Vegan Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Rolls (No Egg and No Butter)

Wow I am soooo genuinely excited about this recipe. This came together completely as an accident. We had an excess of apples, and of course I wanted to incorporate them in some sort of bread recipe. I knew that many cake and cookie recipes use applesauce as a substitute for eggs, and I was curious to see whether the substitution worked in enriched doughs as well. I thought the experiment would work but didn't have extremely high hopes, I mean how can you replace delicious creamy eggs with apples? Man was I wrong, the result was absolutely incredible and I’m so happy to be able to share it with you! 

Because there’s no egg and butter in this recipe, the apple sauce, honey and oil act as a gluten tenderizer and this is why the resulting bread is soft and spongey with that brioche-like texture you expect from a cinnamon roll. 

Full disclosure this recipe has A LOT of sugar, they are cinnamon rolls after all. Please don’t look at these as a healthy treat, these are still cinnamon rolls, just vegan. You can attempt to make these with less sugar but I can’t guarantee the results as I’ve never attempted them with less.

I created my own unsweetened applesauce, for this recipe, but you can use store-bought if you prefer or have some on hand. The recipe for applesauce, apple filling and cinnamon sugar can be found under the full dough instructions. 

Hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as do! It passed the friend and boyfriend test and they couldn’t even tell that there was no butter or eggs. 

Ingredients 

Dough 

Quantity	Ingredients	Baker’s %
60 grams	Active Sourdough starter (100% Hydration)	13%
83 grams	Water	18%
130 grams	Unsweetened apple sauce	28%
85 g	Honey or maple syrup	18%
74 grams	Vegetable Oil	16%
7 grams	Vanilla	1.5%
90 grams	Bread flour	20%
45 grams	Whole wheat flour	10%
317 grams	All-purpose flour	70%
6 grams	Salt	1.3%

***The whole wheat flour lends this bread a bit of nuttiness, and the bread flour adds strength and structure. If you don’t have either, feel free to use all all-purpose flour.

Instructions 

Mix Dough 

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flours, and salt. Set aside.

Combine active sourdough starter, water, unsweetened apple sauce, honey, vegetable oil, and vanilla into the bowl of a mixer. Using paddle attachment, mix ingredients until fully combined. 

Add flour into bowl of mixer, working little by little until all of the flour has been added and hydrated. 

Switch to bread hook attachment and knead for 5 to 10 minutes until dough is only slightly tacky, not excessively sticky. 

Cover bowl and allow to rest for 30 minutes. This rest period will allow the dough to be easier to knead later on. 

Knead dough for 5 to 10 minutes, until the dough feels strong, and passes the windowpane test. 

Gather dough up into a ball. Place in a lightly greased airtight container (or bowl covered with plastic wrap). 

Bulk Fermentation 

Allow to ferment at room temperature until the dough has visibly increased in size. At least 4 hours to overnight.

***The time for bulk fermentation will vary depending on the temperature in your room (my kitchen was cold so it took my dough a full day to rise and it did not dramatically double but was airy and light).

Shape and Proof

Once the dough has adequately fermented, turn it out onto a clean, lightly-floured surface.

Roll the dough out into a 24 x 8 inch (60 x 20 cm) rectangle with the longest side facing you. 

Spread cinnamon sugar mixture evenly onto the dough, leaving a 1 inch (2.5 cm) margin on all sides. 

Top with apple mixture and walnuts. 

Roll the dough into a long log and cut it into 12 slices. 

Place rolls into  a parchment-lined 9x13 inch (22x33 cm) baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent dough from drying out. Allow to proof for 2 to 4 hours.

Bake

Once the dough looks risen and puffy, preheat oven to 375 F (190 C). 

Place rolls into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until rolls are golden and internal temperature registers at 190 F (87 C).  

Once baked, place on top of a wire rack and allow to cool. Serve immediately, these are best enjoyed warm. 

Enjoy!!! 

 Apple Sauce

Quantity	Ingredients
3	Apples (medium-sized, cored, peeled and quartered)
60 grams	Water

Combine water and apples in a small pot, cook over medium heat until apples are completely soft (about 20 mins). 

Mash apples until consistency resembles apple sauce. Set aside and cool completely before adding to the rest of the dough ingredients.

***To be safe, the temperature of apples should  not exceed 90 F (37 C) or it might kill the yeast in your starter

Apple Filling

Quantity	Ingredients
3	Apples (medium-sized, cored, peeled and diced)
½ teaspoon	Clove
½ teaspoon	Ground ginger
2 teaspoons	Cinnamon
50 grams	Granulated sugar

Combine ingredients in a small pot and cook until soft. 

Allow to cool completely before adding to the dough. 

Cinnamon Sugar

Quantity	Ingredients
70 grams	Granulated sugar
130 grams	Brown sugar
42 grams	Vegan butter spread, melted (or butter if you’re not vegan)
¼ teaspoon	Nutmeg (optional)
½ teaspoon	Ground ginger (optional)
2 teaspoons	Cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon	Clove (optional)
70 g	Walnuts (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, set aside until ready to use. 

***Omit walnuts if you are allergic or if you do not want to use them.

Please share this recipe if you enjoyed it! Remember to post a photo and tag me @makeitdough when you make this delicious recipe, so I can check out your bake