If you are a fan of the Italian Christmas cake panettone, then you will enjoy these Vegan Panettone Cinnamon Rolls! They are soft, fluffy, richly spiced and filled with dried fruits just like the traditional cake.
Hi buddies and happy Thursday! I am so excited to be sharing this recipe for Vegan Panettone Cinnamon Rolls with y'all today. This is a recipe that I've been sitting on for almost a YEAR, and I was so pumped to finally make it and publish it. Honestly, these panettone cinnamon rolls were everything I wanted and more! You have fluffy, rich dough flavored with Fiori di Sicilia and studded with raisins and candied orange peel. Then it's filled with an orange zest-cinnamon sugar butter and baked to golden brown perfection. And THEN - of course it had to be topped with an orange glaze! All in all these rolls seriously taste like Christmas!
If you're over here thinking "What in the world is Panettone?!" then let me catch you up! It's a traditional Italian Christmas cake that is flavored with orange extract and filled with all sorts of candied and dried fruits. It's then enjoyed, really, all December long as a breakfast treat and a snack! Nowadays it is super common and easy to find - I see it at the grocery store, when I go to TJ Maxx, and it has even been an option in my Imperfect Foods box for the past couple of weeks! The only problem is, panettone dough is usually enriched with eggs and dairy so finding a vegan version is akin to finding a unicorn. And making an ACTUAL panettone from scratch was not in the cards - been there, done that. And the store-bought one still tasted better TBH. ???? Panettone cinnamon rolls were the perfect compromise!
What do I need to make panettone cinnamon rolls?
- Thankfully, cinnamon rolls in general are simple and require basically NO special equipment - just a big pot to melt down the butter and sugar! I always use my biggest enameled cast iron pot so that I can just do everything in one place. Melt down the ingredients, mix up the dough, and let it rest overnight... all in the same dish!
- The specialty "items" you do need are more in terms of the ingredients. I would say that Fiori Di Sicilia extract is non-negotiable for that authentic panettone taste, but if you can't get your hands on it, you can add orange, lemon, and vanilla extract instead. It won't be the same but it will be pretty close.
- I am not usually a big fan of dried fruit, but it is a must in these panettone cinnamon rolls! I used candied orange peel and mixed jumbo raisins. Feel free to add more dried fruit to your preference. My favorite "non-traditional" panettone is chocolate chip, so you could sub chocolate in place of the dried fruit, too!
Tips for success:
- Give yourself enough time! You can't rush yeast dough, and you want to be sure that it has enough time to leaven to soft, fluffy, irresistible perfection. I recommend starting the night before so that the dough has all night to proof undisturbed!
- Choose high quality ingredients. Because this is such a simply flavored recipe, the ingredients you choose will really shine! I recommend King Arthur Flour Fiori Di Sicilia extract and SunMaid jumbo raisins. Also because we are using orange zest, you will want to wash your oranges really well and/or choose organic! You can take the shortcut and buy the cheaper stuff, but the rolls won't be the same.
- Don't be scared of the fat. That is what makes these rolls so good and decadent! I went with a higher fat option than usual for these panettone cinnamon rolls, and used melted vegan butter and canned coconut milk in place of vegetable oil and almond/cashew milk. It really does help in making these rolls super rich.
I hope you guys will give these panettone cinnamon rolls a try! They are seriously so delicious and taste like the winter holidays. They do require a bit of work, but I promise they are so much easier than making your own panettone from scratch. LOL.
If you're wanting more panettone inspiration, check out my Panettone French Toast Casserole and Chocolate Orange Panettone Tiramisu! These Pandoro Truffles are also a fun treat 🙂
- *for the rolls*
- 1 cup canned full fat coconut milk
- ¼ cup vegan butter, melted (or coconut oil)
- 2 cups white flour {+ ½ cup, separated}
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar
- ½ tablespoon instant active dry yeast {about ½ a package}
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Fiori Di Sicilia flavoring
- ¼ cup candied orange peel cubes
- ½ cup jumbo raisins
- *for the filling*
- ½ cup softened butter, vegan butter, or coconut oil
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- zest of 1 orange
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Fiori Di Sicilia
- *for the glaze*
- juice of 1 orange
- 1 - 1¼ cups powdered sugar, as needed for right consistency
- In a large nonstick pot, combine the coconut milk, vegan butter, and ¼ cup of sugar. Heat up to about 120F {warmer than body temperature but NOT burning hot} over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegan butter and the sugar have melted. Then remove from burner and sprinkle the yeast on top. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes to allow the yeast to activate.
- Afterwards, mix in the 2 cups of flour, cover the pot with a clean tea towel, and let the dough rise for about 1 hour.
- After the first rise, add in the salt, baking powder, baking soda, Fiori Di Sicilia, and additional flour. Knead until all the flour has been absorbed, and add more if needed. You want the dough to be soft and smooth but not too sticky! Using a sharp knife, cut an X on top of your dough {this helps it rise }, cover with a tea towel again, and let rise for an additional 3+ hours. You can let it rise overnight at this point.
- After the second rise, lightly flour a clean surface, and dump the dough on top. Sprinkle the orange peel pieces and raisins on top, and work them in. Knead it for 2-3 minutes, adding more flour as needed. The dough should be smooth and easy to work with, so add flour if it's too sticky!
- Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a rough rectangle, making sure you don't roll it out too thin (somewhere between ½-¼ inch).
- To make the filling, in a small bowl combine the softened butter with the brown sugar, orange zest, cinnamon, and Fiori Di Sicilia. Stir until you have a smooth mixture, and spread all over the prepared dough.
- Starting on the long side closest to you, roll up the dough.
- Using a large, smooth knife, cut 1½-2 inch slices of dough, and place them in a greased 8x8 pan (or cast iron skillet). Make sure to leave some space between the rolls to allow them to rise more!
- At this point, cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the rolls rise for 30 more minutes in a warm place.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375F. Bake the rolls 30-35 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and no longer doughy.
- While the rolls cook, make the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and orange juice. Add in more powdered sugar as needed to make a thick glaze. You can add a smidge of nondairy milk or more orange juice if it becomes too thick. Add a sprinkle of salt.
- Let rolls cool slightly, then top with the glaze and enjoy!
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Jessica Bailey says
These look delicious! I wonder if I could use almond flour to make them gluten free vegan cinnamon rolls?
valentina says
Hi Jessica! Because this is a yeast dough, I would recommend using a cup per cup GF substitute rather than all almond flour! You want the rolls to come out light and fluffy. A lot of my readers recommend Cup4Cup, King Arthur Flour, or Bob's Red Mill brands of GF flour replacer 🙂 Let me know what you end up doing!