This is my idea of the perfect cinnamon roll: soft and fluffy, filled with cinnamon and sugar with a gooey, caramelized and slightly crispy base and topped with plenty of cream cheese icing.

While there are a few steps to this recipe, they are pretty easy steps and it's so worth it! People have told me these are the best cinnamon buns they've ever had; vegan or not. And, every time I make them, I get asked for the recipe. Now finally, here it is!

VEGAN CINNAMON ROLLS WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING RECIPE
Click here for the printable recipe and full story: http://www.marystestkitchen.com/vegan-cinnamon-rolls-cream-cheese-icing/
Makes 12 cinnamon rolls

INGREDIENTS

For the Dough:
3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted [710cc]
1 cup warm soy milk (or your favourite plant-based milk) [236ml]
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (instant or traditional) [11cc]
3 tablespoons melted Earth Balance Buttery Spread (or favourite vegan butter) [44ml]
3 tablespoons sugar (white or brown) [44cc]
1/4 teaspoon salt [1.23cc]

For the Filling:
2 tablespoons Earth Balance, room temperature [30cc]
1 heaping tablespoon ground cinnamon [15+cc]
Optional: a few tablespoons of brown sugar

For the "Goo":
1/3 cup Earth Balance [79ml]
1/2 cup brown sugar [118cc]
3 tablespoons golden syrup, agave, or other thick syrup [44ml]

For the Icing:
1/2 cup Earth Balance, room temperature [118ml]
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese [118ml]
2 cups icing sugar [473cc]
1 teaspoon vanilla extract [5cc]

DIRECTIONS

For the Dough:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the warm soy (or other) milk, yeast and sugar. Whisk well and set aside for 5 minutes for the yeast to bloom.

Add 3 tablespoons of melted Earth Balance (or other type of vegan butter) and salt and stir well.

Add one cup of flour and stir until fully incorporated. Repeat with a second cup of flour.

Add one half cup of flour and work it into a dough.

Knead the dough until it's smooth, adding flour to keep it from sticking.

Cover the dough with a large bowl or damp towel and let sit for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Flatten the dough, knocking the air out of it.

Use a rolling pin to shape it into a rectangle about 18" long or 46cm. It should be just less than half inch thick or 1 cm.

Using 2 tablespoons of room temperature vegan butter, cover the top of the dough but leave a 2" (5cm) strip along one of the long sides of the dough.

Sprinkle the brown sugar over the vegan butter evenly and press it into the dough.
Sprinkle the cinnamon over the sugar.

To make the rolls:
Starting at the sugar coated side of the dough, fold 1" of the edge over firmly, pinching it down.

Roll the dough tightly but gently towards the uncoated side. Sit the roll on top of the seam.

Cut the roll into 1.5" (4cm) sections.

Place the pieces into your baking pan, lined with parchment paper for easy clean-up, with the cut side down.
Cover with flour-coated plastic or a damp towel and let rise in a warm location for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Make the "goo":
After the rolls are nearly doubled in size, preheat your oven to 400°F (204.4°C).

In a saucepan, combine 1/3 cup vegan butter, 1/2 cup sugar, and 3 tablespoons of golden syrup. Stir over medium heat until the sugar is mostly dissolved.

Bake the cinnamon rolls:
Spoon the goo over and between the rolls. You may also lift the rolls to get the goo on the bottom.

In your preheated oven, bake for 15-18 minutes or until the rolls are golden on top. Do not over bake! Let cool a bit before icing.

Make the icing:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the vegan cream cheese, 1/2 cup room temperature vegan butter, vanilla and icing sugar.

Mix slowly at first to incorporate the icing sugar, then beat quickly until smooth.

Spread the icing on the cinnamon buns before serving.

NOTES
My favourite vegan butter alternative for this recipe is Earth Balance (duh), but you can substitute any hard vegan butter. Note that Becel's Vegan Margarine does NOT work well for this. For a DIY version try this recipe: http://www.veganbaking.net/recipes/fats/vegan-butters/vegan-butter

I prefer to use store-bought vegan cream cheese like Daiya or Tofutti for this recipe since there are already so many steps. If you can't get any, try this DIY recipe: http://www.veganbaking.net/recipes/sauces-syrups-spreads/spreads/creamy-cashew-cream-cheese

Finally, YES this recipe contains a bunch of sugar and fat. It's meant to. :-) However, feel free to cut down the sugar, especially in the dough and filling. You can probably get away with reducing the sugar by one third. However, for the goo, it's important to keep the ratio of ingredients for the goo to form properly.

You can freeze these cinnamon rolls! Top them with icing and let them cool completely before storing in an air tight container. If you take the frozen rolls out of the freezer in the morning and store them in the refrigerator, they should be defrosted by the evening. Then you can serve them cold or heated up.