These fluffy banana cinnamon rolls are definitely the perfect brunch item for any occasion. Plenty of options to make dairy-free and vegan-friendly as well! No eggs needed in this recipe!
This post is sponsored in partnership with Bob’s Red Mill. Thank you for supporting the brands that help me bring you delicious new recipes! As always, all opinions expressed are my own.
THE CINNAMON ROLLS OF MY DREAMS.
I’m talking BANANA cinnamon rolls. Hopefully you’re banana-obsessed like me and on board with this. I’ve made these three times already and they’re almost too good to be true.
Even Mr. FMK really likes them and THAT my friends, is a big freaking deal. He prefers that I don’t “mess with” classic recipes such as cinnamon rolls. But with these he didn’t even seem to notice that I lightened things up a tad compared to a traditional cinnamon roll recipe. So let’s just keep that between us, mmk?
I’ve been dreaming up this cinnamon roll recipe for ages and it’s about dang time I bring you the recipe so you can understand just how delicious these guys really are.
The BEST Most Amazing Banana Cinnamon Rolls
I am forcing my banana loving ways on you in hopes that you’ll make this epic cinnamon roll recipe the next time your morning needs a special treat.
And I want to go through some steps for you so you can see just how simple baking cinnamon rolls really is.
Don’t be afraid of yeast, my friends!
Bob’s Red Mill Bread Flour
We’re using Bob’s Red Mill Artisan Bread Flour in this recipe to produce the fluffiest, most delicious cinnamon rolls.
If you haven’t made cinnamon rolls with bread flour you’re in for a real treat… IT’S SO FLUFFY <– Name that movie.
Bob’s Red Mill is my go-to for all of my flour baking needs – they product the highest quality products that you can always trust to give you the best baked goods ever.
And these cinnamon rolls with bread flour are no exception. They are AMAZING.
How to Make Banana Cinnamon Roll Dough
Start with proofing the yeast – you do this by combining sugar, yeast and warm milk and let it sit for about 10 minutes, until the top is foamy.
If the mixture did not get foamy, your yeast is not active. So make sure you’re not pulling old yeast packets out from months and months ago – check the dates.
Then for this recipe you’ll then add the banana puree and melted butter, then stir in the flour (and touch of salt) about 1/2 cup at a time. The dough will start to come together around the 3 cup mark. You’ll know it’s time for the dough hook when the dough looks elastic and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Next I change to the dough hook attachment and knead the dough for about 5 minutes. You’ll need to add more flour here as well when dough begins to ball up but likely stick to the bottom. I add about 2 tablespoons at a time, take the dough off the hook to reshape and then place back in the bowl to continue kneading.
Once you’ve kneaded the dough for 5 minutes, it needs to rise in a draft-free environment.
TIP: Set the oven to 200ºF, turn off once it reaches temperature and let the dough rise in a greased bowl until it doubles in size – about 45 minutes.
Now it’s time to ROLL OUT. (Ludacris, anyone?)
Just be gentle as you roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about 15 inches long by 9 inches wide.
Then the filling goes on and you’ll roll up the rectangle into a long roll to slice the cinnamon rolls.
I like to trim off the ends a little bit and then cut into 12 slices.
The Best Technique for Slicing Cinnamon Rolls
The floss method!
Trust me, it’s so easy and you won’t run the risk of smushing your dough roll as you try to cut into it.
The way you use floss is to shimmy the floss under the log, pull the floss together towards each other in the center and pull down until you’ve cut the roll.
Baking the Cinnamon Rolls
Make sure you leave enough room in your baking dish for the rolls to rise again. I spread mine out just a little bit so as you wait for the second rise, they don’t overcrowd each other.
Bake the cinnamon rolls until the tops are lightly golden and when you push them they kind of spring back a little bit. Check the rolls half way through baking and if the tops are browning too quickly, cover the cinnamon rolls with foil for the last 10 minutes of baking.
Overnight Cinnamon Rolls Method
If you’re looking to have fresh cinnamon rolls in the morning but don’t want to be up super early, you can prep the recipe up until you’ve sliced the dough and placed in the baking pan. Then you just cover and place in the fridge overnight. Bring the pan out of the fridge about an 45 minutes before pre-heating the oven. Then place the rolls in the preheated oven and bake for about 25-35 minutes.
These banana cinnamon rolls are:
- Light and fluffy.
- Banana-y (obviously) thanks to the banana used in the dough AND in the filling.
- Lightly spiced with nutmeg (can’t help myself but feel free to omit if you don’t like nutmeg).
- Delicious topped with cream cheese frosting – Obviously, right?
Vegan Substitutions
This recipe is already egg-free and is vegan friendly using plant based butter and plant based cream cheese (i.e. Kite Hill, Miyoko’s, etc.)
Let me know if you try this recipe by leaving a comment and review on the blog – it helps other readers learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley
PrintFluffy Banana Cinnamon Rolls
These fluffy banana cinnamon rolls are definitely the perfect brunch item for any occasion. A lightened up filling but full of flavor. An egg-free recipe and options to make vegan friendly with two simple ingredient swaps.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 cinnamon rolls 1x
- Category: breakfast
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
DOUGH
- 1 cup milk of cashew milk (or your choice of milk)
- 2.25 teaspoons rapid rise yeast (1 packet)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, vegan butter or coconut oil, melted & cooled
- 2 medium bananas, equal to 3/4 cup mashed
- 3.5– 4 cups Bob’s Red Mill Artisan Bread Flour* (see notes)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
FILLING
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter or vegan butter, softened
- 1/4 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 medium bananas, thinly sliced into about 30 slices
FROSTING
- 5 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons milk or greek yogurt, to thin as needed
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a microwave safe bowl or glass measuring cup, heat milk for about 20-30 seconds. Allow temperature of mixture to reach 110ºF (or lukewarm). If it’s too hot it will kill the yeast. Add yeast and sugar into large mixing bowl of stand mixer and gently add milk. Stir until combined and allow to sit for 10 minutes, until top is foamy. If your mixture doesn’t get foamy, the yeast did not activate.
- Once the milk and yeast mixture is foamy, add melted butter and mashed banana mixing low speed until combined. Start to add flour, salt, and nutmeg if using – about ½ cup at a time. You will likely need about 3 1/2 cups. Dough should be elastic and start to pull away from edge of bowl when it is ready. At this time, change the attachment to the dough hook, and allow the hook to knead the dough on low speed for about 5 minutes. Dough should remain soft but not overly sticky – this is typically where I add another 1/4 cup of flour with the mixer running, then stop the mixer once the flour has mixed in slightly, reposition the dough and start the mixer again.
- Oil large bowl and shape dough into ball, place dough in bowl and cover with towel and let rise in warm environment until dough has doubled in size, about 45 minutes. TIP: set oven to warm or preheated to 200F then turn off. Place bowl in the warmed oven and allow to rise.
- Grease a 9×13″ baking dish with butter or coconut oil, set aside. Once the dough has about doubled in size, lightly cover rolling pin and flat surface with flour. Roll out dough into a 15×9 inch rectangle. Be patient, and roll gently. Don’t use too much flour or your dough will be stiff. Spread on softened butter, sprinkle sugar and spices; gently pat to let sugar absorb into butter slightly. Place sliced bananas flat on dough in 3 long rows (see picture in post). Using the heels of your hands and thumbs, gently roll dough into a long roll, placing seam side down. Use floss method to slice rolls (this video helps for a visual) or a serrated knife to gently cut into about 1 1/2″ width. You should get about 12 rolls for a 9×13 pan. Place rolls in greased pan, leaving room to rise, and put pan in draft-free environment. You can use the warm oven tip above. See notes below for overnight adaptation.
- Once the rolls have risen again slightly (about 15 minutes), preheat oven to 350ºF (take rolls out and wait for oven to get up to 350ºF). Bake cinnamon rolls for 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Then, if necessary, cover top of rolls with foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Covering the rolls for the last 5-10 minutes will prevent them from getting too brown on the top.
- Make the cream cheese frosting: In medium bowl using electric hand mixer (or stand mixer with paddle attachment) beat softened cream cheese and yogurt until light and fluffy. Add in extract and powdered sugar; mix on low speed until combined. Spread on slightly cooled banana cinnamon rolls. Best served warm – enjoy!
Notes
FLOUR: If you don’t have bread flour, you can sub unbleached all-purpose flour. Or whole wheat pastry flour, which will work but you’ll only need about 3.5 cups total, and your rolls will be more dense.
TO MAKE DAIRY-FREE: Use vegan butter or coconut oil in cinnamon roll dough, vegan butter in filling, and sub dairy-free cream cheese and dairy-free milk for frosting.
*Nutrition info approximate, does not include cream cheese frosting. This recipe adapted from my gingerbread cinnamon rolls.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/12
- Calories: 318
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 145
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 47g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 8g
- Cholesterol: 30mg
Keywords: healthier cinnamon rolls, bread flour cinnamon rolls, banana cinnamon rolls
Brittany Audra @ Audra's Appetite says
Love the idea of prepping this the night before! Homemade cinnamon rolls just scream Christmastime to me 🙂
Emma says
Hi! Do you have to add in the bananas to the dough or can you just remove it? Thanks
Ashley says
The banana puree makes up for part of the wet ingredients, so that cannot be removed. The banana slices can be omitted though. Hope that helps!
Garth says
Do these freeze well? How long do they keep?
★★★★★
Ashley says
I imagine that fresh rolls would freeze well if tightly wrapped and stored. Likely best used within 1-2 months.
Janaina Cardoso says
This is the most amazing and fluffiest cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made!!!
Super easy recipe to follow
Amazing!!!
Thank you!!!
Deepa says
These were amazing! And what a great way to use bananas. Thanks to your instructions and encouragement, I felt like it was possible for me to conquer making cinnamon rolls from scratch! And they turned out!
I used a plain icing sugar, plant milk combo for the icing as I didn’t have vegan cream cheese and it turned out great.
Thank you, Ashley! Will definitely be making these again.
★★★★★
Ashley says
Awesome!! Thanks so much for sharing your success story, Deepa! I appreciate you taking the time to comment and leave a review 😀
Maria says
This was my first attempt at cinnamon rolls and the recipe walked through each step with grea
t detail. They were delicious and very banana-y (great, if that’s what you’re looking for).
★★★★★
Ingrid says
This recipe was so easy it really blew me away!!!! I was lucky I had ALL ingredients available and it made the perfect treat for Easter. Thank you for your perfect easy step by step. I can’t wait to make these for my daughter
★★★★★
Beth says
Can I substitute gluten free flour for bread flour?
Ashley says
I’m afraid the recipe won’t work the same with a gluten free flour. I haven’t tried baking gluten free cinnamon rolls yet!
Tori Unger says
I like to think I’m a good baker and bake pretty often but I’ve never made cinnamon rolls because they seem so intimidating. This recipe and the accompanying instructions really made it as easy as possible to learn and do it right! I loved this unique take with bananas added and following the instructions precisely (minus a less skillful floss method) they came out perfect. Super fluffy, soft and tasty. Will definitely make these again!
★★★★★
Jo Lutmerding says
These are delicious! Very decadent and makes a lot, will hopefully not eat them all today.
★★★★★
Ashley says
So glad you like! Thanks for sharing 🙂