Cinnamon Roll Birthday Cake, gluten-free!

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Happy 23^rd Birthday to my Dear Daughter!

In honor of her birthday we’re celebrating with this non-traditional gluten-free “cake.”
{UPDATE: Alternate instructions for making this with all-purpose flour follow at the bottom of the page!}

I’m not sure how it happened, but I have raised two children who do not like cake. They never crave sugary, sweet buttercream icing or fluffy, dark chocolate cake with ganache. Who knew that you could have children so unlike yourself? I maintain that cake is always a good idea.

I spent years doing cakes like this one I did for my father-in-law. He’s a die-hard hunter and particularly loves hunting waterfowl.

And this one I did for my niece. That’s their barn and those are their horses. The nose on the right is the pony, Rosie. She can’t see over the door.

And … this one I did for my Harry Potter-crazed niece, Yasmeen. Yes, those books are actually cake. They were each a different flavor. The only thing inedible on this one were the eyes and the glasses. Even the “leather” table top is fondant. Pretty proud of this one, to tell you the truth.

And, it was fun until I realized the implications of all the ingredients I was using in these VERY.TIME.CONSUMING creations. So, eventually we started making pies. {You can find my gluten-free pie crust here.} Although I love pie, a birthday celebration is just not quite the same without cake. So, in an effort to compromise between myself (cake lover) and my daughter (pie lover) she suggested something new.

Enter the {gluten-free!} Cinnamon Roll Birthday Cake!

Glory beeeee! Have you ever seen anything so spectacular?! It’s like breakfast. But not. It’s “legal” to eat this baby all day long, people. Because isn’t that how everyone eats cake? Right? C’mon, please don’t tell me I’m the only one.

We styled this cake after some of Jordan’s favorite cakes on pinterest. Since she works at a flower shop now, she’s learning all about my favorite flower ever, ranunculus, and she’s gaining a few favorites of her own – like different varieties of eucalyptus. All these flowers came from Splints and Daisies in Lancaster, PA and they couldn’t have been more perfect!

I’m not going to sugar coat this. (See what I did there?) This was NOT an easy idea to execute. In all my years (15+) of baking gluten-free I’ve never settled on a cinnamon roll recipe that was the be.all.end.all for us. I’ve flirted with several different versions found online and in cookbooks but they all had something about them that I didn’t like. I’m pretty picky about the flours that are used. If it has an aftertaste, forget it. Bean flours? Yuk.

So, a while back I adopted the America’s Test Kitchen gluten-free flour mixture and it has served me pretty well … most of the time. There are some recipes in which it doesn’t excel and others that it does. Luckily, the flour mixture works perfectly in this recipe! Because cinnamon rolls are notoriously difficult to work with using gluten-free flours (they’re often very sticky), I suggest you use that flour mix. It produces a dough that can be handled almost like a wheat dough. You can pick it up, roll it out, cut it and place it in the pan without a sticky mess or the pieces falling apart. The cinnamon rolls also last for several days, staying soft and fresh, as long as you keep them covered.

The only caveat I have is that you need to use plastic wrap when rolling out the dough. This is pretty common for gluten-free doughs so hopefully, you’re familiar with this technique. Once the dough gets rolled out you won’t be able to pick it up and turn it around like you can with wheat dough. It’s tough but let’s be real. The lack of gluten still makes it more delicate.

The easiest way to roll out on plastic wrap is to wet your counter with a spray bottle or very wet washcloth. Then, lay two long pieces on the counter (overlapping the long edge by about 2”) to make a big square-ish work surface on which to place your dough. You will need to use two more sheets of plastic to put on top of the dough. I laid the first one on the counter then laid the second one down overlapping the long edge by a couple inches. This goes on top and both need to be sprayed lightly with oil. I used a pump olive oil sprayer for this.

Once you have the dough mixed up, place it on the plastic on the damp counter. The dampness under the plastic will help it stay in place as you’re rolling. Place the second (2) large piece of plastic wrap on top of the dough. Then, gently roll out the dough into a 24” x 13” rectangle. Remove the top plastic wrap. Spread ½ cup of soft butter evenly over the dough and sprinkle evenly with 1 cup of light brown sugar. Sprinkle with cinnamon and proceed to either traditional cinnamon rolls or to make the two-layer cake. Traditional rolls with make 12 in a 9”x13” baking pan. The cake will take two full recipes to fill two 8″ round cake pans.

1) For traditional cinnamon rolls:
Using the bottom sheets of plastic, slowly begin rolling the dough from the long side by gently lifting up on the plastic and forcing it to roll into itself. Once you’ve done this, you will have a log 24” long. Then, cut 12 cinnamon rolls, each 2” wide. Place them, cut side up in 9” x 13” baking dish and bake at 350˚ for about 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.

2) For Cinnamon Roll Cake: (One recipe gets placed in each 8″ round cake pan.) Trim off ragged edges of long side leaving a rectangle 24+” long x 12” wide. Using a pizza cutter, cut 6 long strips 2” wide x 24+” long. Begin rolling one strip from the end to make a large cinnamon roll. Proceed to the next one by picking up and continuing to roll. Proceed with all six strips. Place in 8” cake pan that has been oiled and parchment placed on the bottom. Bake at 350˚ for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. You will also need a double recipe of cream cheese icing for the cake. {Recipe Below}

I’ve included a few photos to help you in the process. The last photo shows the bottom layer being assembled. The tape piece is so I could remember which side is front and has the best appearance. This helped with placing the best sides of each layer in the same direction. Your cake is probably is not going to have perfectly vertical sides. Mine didn’t either. But, you can minimize notice of that by strategically placing the icing over the edges of the top and layering them centered. Besides, once your guests taste the cake they’ll be able to do nothing but rave about how awesome it is!

Also, as if this “cake” could get any better, here is some information about the health benefits of cinnamon! Who knew this delicious spice could add so much to your healthy lifestyle.

ALTERNATE RECIPE INSTRUCTIONS: To make this “cake” with all-purpose {wheat} flour, replace the gluten-free flour mix with equal amounts of all-purpose flour. Omit the baking soda, baking powder and xanthan gum. Proceed as instructed except that wheat dough can be rolled easily on a countertop using a little flour but without using the plastic wrap and oil spray. You will still need two full recipes to make the cake but the dough will spread and rise more than with gluten-free dough. You will want to use a 9″ pan for your layers rather than an 8″.