These keto cinnamon rolls are the ultimate comfort food. They taste so good it's hard to believe they are sugar free, grain free, gluten free and come in at only 1.3 net carbs per roll!
These sugar free cinnamon rolls are one of the most popular keto breakfast recipes on my website. Over the years, the recipe has been shared over 200 000 times and it has many 5-star reviews by readers, such as this one:
"These are the best cinnamon rolls I have ever tried! Thank you!" (Merja)
I have just updated the post with more tips, tricks and details to make sure the rolls turn out perfectly every single time. The recipe itself has not changed at all - it was perfect all along!
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Why I Love This Recipe
The aroma. When you bake them, your kitchen fills with gorgeous warm cinnamon scent. To me, it smells like happiness!
The texture & taste. My cinnamon rolls are soft and chewy, just like good cinnamon rolls should be. The sweet cinnamon swirl adds wonderfully gooey goodness.
The genius keto ingredients. This keto cinnamon rolls recipe uses the famous "Holy Grail of Keto dough", which contains mozzarella cheese as a base. It was originally conceived as a pizza base. But, with a few tweaks it makes a brilliant dough for sweet pastry as well. By using mozzarella dough and sweetener instead of wheat and sugar, each cinnamon bun is only 1.3g net carbs.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need for low-carb cinnamon rolls:
- Shredded mozzarella - This recipe works best with low moisture pre-shredded mozzarella from the supermarket. Fresh mozzarella contains too much liquid and is too runny. You can also use a (firm) mozzarella block and grate it yourself.
- Almond flour - I used extra fine almond flour. If you are using almond meal or ground almonds, add an additional 2 tablespoons. Or, add one additional tablespoon of coconut flour.
- Cream cheese - should be full fat.
- Egg - large and room temperature
- Baking powder
For the filling:
- Water (or butter) - I preferred the version with water, but both work well.
- Granulated sweetener - I like a golden erythritol monk fruit sweetener blend here, such as Lakanto Gold. It has a taste very similar to brown sugar that works great with cinnamon. You can also use Swerve, xylitol, Bocha Sweet or allulose.
- Cinnamon
For the cream cheese frosting:
- Cream cheese
- Greek yogurt - or use more cream cheese or softened butter
- Vanilla stevia - or powdered sweetener
Instructions
This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
Step 1: Melt the mozzarella and the cream cheese in a large bowl in the microwave. Or, melt it in a non-stick pot on the stovetop over low heat.
The mixture must be melted but not bubbling hot. We don't want to cook the egg! Add the egg and stir with a spatula until combined.
Step 2: Add the dry ingredients - almond flour and baking powder - to the mixture. Continue mixing with the spatula. Then knead with your hands until a smooth dough forms.
Step 3: Form 6 dough balls.
Step 4: Roll each dough ball into a log...
Step 5: ...flatten the log with your hands. Then, spread the cinnamon filling on top and roll up.
Step 6: Cut each roll in half with a sharp knife.
Step 7: Place the cinnamon rolls in a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Make sure you leave space between the rolls so they can expand during baking.
Bake in the preheated oven until golden.
Step 8: While the rolls are baking, prepare the frosting. In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese, yoghurt and vanilla stevia with a fork until smooth. Spread the frosting over the warm rolls end enjoy.
Katrin's Top Tips
#1 The cinnamon roll dough can be sticky. I find that lightly oiling my hands prevents the dough from sticking to them. I used walnut oil, but you can use any neutral-tasting oil.
#2 As the dough cools down, it becomes firmer. Warming it back up makes it easier to work with. This makes it soft again. I put it in the microwave for around 10 seconds. Or, gently heat it on the stovetop.
#3 The log method I use to create the cinnamon rolls makes them look pretty, like rosettes. I also think it helps them rise better. But it does take a little longer.
If you are short of time, you can also use the traditional way of making cinnamon rolls. Roll out the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper into a large rectangle. Spread the cinnamon filling on top. Then, roll the dough into one large log and cut it into slices.
Variations
DOUGH
If you don't have extra fine almond flour and are using almond meal or ground almonds, add an additional 2 tablespoons of almond meal/ground almonds or 1 tablespoon of coconut flour so the cinnamon rolls keep their shape.
FILLING
You can use salted or unsalted butter instead of the water in the cinnamon filling. This gives the rolls a nice buttery taste. I made a few using butter, then decided to just dissolve the sweetener in water as the rolls are very high in fat already. The choice is yours!
FROSTING
If you do not have vanilla-flavoured stevia for the frosting, use powdered sweetener instead and add a few drops of vanilla extract.
I liked the fresh flavor of the Greek yogurt in the frosting. However, you can use all cream cheese.
Instead of frosting, why not make a simple sugar-free icing to top the cinnamon rolls? Mix three tablespoons of powdered sweetener with two teaspoons of water until smooth. Then, pipe or drizzle the icing over the cooled rolls.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. You can prepare the dough a day or 2 ahead and store it in the fridge. Let it come to room temperature before baking.
Use ¼ cup or 30 grams of coconut flour in place of the almond flour. Or, use a blend of sesame seed and sunflower seed flour.
Try keto caramel! You can also add crushed pecans to the cinnamon filling for keto cinnamon buns.
This is a yeast-free recipe. But you can add a sprinkle of instant active yeast to the dough. This will add yeast flavor to the cinnamon rolls.
Serving Suggestion
We love these low-carb cinnamon rolls with a steamy cup of coffee or an almond matcha latte.
Whether you eat them for breakfast, brunch or in the afternoon, the rolls are best enjoyed warm. Then, they are soft inside and have the most tender crunch on the outside. They firm up as they cool.
Storage
Refrigerator: Should you have any leftovers, keep the rolls in an airtight container in the fridge. You can store them for up to 1 week.
Freezer: It is possible to freeze these cinnamon rolls for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight, then reheat them in the microwave.
Reheat individual rolls in the microwave for 10 - 15 seconds. To reheat multiple rolls, warm them in the oven or in the air fryer for 3-5 minutes. I recommend a temperature of 180C or 350F.
More Keto Breakfast Recipes
Here are more sugar free breakfast recipes with cinnamon:
- Keto Cinnamon Bread1 Hours
- Keto Cinnamon Muffins35 Minutes
- Keto Cinnamon Roll Pancakes16 Minutes
- Keto Cereal Recipe22 Minutes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Keto Cinnamon Rolls
Video
Ingredients
- 175 g shredded mozzarella (see notes!) (1 ½ cups)
- 80 g almond flour (extra fine) (¾ cup)
- 2 tablespoon cream cheese
- 1 egg room temperature
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
For the filling:
- 2 teaspoon water boiled
- 2 tablespoon granulated sweetener
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
For the frosting:
- 2 tablespoon cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon greek/full fat yoghurt
- 2 drops vanilla stevia
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 180 Celsius/360 Fahrenheit.
- Melt the mozzarella and cream cheese in a non-stick pot over a low heat or in a microwave (1 ½ minutes, stirring half way through). Take off the stove and/or make sure the cheese is melted, but not bubbling.
- Stir in the egg.
- Now add the almond flour and baking powder. Start to combine using a fork, then use your hands to make a ball of smooth dough. This can be easier if you lightly oil your hands first.
- Divide the dough into 6 balls of 50g each.
- Form long rolls (40cm), then flatten out with your hands. Make the dough as thin as you can.
- Prepare your cinnamon filling: boil water, then stir in the sweetener and cinnamon. Spread the cinnamon paste over the flattened dough rolls.
- Roll each into a bun and cut sideways in half. Now you have 12 buns which you place on a non-stick baking sheet or in a pie dish lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- While the rolls are in the oven, prepare the frosting: Mix cream cheese, yoghurt and stevia. Spread over the warm rolls and serve.
Shell
Hi! Would this recipe work with vegan mozzarella and cream cheese?
Katrin Nürnberger
Other readers have tried it and said that it works 🙂
Randelle Niski
Katrin,
Merry Christmas!! Thank you for such an amazing recipe!
How did you make your cream cheese frosting so smooth? No matter how much I whisked the cream cheese, yogurt, vanilla extract, and Swerve, mine still has lumps.
Wishing you a prosperous Mew Year!
Katrin Nürnberger
Merry Christmas and happy new year to you too! I think some brands are just firmer than others and can end up a little lumpy. But an electric mixer should be able to sort it!
Angela Callick
If your cream cheese is fridge cold it can be very difficult to get a smooth finish, letting it come to room temperature first can make a huge improvement
Diane
Hi,
Are you able to prepare these ahead of time? Wondering if I can make the rolls, then bake Christmas morning.
Katrin Nürnberger
I would probably make them now, freeze them and then defrost on the 24th. And heat them up in the oven on the 25th. But you can also prepare them a day ahead and then bake from scratch on the 25th. Just make sure they are at room temperature before you put them in the oven, so they rise well.
Jadzia
Hi I was wondering if I were to change the almond flour for oat flour, should I change any ingredients or the measurement?
Katrin Nürnberger
The internet says you can replace it 1:1, although I have never tried it 🙂
Lucy
Do you have a substitute for Almond flour/meal?
Most of your recipes call for that but we are nut free. I have tried some of your coconut flour recipes with success, thanks
I would like to try some other flours just to get away from the coconut flavour.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Katrin Nürnberger
You can use sunflower seed meal or sesame seed flour instead of almond flour. It is a 1:1 substitution. I just buy the seeds and grind my own.
Katrina
How come the cinnamon filling is so runny? Mine didn’t turn out like a paste even though I added another tbsp of granulated sweetener.
Katrin Nürnberger
It should not be runny. Just add more dry ingredients and less water next time, to get it to a paste-like consistency.
Tracy
Tried these for the first time this morning. They are a-maz-ing! The only thing I changed, is I mixed about one tablespoon of powdered sweetener in the frosting. (I like sweeter desserts) Thank you so much for sharing this YUMMY recipe!
Alison Orr
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve been hoping for a Keto version!
Kelly Parbst
Hello there!
I currently live in Denmark, where the only grated mozzarella is paired together with potato flour/starch to stop it from sticking - here we have Havarti cheese - is that at all something I could use? I am a diabetic t1 low-carber and I tend to veer away from anything with 'starch' on the ingredients list. I know that some low-carbers do Pofiber - but if I can avoid it, I would like to. I am a huge fan of your recipes, so many thanks for making it easier from day-to-day!
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Kelly, thank you for your support, so happy you are enjoying the recipes! The grated mozzarella here also has a little amount of potato starch. However, it's not much in terms of carbs, that's why I have made peace with it. But of course, that's a personal decision. I know that in some countries you can get mozzarella blocks which you can grate yourself. This may be something worth looking into. Italian delis may have it.
Daniel
I’m in the same boat. Although the carb content from the starch is minimal, potato starch itself creates such a high insulin spike that it’s a no-go for me. So tonight I’ll be making this with freshly grated mozzarella, I’ll comment back and let you know how it works out! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Lori
My rolls are in the oven now. I forgot the baking soda, so that may explain why my dough seemed pretty wer. Hoping they turn out ok. They smell great!