KIND CINNAMON BUNS
Christmas is such a cozy time of year and we absolutely love having our friends and families over to celebrate the holiday season. These cinnamon buns from The Minimalist Baker are so easy to make and are constantly on repeat in our home and I felt they were the most fitting for our 25 days of plant based holiday recipes. There is nothing I love more than standing around our kitchen with friends and family, talking over treats and a warm cup of coffee. We also make these for breakfast when we have guests staying over and it’s the warmest breakfast to wake up to. Make sure you guys tag me in your photos so we can see all the things you recreate as I’ll be reposting them on our insta stories over the holidays. I’ve linked all the beautiful dishes and pieces but I do want to make a note that the pillows are unfortunately not vegan and we didn’t realize this until I linked the items for you, so they will have to be going back. Everything else is cruelty free and good to go. Biggest hugs and so much love to you all during the most beautiful time of year. Also, snow? You’re welcome anytime–we miss you!
- 1 packet instant (or rapid-rise) yeast* (2 1/4 tsp)
- 1 cup (240 ml) unsweetened plain almond milk
- 1/2 cup (112 g) Earth balance (vegan butter), divided ( I used vegan Becel)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 cups (408 g) unbleached all-purpose flour*
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (I used 1.5 tbsp of cinnamon)
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp (63 g) organic cane sugar, divided* ( I used plain sugar)
- In a large sauce pan (or in a bowl in the microwave at 30-second increments), heat the almond milk and 3 Tbsp Earth Balance until warm and melted, never reaching boiling. Remove from heat and let cool to 110 degrees F (43 C) or the temperature of bath water. It should be warm but not too hot or it will kill the yeast.
- Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle on yeast. Let activate for 10 minutes. Then add 1 Tbsp sugar and the salt and stir.
- Next add in flour 1/2 cup (68 g) at a time, stirring as you go (you may not add it all). The dough will be sticky. When it is too thick to stir, transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or so until it forms a loose ball (be careful not to overmix). Rinse your mixing bowl out, coat it with canola or grapeseed oil, and add your dough ball back in. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size (see photo).
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a thin rectangle. Brush with 3 Tbsp melted Earth Balance and top with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 - 1 Tbsp cinnamon (to taste).
- Starting at one end, tightly roll up the dough and situate seam side down. Then with a serrated knife or a string of floss, cut the dough into 1.5 - 2 inch sections and position in a well-buttered 8x8-inch square or comparable sized round pan (you should have about 10 rolls). Brush with remaining 2 Tbsp Earth Balance (melted) and cover with plastic wrap. Set on top of the oven to let rise again while you preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C).
- Once the oven is hot, bake rolls for 25-30 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes and then serve immediately.
- Optional: Frost with dairy-free cream cheese frosting or a simple mixture of 1 cup (112 g) organic powdered sugar and 1-2 Tbsp (15-30 ml) almond milk. (We made a dairy free cream cheese- see NOTES for recipe)
- DAIRY-FREE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING (From the Minimalist Baker as well)
- 4 Tbsp non-dairy butter (such as Earth Balance), softened
- 2- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar (1/2 lb.)
- 4 ounces "Tofutti" dairy-free cream cheese, softened ( HIGHLY recommend using Daiya's plain cream cheese because it's made from coconut and has a nice coconut taste to it)
- 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
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