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–+ servings
A sticky, squishy vegan apple cinnamon roll sat on a pretty vintage pink plate, studded with spiced cinnamon apple chunks and drizzled in creamy vegan caramel sauce

Vegan Apple Cinnamon Rolls (+ Caramel Sauce Recipe)

These vegan Apple Cinnamon Rolls are full of autumnal flavour; with sweet cinnamon and sticky caramelised apples all wrapped up in a soft and squishy dough. Enjoy these beauties for dessert slathered generously with our creamy 2-ingredient vegan caramel sauce!
4.60 from 5 votes
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Course: Dessert, Sweet Treat
Cuisine: British, Swedish
Prep: 55 minutes
Cook: 38 minutes
1 hour 25 minutes
Total: 2 hours 58 minutes
Serves: 12
Calories: 388kcal
Author: Tara

Ingredients
 
 

For the dough:

  • 300 ml dairy free milk (warm)
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 7 g dried yeast
  • 500 g strong white bread flour
  • 50 g soft light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 100 g of dairy free margarine (melted)

For the filling:

  • 6 medium eating apples (cored and cut into small chunks (approx 660g)*)
  • 200 g soft light brown sugar
  • 20 g ground cinnamon
  • 3 tbsp dairy free margarine + extra for greasing

For the sugar glaze:

  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp hot water

For the caramel topping:

  • 130 g vegan caramel or 1 batch of our 2 ingredient Easy Vegan Caramel Sauce

Instructions
 

Make the dough:

  • MELT THE MARGARINE and set it aside to allow it to cool to room temperature (or at least below 40°C).
    100 g of dairy free margarine
  • PROOF THE YEAST. In a jug or bowl, mix together the warm milk (at approximately 40°C), 1 tsp of sugar and yeast and set it aside for 10 minutes until it is frothy**.
    300 ml dairy free milk, 1 tsp sugar, 7 g dried yeast
  • MIX DRY INGREDIENTS. In a large bowl mix together the flour, 50g of sugar and tsp of salt, making sure there are no clumps in the sugar.
    500 g strong white bread flour, 50 g soft light brown sugar, 1 tsp salt
  • ADD WET INGREDIENTS. Add the yeast mixture and cooled melted margarine to the flour and mix it together into a dough. Make sure your margarine isn’t too hot when you add it, it should be 40°C or below.
  • KNEAD THE DOUGH for 7 minutes on a smooth, well floured surface. To ‘knead’ push the ball of dough across the surface with the heel of your hand and repeat this process for 7 minutes; it can be quite therapeutic!
    Tip: If the dough is too sticky to knead then add a sprinkling of flour as needed - don’t use too much, just enough to make the dough manageable.
  • 1ST RISE. Put the dough back in the bowl, cover and set it aside somewhere warm (but not hot) to prove for 60 to 90 minutes.
    Note: The proving time will depend on how warm your kitchen is but you’re aiming for your dough to have doubled in size - if you have a warm kitchen it will likely be 60 minutes, for a slightly cooler kitchen expect it to take 90 or so minutes.

Make the filling:

  • Whilst the dough is proving, make the apple filling.
  • ADD THE FILLING INGREDIENTS TO A SAUCEPAN. Add the apple chunks to a saucepan along with the brown sugar, cinnamon and a splash of water to stir everything together.
    6 medium eating apples, 200 g soft light brown sugar, 20 g ground cinnamon
  • SIMMER THE FILLING. Set the saucepan over a medium heat and simmer gently for around 20 minutes until the mixture is thick and sticky and all of the liquid has been absorbed/evaporated. Keep stirring to ensure the mixture is not sticking to the pan.
    Note: The time it takes for the apples to reach a thick, sticky consistency will vary depending on the water-content of your apple. If your apples have a higher water content it may take 25 minutes, if your apples have a lower water content it could take as little as 10-15 minutes, so keep an eye on the mixture and stir frequently.
  • COOL THE FILLING. Once the apple filling is ready, set it aside to cool fully before use.

Create the cinnamon buns:

  • ROLL OUT THE DOUGH. Once the dough has been proving for 60-90 minutes and has doubled in size, roll it out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle approximately 35 cm x 45 cm (14” x 18”) and around 1/2 cm (1/4”) thick.
  • MAKE A MARGARINE BORDER. Spread dairy free margarine around the outside edges of the rectangle to make a 2.5cm / 1” border.
    3 tbsp dairy free margarine + extra for greasing
  • ADD THE FILLING. Add the cold apple mixture*** into the centre of the dough and spread it out to (but not overlapping) the margarine border.
  • ROLL UP THE DOUGH. Starting from the long side of the rectangle, roll the dough up into a log as tightly as you can without the filling squidging out!
  • CUT INTO 12 ROLLS. Use a sharp knife to cut off the uneven ends and then cut the log into 12 cinnamon rolls (please see the recipe video for an example).
  • Grease a large baking dish (approx 20 cm x 35 cm / 8” x 14”) with dairy free margarine.
  • Place the cinnamon buns, with the swirly side up, in the baking dish so that they are just touching each other.
  • 2ND RISE. Cover the dish with a tea towel and set aside to prove for 45 minutes - 1 hour until they have nearly doubled in size again and are filling the baking dish.
  • BAKE. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan (200°C conventional / 400°F / gas mark 6) and then bake the buns for 18 minutes until golden on top. Prepare the sugar glaze whilst the buns are baking.

Glaze the buns:

  • Add the sugar and hot water to a small dish and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
    2 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp hot water
  • GLAZE. Brush the sugar glaze over the buns as soon as you take them out of the oven. Discard any excess sugar glaze.
  • Set aside the baking dish allowing the buns to cool in the dish.

To serve:

  • Serve the cinnamon buns warm drizzled with vegan caramel sauce. You’ll likely want to use a fork to enjoy them!
    130 g vegan caramel or 1 batch of our 2 ingredient Easy Vegan Caramel Sauce

Video

Notes

Vegan / Dairy Free / Egg Free
Recipe inspired by: UK/Sweden
* There is no need to peel the apples, just remove the cores and cut into small-ish pieces (approx 1cm / 0.5”).
** If the yeast mixture does not go frothy then this means that your yeast is not working and you’ll need to get a fresh batch.
*** Make sure the apple mixture is completely cold before adding it on top of the rolled out dough otherwise it’ll warm the dough up which will make it much harder to cut.
Please note:  This recipe was originally posted in December 2022 and was updated in March 2025.  The recipe video is based upon the original recipe.
Please check the allergens on the ingredients you purchase before use. The allergen information provided in this recipe is intended as a guide only and is based on the specific ingredients and brands used at the time of creating the recipe, therefore we cannot guarantee that the same will apply to the ingredients you use.
Prep time excludes any inactive time.
We highly recommend you use the metric and 1x options on this recipe card for the best results. Please note that this recipe has not been tested using US measurements or increasing ingredient quantities to 2x or 3x, therefore results may vary.

Nutrition

Calories: 388kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 353mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 38g | Net Carbohydrates: 69g
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