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Vegan Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls
5 from 74 votes

Vegan Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls

These Vegan Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls combine mashed ripe banana and almond milk in a yeast-leavened dough enriched with vegan butter. The rolls are filled with cinnamon and brown sugar, sliced banana, and optional walnuts, then topped with a vegan cream cheese frosting flavored with vanilla and cinnamon. The dough requires kneading and rising before shaping, creating a soft, flavorful roll with a sweet, spiced filling.

Prep Time
2 hrs
Cook Time
25 mins
Total Time
2 hrs 25 mins
Servings: 12 cinnamon rolls
Course: Dessert, Brunch
Cuisine: American, Vegan

Ingredients

  • For the dough:
  • ¾ cup almond milk unsweetened, vanilla, or milk of choice, warmed to 115°F, 180g
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar 50g
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons active yeast 1/4-ounce package
  • ¾ cup banana mashed ripe, from about 2 medium bananas
  • ¼ cup vegan butter melted, or regular butter if not vegan, 57g
  • 4 cups bread flour 480g
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • For the filling:
  • ⅔ cup dark brown sugar 142g
  • 1 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • ¼ cup vegan butter softened, or regular butter, 57g
  • 1 banana medium, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup walnuts chopped, optional, 56g
  • For the vegan cream cheese frosting*:
  • 4 oz vegan cream cheese softened, or regular cream cheese, 112g
  • 2 tablespoons vegan butter softened, or regular butter
  • ¾ cup powdered sugar 85g
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Warm milk to around 110 degrees F. I like to do this by placing milk in a microwave safe bowl and microwaving it for 45 seconds. It should be like warm bath water. Transfer warm milk and sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Stir in ¾ cup mashed banana (making sure you measured!) and melted vegan butter (or regular butter). Mix until just combined. Next stir in flour and salt with a wooden spoon until a dough begins to form.
  2. Place dough hook on mixer and knead dough on low speed for 8-10 minutes. Dough should form into a nice ball and be slightly sticky. (If you don’t want to use an electric mixer, you can use your hands to knead the dough for 8-10 minutes on a well-floured surface.)
  3. Transfer dough ball to a large bowl greased with olive oil, then cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel. Allow dough to rise for 1 hour or 1.5 hours or until doubled in size. This may more or less time depending the humidity and temperature in your home.
  4. After dough has doubled in size, transfer dough to a well-floured surface and roll out into a 14x16 inch rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough, leaving a ¼ inch margin at the far side of the dough.
  5. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon. Use your hands to sprinkle mixture over the buttered dough, then gently rub the sugar into the butter, you really want to combine the sugar into the dough so it sticks. Add banana slices and walnuts on top.
  6. Tightly roll dough up the dough, starting from the 14-inch side (the smaller side) and place seam side down making sure to seal the edges of the dough as best you can. You will probably need to cut off at least an inch off the ends of the dough as the ends won’t be as full of cinnamon sugar as we’d want it to be. Then cut rolled into 1 inch sections with a serrated knife or use floss. You should get 12 rolls. I like to make dents with a knife in the dough before cutting to make 12 even rolls.
  7. Place banana cinnamon rolls in a greased 9x11 inch baking pan. (I recommend lining the pan with parchment paper as well, in case any of the filling ends up leaking out.) Cover with plastic wrap and a warm towel and let rise again for 30-45 minutes or until they puff up and touch each other.
  8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove plastic wrap and towel and bake the banana cinnamon rolls for 25-35 minutes or until just slightly golden brown on the edges. You want to under bake them a little so they stay soft in the middle, that’s why we want them just slightly golden brown. Allow them to cool for a 5-10 minutes before frosting.
  9. While the cinnamon rolls bake, you can make the frosting: In the bowl of an electric mixer or in a medium bowl, combine softened cream cheese, softened butter, powdered sugar vanilla extract and cinnamon. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread or drizzle over cinnamon rolls and serve immediately. Makes 12 cinnamon rolls.

Notes

  • The recipe can use regular butter and cream cheese if not vegan or dairy-free.
  • For tips on making overnight cinnamon rolls and freezing, see the full recipe post.
  • These rolls freeze well, allowing make-ahead preparation.