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.
Lugenia Sapp
I tried adjusting the numbet if servings but it didnt adjust 'all ' of the ingredients .
Katrin
Hi Lugenia, sorry, this is a shortfall of the recipe plugin and my programming skills are not sufficient to fix it. Is there anything I can help you with personally?
Maija
"Come hither powers" !!!
First time to your site and I get that?!!
I'll follow you anywhere after that!
LOL But first, I want to try this recipe!
Cinnamon rolls mesmerize me too!
Peace, and thank you!
Katrin
Haha, we're on the same page!!! Glad you found my site 😉
Crystal
I just made these this evening and they turn phenomenal. I LOVE this, thank you!
Katrin
You're welcome Crystal!
Mamonde
Oh my goodness I am just having these with my coffee and these are like a piece of heaven they taste soooo good I had to slap my hand to not have more !!! Thank you very much !! Yesterday I made them savory I made pizza rolls spread the dough out splashed some sauce olives and cheese rolled and cut and they were yummy !!
Katrin
Oh, pizza rolls, that sounds AMAZING!!!
Trisha
Have you seen the fat head dog method of just dumping the ingredients in a food processor and blending rather than heating? Do you think that would work with this? Might have to give it a try.
Katrin
You could try that - I did it with the dough for my low carb pizza. You need a high speed food processor that is fast enough so the blades heat the dough enough for the mozzarella to melt.
Elisha
I made these this morning and they're great! Came out perfectly. They are small, but the author is right, they're very filling! I used Swerve Brown for the filling with the water and cinnamon, glad I did! I also brushed the outsides with melted butter before baking. I will definitely make these again! *note* don't roll out your balls of dough if they're still hot. I let mine cool to room temp first and I think that's why mine didn't flatten like others have commented. I also used
Oh Nuts! brand almond flour which is very fine.
Katrin
Thanks for your comment and tips!!
Cherie
Haven't tried them yet still baking in the oven but look good. Just have a question about the filling; I used xylitol as the sweetner and my filling didn't turn into a paste. It remained almost a liquid. Is this because I used this particular substitute?
Katrin
hi Cherie, hard to say... I haven't used xylitol in a long time and am not sure how easily it dissolves. Maybe try grinding it to a powder next time?
Kristie
I made a test batch of these today to make sure my boys liked them before making them for Christmas morning. After reading all the comments about them going flat, I baked them in silicone cupcake molds. They kept their shape nicely. I also used brand new baking powder and Bob's Red Mill Super-fine Almond Flour. We liked them, but prefer more cinnamon in the filling, so I'll be making another batch tonight and cooking them in the morning.
Katrin
What a great idea to use silicone moulds! Thank you for your comment and enjoy the holidays 🙂
Julie
Hi!
I was wondering if these would still turn out if I made them in the morning, refrigerated them, then baked them that evening. Thank you so much! 🙂
Katrin
I think it would work. I've had readers even freeze the unbaked rolls for later use. One thing i'd do though is ensure you bring them back to room temperature before baking - I'd set them on the kitchen counter for about 1 hour or so.
Umah
Thanks for this great recipe. Came out super good. The oil tips really helped with the sticky dough.
Cindy
I made the rolls but put the dough on parchment paper and flattened the whole thing and sprinkled with cinnamon and Splenda brown sugar and then rolled it up in a log using the parchment paper and then cut into rolls. Used 2 tbsp cream cheese and 2 tbsp cherry Greek yogurt as frosting
Katrin
Sounds great. I must try this, too!
Joyce
Hi Katrin,
Tried your keto cinnamon rolls today, all was good until they didn't stand up in pie plate rather wanted to lean sideways, only got 8 instead of 12. They didn't rise like yours baked up more like a thick cinnamon cookie but......they tasted great! I used 2 more tbsp almond flour as you suggested so they wouldn't get runny like some readers experienced also had temp little higher 375%. I rolled dough between parchment paper too, was disappointed in that they were limp . When you say roll as thin as possible how thin should they be I am thinking I rolled too thin? Would appreciate suggestions as they did taste good, and would like to try again, thank you in advance
Katrin
hi Joyce, I think the almond flour brand makes a huge difference in this recipe. The rolls in the photo are made using the Sukrin Almond flour, which is super super fine. I think it's the most finely milled almond flour available here in the UK and it's available in the US, too. There are other finely milled brands such as Bon's Red Mill. And yes, it is possible that when you roll your dough too thin, making the rolls too tall (hope this makes sense), they could lean and collapse sideways.
Another thought - chilling them before baking could help them keep their shape. I just read an article about cookies that recommended this, so the butter would be cold and hold the dough together. This way, the outer edges firm up before the inside gets soft and lets the entire shape collapse. This could make up for using less fine almond flour. Not a technique tried and tested by me, but I think it could make a difference.
Hope this helps!