Vegan Raspberry Vanilla Sweet Rolls

I’ve always loved fluffy sweet rolls with fluffy frosting on top. Of course cinnamon rolls are the classic, it’s hard to beat a good cinnamon roll, but I love them with fruit in the filling as well. Especially for a lazy weekend morning you can’t go wrong with fresh sweet rolls. So last weekend when I was craving some I decided to make Vegan Strawberry Vanilla Sweet Rolls. 

 

 

I admit when I first started making sweet rolls back in the day the idea of having to use yeast intimidated me quite a bit but really it’s easy! You just have to wait for it to rise. With these, you can even make the dough, shape them into the pan and let them sit overnight in the refrigerator to make it easy the next morning. 

You just make the dough, let it rise, roll it out and fill it with jam, roll it up, cut it into rounds put it in the pan and if you are wanting to make it the next day you cover it and put it in the refrigerator overnight.  Then the next day when you want to bake it, you just take it out and let it sit at room temperature for an hour before baking.  Works out really well!  The dough for these is just sweet enough, and I scented it with vanilla. 

For the filling on these rolls, I used some of Eric's Dad's home made raspberry jam.  It is the perfect balance of tart and sweet. But of course, you can use your favorite raspberry jam.  These smelled amazing while baking!  Once they were all cooled I decided to frost them with a smooth, sweet raspberry vanilla buttercream frosting.  They were so heavenly!  The vanilla scented dough is soft and fluffy, the sweet jammy raspberries the perfect filling for it, and the creamy dreamy frosting just puts these over the top!  If you are in the mood for something delicious, definitely give these Vegan Raspberry Vanilla Sweet Rolls a try!

Vegan Raspberry Vanilla Sweet Rolls

Makes 12

Dough:

• 1/2 cup warm water ( 105-110F degrees)
• 1 packet active dry yeast (1/4 oz)
• 3/4 cup warm full fat coconut milk (I warmed it up on the stove)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 Tbsp ground flax seed, mixed with 3 Tbsp filtered water
• 3 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or as needed

Filling:

• 1 cup raspberry jam

Frosting:

• 2 sticks vegan butter (1 cup)
• 2 Tbsp plant based milk
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 Tbsp raspberry powder (freeze dried raspberries ground to powder)

Instructions:

1. To make the dough, combine the yeast and the warm water (about 110F degrees, you don't want to kill the yeast) plus a pinch of maple sugar and stir to dissolve. Let sit 5-10 minutes until it starts to foam.
2. In a large bowl, combine the coconut milk, sugar, vanilla extract, salt and flax mixture and mix together to combine.
3. Add the yeast, and 2 cups of flour and mix to combine.
4. Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour and mix until you have a smooth dough (you may need to use your hands at the end to mix it in).
5. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead for 5-10 minutes until smooth and supple. If it is too sticky add a little flour but you want to add as little as possible because if you add too much the dough gets tough.
6. Place in an oiled bowl, and cover. Let rise for about 1 1/2 hours until doubled in size.
7. When it is ready, turn out onto the counter or a board and roll out into a 9x15 inch rectangle.
8. Mix together the filling ingredients and spread it evenly over the dough.
9. Roll it up, then cut the roll into 12 pieces.
10. Oil an 8x8 inch square baking pan, and place them in the pan.
11. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.
12. Meanwhile heat the oven to 350F degrees.
13. When the rolls have risen for 45 minutes, place them in the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes until starting to brown and cooked through.
14. Remove from the oven and let cool 15 minutes.
15. Whisk the glaze ingredients together, adding a little bit more coconut milk if it seems too thick.
16. To make the frosting, beat the butter, milk and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth, then add the powdered sugar one cup at a time beating until smooth.  Spread over the rolls, and enjoy!

These keep covered at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerated for up to 1 week.