: 1rollCalories: 339kcalCarbohydrates: 50.4gProtein: 5.4gFat: 12.3g

Keyword cinnabon, cinnamonbun, cinnamonroll, sourdough, sourdoughcinnamonroll, sourdoughrecipe

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