Warm cinnamon rolls meet sugar cookies in these soft and sweet cinnabon cookies. Perfectly chewy. Swirled with cinnamon. Topped with icing. Elegant yet simple.
If you’re craving something warm and sweet from the oven then get out that apron and tie it on so you can get baking! These cookies are the perfect indulgent sweet treat and reminiscent of a cinnabon cinnamon roll. Plus they will fill your home with the scent of cinnamon – which is one of my favorite things when the weather starts cooling off.
This cinnabon cookie recipe is perfect any time of the year but I especially love it in the fall or winter served up with a mug of dairy-free hot chocolate. Ultimate comfort.
Why You Need to Make These
If you are a regular reader of my blog then you know how much I love cookies. Absolutely LOVE them. Especially these Gluten-Free and Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies. I would much rather have a cookie than almost any other dessert. That holds true for this recipe. I love the cozy flavor of these cinnabon cookies.
Gluten-Free, Vegan, Allergy-Friendly
If you have been to my blog before you will also know that all of my recipes are free from wheat, gluten, eggs, dairy, peanuts, cashews, and sesame. As a previous allergy mama, I love making allergy-friendly recipes and treats that I know will be a safe option for those that need them. I love it even more than I love cookies. Truly.
Those with food allergies or special dietary restrictions don’t always have a lot of options for fun, safe treats that are delicious! These allergy-friendly cookies are all of those! Fun, safe, delicious, and free from all of the major top food allergens!
If you or someone you know has food allergies then these awesome cinnamon roll cookies are just what you need! Make a batch for you and them, pass along the recipe, or both!
They Make a Great Christmas Cookie
I make a few kinds of Christmas cookies every year. A few of the same ones make it into the mix year after year. But I also love to try new recipes. If you love to try new recipes too then scroll on down and give this one a try. These cookies are simple, but elegant, and make a fantastic Christmas gift for a neighbor or friend.
Set them out for your large Christmas Eve gathering. They’ll give you perfect bragging rights this Christmas season. Especially when everyone finds out you made these tasty cookies without any eggs, dairy, or wheat!
What You Need for These Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Equipment Needed
- Cookie sheet or large sheet pan
- Rolling pin
Ingredients Needed
- Plant butter: in place of butter in both the cookies and icing.
- Palm oil shortening: this makes the cookies nice and fluffy!
- Water: replaces the eggs along with the baking powder. Bonus – you can eat the dough!
- Brown sugar: for both inside the cookies and for that beautiful cinnamon swirl.
- White sugar
- Vanilla extract: I love pure vanilla extract but imitation is fine too.
- Gluten-free 1:1 baking flour: your favorite cup-for-cup blend. White all purpose flour works too if you don’t need gluten-free cookies.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Plant milk: for the icing. Any plant milk is fine!
- Powdered sugar
Substitutions
You can replace any allergy-friendly ingredient with the original if it’s not a concern for you! You can use normal butter instead of plant butter, cow milk instead of plant milk, and white all purpose flour instead of a gluten-free blend. These substitutions can all be made 1:1.
How to Make Cinnabon Cookies
These tasty cookies are only a few steps away! Your kitchen will soon be filled with the smell of cinnamon and sugar cookies.
- Make the cookie dough. You’ll mix together the plant butter, palm oil shortening, and water together as if you were beating together sugar and eggs in a typical cookie recipe. Then you’ll add the dry ingredients.
- Roll out the dough and dust with the cinnamon sugar blend. Roll back up and slice it into 1/2 inch cookies.
- Place the cookies on a cookie sheet and bake until golden perfection. After baking, transfer to a cooking rack and allow to cool completely.
- Make the icing. You can cover the cookie tops completely or simply swirl the icing on top.
Tips for Success
If you have never mixed straight water into plant butter and shortening before it can be a little weird. It will fully incorporate after mixing but the key is to take it slowly! Set the mixer to low speed and allow it a minute or two two come together. Beating it together too quickly will cause it to separate even more.
Lightly dust your counter top or work surface with gluten-free flour before rolling out the dough. Since this dough is both gluten-free and vegan it is pretty soft and can come apart a tad more easily than your typical cookie dough. Not to worry though – it won’t break apart on you if you flour your surface first!
Looking for more cinnamon cookie recipes? Try my husband’s favorite – snickerdoodles!
Time to get baking!
Print(Vegan + Gluten Free) Cinnabon Cookies
Cinnabon cookies are sweet, soft, and perfectly chewy. These cookies are swirled with cinnamon and topped with icing. Vegan and gluten free.
Ingredients
Dough
- 1/2 cup plant butter
- 1/2 cup palm oil shortening
- 1/4 cup water
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups baking flour blend
- 2 tsps baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp gluten-free flour blend, for rolling the dough
Cinnamon Swirl
- 2 tbsp plant butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsps ground cinnamon
Brown “Butter” Icing
- 1/4 cup plant butter
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup plant milk
Instructions
- In the bowl of a mixer, cream together plant butter, palm oil shortening, and water. Mix slowly until fully incorporated. Add vanilla extract, brown sugar, and white sugar. Mix.
- In a large bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Slowly add to the butter and sugar mixture.
- Dust a clean surface with the 2 tbsps of gluten-free flour. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a 12×12 inch square. Spread with plant butter.
- Mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon for the inside of the cookies. Spread it out evenly over the buttered square of dough.
- Take one end of the square, and carefully roll it up into a log. Cut the log into 1/2 inch slices.
- Bake the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. After baking, allow to cool on the pan for 2 minutes before transferring the cookies to a cooling rack. Cool completely.
Brown “Butter” Icing
- Heat the plant butter in a pan over medium heat. Stir constantly until it is completely melted and it starts to become aromatic and slightly brown in color, about 5 minutes.
- Remove the pan from heat and stir in the vanilla extract and the powdered sugar. Whisk in the plant milk until smooth.
- Frost cooled cookies with the icing. Swirl the icing on top or cover the cookie tops completely.
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These things are so freakin’ good. Better than the real thing from the store.