These date sweetened cinnamon rolls are completely naturally-sweetened without any refined sugars. I used honey in the rolls (because I didn’t think dates would work well there). Then, I used dates to make the filling, and dates to make the cream cheese frosting.
Why are naturally-sweetened treats a healthier alternative? Sources of natural sugars also contain other nutrients, like fiber, minerals and vitamins. Specifically, dates are a good source of potassium, vitamin K and vitamin B.
Are these treats just as sweet and delicious? Absolutely yes!
This recipe uses a lot of dates, so these cinnamon rolls are still very sweet. The high amount of dates does alter the flavor some. To me they have a slightly raisin-y flavor, but raisins are delicious in cinnamon rolls so the dates works out just beautifully.
Tips and Tricks for the Date Sweetened Cinnamon Rolls recipe:
- I decided to try a quick rise method from Sally’s Baking Addiction to make these cinnamon rolls faster and easier to make. They require only a single rise, and if your rolls do not get fluffy during baking, it is likely because they did not rise long enough.
- One hard part of this recipe is determining exactly how many dates to use. The dates I used were small, so if your dates are larger, you may need fewer of them. I tried to provide cup measurements as well to ease the process.
- Soaking the dates: My dates were dry so soaking them in boiling water was necessary. If you have access to very soft, fresh, sticky dates then you might be able to skip this step. You will be able to tell for sure when trying to form the paste if your dates were soft enough or not. If they were not, simply add some hot water to the food processor and let it rest to absorb for a short time.
- The frosting recipe makes more frosting than you will need. I dislike the principle of it but it was impossible to make the date cream cheese frosting in the food processor without using the minimum quantity provided in the recipe. (My mini food processor was not powerful enough and my 9-cup processor needs a minimum volume to work properly.)
Date Sweetened Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ tsp instant rise yeast
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 TBS melted butter
- ½ cup milk of choice
- 2 TBS honey
- 1 large egg
Filling
- 85 grams small pitted dates, 8-10, about 1/3 cup firmly packed
- Boiling water to cover
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon (or to taste)
Frosting
- 65 grams small pitted dates, 6-8 dates, about ¼ cup firmly packed
- Boiling water to cover
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 TBS butter, softened
Instructions
- In a stand mixer bowl, stir together the flour, yeast and salt. Set aside.
- In a small bowl or cup, melt the butter. Mix in the milk and honey and heat to the temperature recommended on your yeast for mixing into dry ingredients. Mine says 120-130 F.
- Pour the hot liquid into the bowl with the flour mixture and top with the egg. Use a dough hook attachment on medium-slow until a soft dough forms, stopping to scrap flour into the center as needed. Continue to knead the dough with the dough hook for another 3-4 minutes, or until very smooth and elastic. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cover the dates with boiling water and let rest for 10 minutes. Drain (reserving the soaking liquid).
- Transfer the dates to a food processor and pulse together the dates and cinnamon until a smooth paste forms. Add soaking liquid as necessary to form the paste. If your dates are fresh and moist you likely will not need any.
- Roll the dough out to a 12 x 8 inch rectangle. Gently spread the date paste out over the rectangle. Roll the dough up on the long edge and use a very sharp knife to cut into 8-9 rolls, placing them in a greased pie pan or cake round. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and let double in size, about 60-90 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 18-25 minutes, or until lightly browned. If they are browning too quickly, tent the pan with aluminum foil.
Frosting
- Cover the frosting dates with boiling water and let rest for 10 minutes to soften. Drain and reserve ¼ cup liquid.
- Combine the drained dates with the ¼ cup water and vanilla in a food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary.
- Add the softened cream cheese and butter and process until smooth and fluffy.
- Spread frosting over warm cinnamon rolls and serve. (You will likely have extra frosting)
- Store any leftover rolls in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
The cinnamon roll filling was adapted from Styles Sweets. The frosting was adapted from Cookie and Kate. The roll ingredients were taken from a family recipe, and the roll method was from Sallys Baking Addiction.
