Healthy Overnight Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls are such a classic dessert/breakfast/brunch to have in the kitchen. These healthy overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls are just the recipe to have around. They have the fluffy, buttery cinnamon roll flavor, but have zero refined sugar and won’t leave you feeling heavy.

Coconut Oil vs. Butter

I’m starting here because besides having a healthy sourdough starter, I think your choice of fat makes the biggest difference in this recipe. I have successfully made these healthy overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls with butter and coconut oil. Butter gives a softer result, and personally, I love the buttery flavor of a cinnamon roll. Unless you are going for a vegan cinnamon roll and use coconut oil, I recommend grass-fed butter. I get the Kirkland brand from Costco. This is a higher-quality butter than regular butter. You’ll find that it has a deeper yellow color, because regular butter has been watered down.

The nutritional value is higher in grass-fed butter because the cows were fed grass–which is what they are meant to eat! Regular butter comes from grain-fed cows. This means that the cows were fed GMO grain (particularly corn and soybeans) which have been grown with round-up ready seeds. Basically, the seeds are treated with round-up before planting so as to avoid bugs eating the plants. Round-up is used to kill the bugs and not the plants, and I just can’t agree that this would be healthy for us to consume. Grass-fed butter is a much better option for the us, the cows, and the environment.

If you’d like to know more about GMOs and why we should avoid them, watch this video!

For vegan overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls, use coconut oil in this recipe instead of butter. This is the only substitution you’ll need to make in order for the entire recipe to be vegan.

Questions you may have:

Can I use sourdough discard for this recipe? I haven’t used sourdough discard for this particular recipe, but it should be okay to use as long as it hasn’t been more than a week since being fed. For best results, use active starter.

What if I don’t have monk fruit sweetener? Maple syrup can be used instead.

How do I give these cinnamon rolls a longer ferment time? These cinnamon rolls can have a 24 hour ferment time by making the dough 24 hours before and rolling out dough 12 hours later. Follow the same instructions for making the cinnamon rolls and placing in pan. Cover and refrigerate for an additional 8-12 hours overnight. Cinnamon rolls can be baked straight out of the fridge in preheated oven in the same way as instructed in original recipe.

What kind of pan should I use for baking? A 9×9 glass baking dish houses the nine cinnamon rolls very well and would be my first recommendation. You could also use a cookie sheet, placing the cinnamon rolls close together.

How do you store the cinnamon rolls? Store covered at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. As time goes on, they will harden somewhat. To restore the softness of the cinnamon rolls, microwave for 8-10 seconds on a plate.

Dough Ingredients

• Sourdough starter
• Unbleached All-purpose flour-choose the highest quality you can get. Look for flour that is unbleached and not bromated.
• Grass-fed butter-swap for coconut oil for vegan option.
• Non-dairy milk-if you’ve never tried homemade almond milk, you may like to try my easy recipe here.
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Monk fruit sweetener or Maple Syrup
• Sea Salt

Applesauce Cinnamon Filling

• Applesauce
• Coconut Sugar
• Cinnamon
• Chopped walnuts (optional)

Cashew Drizzle

• Soaked raw cashews
• Fresh lemon juice
• Maple syrup
• Vanilla
• Sea salt

Making Healthy Overnight Sourdough Cinnamon Roll Dough (and soaking cashews)

To begin making the dough for your healthy overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls, add sourdough starter, water, salt, monk fruit sweetener, almond milk, and apple cider vinegar to a bowl and mix well. Melt coconut oil or butter and cool slightly before adding to the rest of the wet ingredients. Heat is one thing that can kill a sourdough starter, so make sure not to add the melted oil or butter when it’s too hot.

Add the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until the dough becomes too hard to mix. Continue kneading together with your hands.

I always mix my doughs by hand, but this could also work in a stand mixer. I have found that I prefer cleaning my hands and a bowl instead of taking the time to get a mixer out with attachments. Mixing by hand also gives me the ability to feel the dough as I go, so I know when it is done mixing. Be careful not to overmix your dough, especially if using a stand mixer.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a damp towel and allow to rest overnight or for 8-12 hours.

After making the dough, place cashews for cashew cream drizzle in water to soak overnight.

The next morning, or when the dough has been fermenting for at least 8 hours, grease a 9×9 baking dish with butter or coconut oil.

When your dough is ready to roll, place on a clean surface and flatten into a rectangle that is about 12×12 inches. I don’t find it necessary to flour the surface as the butter in the dough prevents sticking. But if your dough is too sticky to roll, flouring your space is always an option.

Applesauce Cinnamon Filling

Prepare your applesauce filling by combining applesauce, coconut sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Spread the applesauce filling on the dough, keeping it away from the edge about 1/2 inch on all sides.

Gently, but tightly, roll the dough into one long roll. Cut into nine slices using dental floss. Slide the dental floss under the roll and curve up and around, squeezing the dough as you go. This will give you a nice clean cut for each slice. You should get 9-11 slices that are about 1/14 inch thick.

Place cinnamon roll slices into prepared baking dish, cover, and allow to rise for 1-2 hours.

20 minutes before rise time is up, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the tops of the cinnamon rolls are golden brown.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes before topping with cashew cream drizzle, and enjoy! If the cinnamon rolls won’t be consumed right away, I suggest glazing in individual portions, as the cinnamon rolls are eaten.

Cashew Cream Drizzle

While the cinnamon rolls are baking, prepare the cashew cream drizzle by placing soaked cashews, water, maple syrup, lemon juice, and sea salt in a high speed blender. An immersion blender also works here. Blend for 1-2 minutes until smooth, scraping sides as needed.

If you like using cashews in your recipes, you may like to try my Chocolate Cashew Chia Pudding or Vegan Strawberry Chia Pudding.

Healthy Overnight Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

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Cinnamon rolls are such a classic dessert/breakfast/brunch to have in the kitchen. These easy and delicious healthy overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls are just the recipe to have around.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Additional Time 12 hours

Total Time 12 hours 45 minutes

Ingredients

Dough

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sourdough starter
• 6 Tbsp butter, softened*
• 3/4 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp monk fruit and erythritol sweetener
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

Applesauce filling

• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans, optional

Cashew Cream Drizzle

• 1 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked 8-12 hours
• 4 Tbsp water
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. To a medium-sized bowl, add sourdough starter, almond milk, apple cider vinegar, butter, monk fruit sweetener, and sea salt. Stir until well incorporated.
2. Add the first 2 cups of flour and knead with hands until dough forms. Add the remaining flour if needed to make a dough that is just beyond the sticky point. Cover and let rest over 8-12 hours or overnight.
3. The next morning, on a clean surface, roll dough into a square about 12x12 inches. Mix together the ingredients for the applesauce cinnamon filling except the optional pecans and spread over the flattened dough, leaving about 1/2 inch on each side. If using pecans, sprinkle them over the applesauce filling.
4. Roll the dough carefully, but tightly into one long roll. Using dental floss, by sliding it under the dough roll, crossing it over top, and squeezing the dough as you go, cut 9-11 slices.
5. Place dough rolls into greased 9x9 baking dish, cover, and allow to rise 1-2 hours.
6. When dough is 20 minutes from completing its rise time, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
7. Bake cinnamon rolls for 30-35 minutes or until tops are golden brown.
8. While rolls are baking, combine the ingredients for the cashew cream drizzle and blend using a high speed blender or immersion blender. Blend 1-2 minutes, or until smooth. An immersion blender may take longer to achieve the desired consistency.
9. If cinnamon rolls are going to be consumed right away, top with cashew cream drizzle (you'll likely have some left over drizzle, but can add more as desired), and enjoy! If they will be consumed at a slower pace, use the cashew cream as needed. Store unused cashew cream in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The extra can be used as a dip if you'd like more cream to go with your cinnamon rolls.

Notes

*As a vegan option, use melted coconut oil in place of butter.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

9

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 474Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 294mgCarbohydrates: 58gFiber: 3gSugar: 22gProtein: 9g