Vegan Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls

Method (rolls)

1. In a small saucepan on the hob over low heat, melt the butter.
2. Add the melted butter into a mixing bowl and add in the room temperature milk, sugar and dry yeast. Whisk to combine, then cover with a tea towel and set aside somewhere warm for 10 minutes. I like to place mine in my conservatory or near a pre-heating oven. Just somewhere where the bowl can warm up, but not in the oven. The mixture will froth up, as the yeast actives.
3. Sift in the flour, spices and salt.
4. Knead the dough until its smooth and when you press it, it bounces back. The dough should smooth out and become less tacky. I like to use a a stand mixer with a dough hook but you can do this with your hands on a floured surface. Don’t over knead or the rolls will be tough. If you need to add some more flour, add a a little bit in at a time to get it to a smooth, bouncy dough.
5. Form the dough into a ball and place into a lightly greased bowl. Cover and leave to proof in a warm place for 30 minutes – 1 hour or until doubled in size.
6. After 30 minutes, pre-heat the oven to 180° C fan. Grease a square or round dish with oil and set aside.
7. Turn the risen dough out on to a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a 16” x 24” rectangle. The thinner the dough, the more swirls you’ll get.

Method (filling)

1. In a small bowl, add in the butter and molasses. Whisk to combine, you want this smooth. Spread the butter over the dough, getting right into the edges. In a small bowl, add in the sugars and ground spices, stir to combine then sprinkle the spiced sugar mixture over the butter.
2. Working from the long edge, roll the dough into a large log, pinching the ends together so it stays together and doesn’t fall apart. Using string, cut the dough Watch the video tutorial here. This recipe makes approximately 10 rolls. Place the buns into greased dish. Leave a tiny bit of space between the buns, but they will puff up when they bake!
3. Cover the dish again with a tea towel and allow the buns to rise in a warm place for a further 20 minutes.
4. When they’re puffed up, brush the edges of the dough with some dairy-free milk and place into the middle of the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until risen and golden in colour.
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool while you make the frosting.

Method (cream cheese frosting)

1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, add in the cream cheese and butter and whisk until creamy. You can use a stand mixer with balloon whisk attachment or a electric hand whisk. You can even use a standard hand whisk for this.
2. Add in the icing sugar and vanilla. Whisk together until no clumps remain. If it’s too runny, add in more chunks of butter to get it to the right thick and creamy consistency.
3. If you want a glaze, drizzle over the buns while they’re warm. If you want the frosting to hold it’s shape on top of the buns, spread it on when the buns are cool.
4. Decorate the rolls with mini gingerbread men and a sprinkle of crushed gingerbread men (optional). You can even dust over some ground ginger or icing sugar to serve.