Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls: Fast and Full of Festive Flavor

With wholesome oats, naturally sweet raisins, and apple sauce, these Stovetop Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls are a quick budget-friendly cinnamon bun bites that perfectly celebrate the season and cook up quickly in a single frying/sautee pan without the mess or work you’d expect from cinnamon buns. Join me in making this delightful dessert that will have everyone asking for more!

Recipe Overview – Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

Short Recipe Video – Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

The Menu for Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

Are you looking for some WFPB Beverages for holiday cheer?
❄️🎄❄️🌱
Or maybe mains and side dishes to celebrate the holidays? Try Stovetop Green Bean Casserole, Creamed Cabbage and Meatloaf, Candied Brussels & Balsamic Beets Salad, Not-Chicken Parmesan, Cranberry Dream Sandwich (including Cranberry Jam, Mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Gravy, Stuffing, and Deli Turkey), Easy Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni, Creamy Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Quick & Simple Cabbage Rolls, Grandma’s Hearty Borscht, Cheesy Pumpkin & Sage Ravioli, Bolognese in a Hurry, Plant Based Pierogies, Mushroom Cacciatore or for more desserts try Stovetop Cheesecake, Pumpkin Spiced Blondie, Caramel Apple Crumble, Stovetop Banana Cream Hand Pies, Ginger Bread Cookies, Raisin Butter Tart, Fast-Freeze-No-Churn-No-Machine Ice Cream, or maybe even just some Oil-Free Popcorn?

Directions at a Glance for Stovetop Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

Note: If your oats or flaxseeds are whole then you’ll want to grind them before beginning.

1. Mix all the wet and dry ingredients for the batter, and try to get it as smooth as possible (I press a spoon to the bottom of the bowl as I mix the batter).
2. In a seasoned pan pour and spread your batter into a rectangular sheet about 1cm (3/8″) thick and as long and as wide as you can get it. I make mine about 23x18cm (9″x7″) for width and height, respectively. Cook on medium to medium-low heat.
3. Mix all the filling ingredients until it’s as smooth as possible. When the top side of the batter is no longer wet then cover it with the filling and sprinkle the raisins and diced apples over top.
4. Roll up the batter and cut it into equal sections. Place each roll standing up so the bottom will caramelize. Cook for 5 minutes on medium heat.
5. Mix your icing (blend it if you want it very smooth) and then either drizzle or even dip your cinnamon apple-raisin rolls directly in the icing.

Why This Recipe for Stovetop Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls?

Sure, there are lots of cinnamon rolls and cinnamon bun recipes online, and many “quick hacks” to make them on the stovetop in a pan. But unfortunately, they use pre-packaged cinnamon rolls, or require a large skillet with a lid, and if nothing else they all use a bunch of processed oils or worse. Not only that, but they are messy and require a lot of clean counter space or equipment.

I wanted to make something that has all the same flavors and feelings of a cinnamon roll/bun, but that was made without oil, or added salt or sugar and used only healthy ingredients.

The icing was a bit of a worry at first but using sun butter to replace the regular butter, apple sauce, and raisins for the sweetness, and oat flour and water to create a milk to bind it all together worked well and it’s a great healthy and affordable milk-butter icing alternative.

Have ideas for recipes or feedback? Let me know in the comments or connect with me on substack or Instagram!

Blending Without a Spice/Coffee Grinder

If you have oat flour and milled flaxseeds then you don’t need a blender or a grinder.

If you have whole oats or flaxseeds then any blender or food processor will work, but a spice or coffee grinder is recommended since it’s the fastest with the least mess and effort. See below if you want to use a stick blender which can also work (you can also blend the ingredients wet with the stick blender which would be recommended).

⭐The Full Stovetop Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls Recipe⭐

Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

Chef Rob

Quick & easy stovetop WFPB SOS-Free Cinnamon buns

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Comfort Food, Dessert, Junk Food, Sauce, Snack

Cuisine Swedish

Servings 4 portions

Calories 178 kcal

Equipment

• 1 Seasoned Steel or Cast Iron Pan (How-to Season Steel Cookware)
• 1 Spice / Coffee Grinder optional if not using oat flour and milled flaxseeds

Ingredients

  

BUN BATTER

• ½ cup oat flour
• 2 tbsp flax seeds milled
• 2 tbsp apple sauce
• 4 tbsp water
• 4 tbsp carbonated water

FILLING

• 1 tbsp sun butter (sunflower seed butter or other seed or nut butter, tahini is great too)
• ¼ cup apple sauce (see pro tips for other options)
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp raisins (optional)
• 2 tbsp apple diced (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla optional

ICING

• 3 tbsp oat flour
• 1 tbsp sun butter (or similar)
• 3 tbsp apple sauce
• 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

 

• Mix the oat flour and milled flaxseeds together well then add the apple sauce and water and mix everything together smoothing out any lumps with a spoon, whisk, or fork. Pour the batter into a seasoned pan on medium-low to medium heat and use a spoon to shape it into a rectangle (about 23x17x1cm, or 9"w7"h3/8"d).
  
• Mix the filling and when the top of the the batter in the pan is no longer wet/shiney then evenly spread the filling all over the top of the batter.
  
• Sprinkle your raisins and apples on top of the filling. Now roll it up by using a spatula or a spoon to peel and hold the batter in place as you roll. If it's too hot then use tongs.
  
• Slice the roll into equal sections, as long as you like, then place them bottom side down on medium heat to caramelize the bottom of the cinnamon bun.
  
• Finally, mix (or blend) your icing ingredients. Plate your cinnamon rolls and drizzle icing all over them, or just dunk them directly in the icing if you like.
  

Video

Keyword affordable vegan recipes, cheap vegan recipes, corn free, dairy free, desserts, easy, easy recipe, healthy, holiday meals, home made, homecooking, homemade, low glycemic index natural sweetner, no added salt, no added sugar, no added sugars, no bake, no coconut, no gluten free, no nuts free, no oil, no oil free, no sesame-free, no shellfish free, no sos, no soy, no treenuts free, nomad recipes, plant butter, rv recipes, sos-free, soy tofu free, super cheap plant based meals, sweet treat, top 8 allergy free, top 9 allergen free, vanlife, vegan, wfpb, wfpbno, wfpbnosos, wheat free, whole food plant based

🧂If you absolutely must add salt or sugar then try to add them to taste, to the top of the food, so you use less, and add in small amounts and only after tasting before adding any more. The same goes for other “less healthy” additions, but the idea should be to try to limit and eventually remove adding them, over time, when you are ready.

After a few weeks of not eating a SAD diet your tastebuds reset and you’ll notice and be surprised by the natural sugars and sodium in foods, check out the great article, and subscribe to, Michael Corthell on Substack.

💡Protips💡

Alternatives To Sun Butter

• If you don’t want to use sun (sunflower seed) butter then pumpkin seed butter (although will have some festive green) or tahini, or any other seed or nut butter should work. Play around, try peanut/almond/sun butter and cocoa powder, or maybe orange, raspberries, or cherries in place of the apples and or raisins.

Make The Icing Great!

Make It Smooth

• Whisk or mix your icing as much as you can to get it as smooth as possible.
• Use a fine mesh strainer to sift your oat flour and milled flaxseeds so you get a smoother icing.
• That all being said blending is best for the aesthetic look, but the icing will still taste great either way.

Cream Cheese Icing

• Add 2 tsp of white vinegar and 1 tsp of lemon juice to the icing to give it a cream cheese taste. (A pinch of celery seed will add to the fermented flavor and make it more cheesy).

Apple Sauce

Substitutes For Apple Sauce

• Instead of apple sauce, you can use ripe mashed bananas, or raisin syrup paste date syrup or paste is another option. You can also blend the oats directly with raisins like I do in the Caramel Apple Crumble in the spice grinder.
• I use brown flax but golden flax should work too. I use raw untoasted flax since I can toast it myself and I won’t be doing it with industrial equipment at high temperatures for short times.
• The measurements are for pre-ground / milled flaxseeds.

Make It Fresh

• Apple sauce is pretty affordable and usually just has one ingredient: apples (maybe citric acid / lemon juice). If you can’t find it without sugar or additives, or if you have a lot of extra apples, then it’s very easy to make at home. Simply boil diced apples (about 1 cup of water for every 4 apples) until the apples are mostly mush. Mash them with a fork or blend them with any type of blending gadget. I add 1 tbsp of lemon juice to keep them from browning.

Make It Sweeter

• If it’s not sweet enough then feel free to add more raisins, raisin syrup paste or dates, mashed banana, or other wfpb sweeteners you like (fresh or dried fruit is best)

Wet Spatula For Easy Flipping

• I’ve mentioned this before, but if your spatula is a bit damp when you go to lift your food from a pan then the heat creates a layer of steam that keeps the food from sticking to the spatula.

Blenders, Food Processors, and Immersion Blenders

If you don’t have a spice or coffee grinder then check out the alternative blending section for how to create this recipe with almost any blending device.

No Equipment At All

• If you have oat flour and milled flaxseeds then all you need is a seasoned pan and a spatula.

Nutrition Facts Table – Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls

The Science – Sources

Please tell me how it turned out! Did you: try it, like it, hate it, change it, or do something else unexpected???

If I’ve made any mistakes, or something doesn’t make sense, or if you want more/less details, please let me know in the comments.

Stay healthy and nourished! Happy cooking!

Chef Robert Leigh.

Cinnamon Apple-Raisin Rolls: Fast and Full of Festive Flavor