These paleo pumpkin cinnamon rolls are made with cassava flour and pureed pumpkin and topped with a homemade icing. They're soft and tender on the inside with a sweet cinnamon and pumpkin flavor.

I haven't tested a whole lot of cinnamon roll recipes. In fact, this is only the second one on my blog (the other is my hazelnut cinnamon rolls). But I've had this recipe sitting in my "recipe testing" notebook for over a year and decided it was finally time to perfect the recipe and publish it for you all.

I definitely didn't hear any complaints from my family, as these pumpkin cinnamon rolls are SO good! They are slightly crisp on the outside with a gooey, soft center. They're not as doughy as a "normal" cinnamon roll, but you'll love that these are gluten, dairy, yeast and refined sugar free.

The dough is made in a mixing bowl, rolled between parchment paper and then topped with a cinnamon sugar filling. You'll cut the dough, roll it up and place it in a baking dish to bake.

Why You'll Love these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

paleo friendly - made with simple, wholesome ingredients you can feel good about
gluten free and nut free - made with cassava flour
dairy free - no milk, butter or cream in any part of these pumpkin cinnamon rolls

Close up of unfrosted pumpkin cinnamon rolls in baking dish.

Ingredients

The full recipe for these paleo pumpkin cinnamon rolls can be found in the recipe card below, but here's an overview of the ingredients you'll need:

cassava flour - these pumpkin cinnamon rolls are made with cassava flour. I have not tested any other flour, but a gluten free blend or all purpose flour may work as a 1:1 swap by weight.
tapioca starch - adds elasticity to the dough and gives the cinnamon rolls a better texture. The best swap is arrowroot starch.
coconut sugar - to sweeten the dough and the cinnamon sugar filling
cinnamon - for flavor, you can use pumpkin spice instead
baking powder and baking soda - for a rise in the dough
salt - brings out more flavor
pumpkin puree - since these are pumpkin cinnamon rolls!
palm shortening - I like using palm shortening in place of butter because it is dairy free and paleo friendly. If you tolerate dairy, then butter should be fine.
egg - needed to combine the ingredients and give the dough structure
vanilla extract - for flavor
powdered sugar - for refined sugar free and paleo options, use powdered monk fruit sweetener or powdered coconut s ugar.

Ingredients needed to make paleo pumpkin cinnamon rolls.

How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

The dough for these gluten free cinnamon rolls is made in a mixing bowl and then rolled between parchment paper. You'll spread the cinnamon sugar filling over the rolled dough, cut it into strips and then roll it up. The rolls are baked in the oven and then frosted! Here are the steps:

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8 inch baking dish with shortening or butter.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry dough ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the wet dough ingredients.

Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix with a fork or spatula. Then use your hands to knead the dough.

Dust the parchment paper and dough with tapioca starch. Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment, to about 9x13.5 inches.

Filling spread over the cinnamon roll dough.

Combine all ingredients for the filling, then spread it over the dough.

Cut dough that's being rolled into cinnamon rolls.

Cut the dough into strips. You should have 9 strips, each about 1.5 inches wide. Then roll it up.

Cinnamon rolls in baking dish, ready to bake.

Place the rolls in your greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Top down view of freshly baked cinnamon rolls.

After baking, let the cinnamon rolls cool for 10-15 minutes.

Once cooled, combine the ingredients for the frosting. Then spread the frosting over the cinnamon rolls.

Tips and Tricks

Use tapioca starch to roll the dough. The dough can get be a bit wet, so use tapioca starch to dust the dough when rolling it between the parchment paper.
Measure the length and width of the dough. To make sure you can get 9 cinnamon rolls, be sure to measure the length and width of your rolled dough. It should be 9 inches by 13.5 inches. Each roll will be 1.5 inches in width. (9x1.5 = 13.5)
Be careful cutting the dough. The dough is a little tricky to roll up, so carefully cut and roll it into the cinnamon roll shape.
Cool cinnamon rolls. Let the baked cinnamon rolls cool before adding the frosting or else it will melt.

Top down view of frosted cinnamon rolls.

Storage

Leftover cinnamon rolls are best kept in a sealed, airtight container in the fridge. They are best eaten within one week. For longer storage, feel free place them in a baggie in the freezer.