Banana Cinnamon Bun

Lately I’ve been on a no-to-low sugar added kick. I’ve been on this diet for about four months now and I’m proud to say that so far I’ve lost a whopping four inches off my waist-line! Waning off of processed sugar was probably the single best decision I made to my diet. It was not easy of course, but creating recipes and baking my own treats gave me a way to ward off processed sugar but still eat my favorite desserts. One that’s near and dear to me that I’ll talk about today is the cinnamon bun.

Why did I decide to re-create the cinnamon bun?

In order to explain why the cinnamon bun, I need to first share with you my affinity for cinnamon. Most people associate smell with memories. For me, cinnamon reminds me of the holidays as it does for many Americans. Growing up in the states, the presence of cinnamon during the holidays is everywhere. It’s in every Christmas shop you walk into and in every bakery or coffee shop you enter. The holidays are when the work in the office begins to unwind and I look forward to spending the time with friends and family. So when I smell cinnamon, it evokes in me a warm and comforting feeling.

I became fond of this spice long before I discovered how healthy it was. Learning about the health benefits of cinnamon added to my motivation in creating this recipe. You can find all the benefits of cinnamon here.

Why did I decide to add bananas to this recipe?

Simply because I love using it as my natural sweetener for these reasons:

• They contain loads of vitamins and minerals
• Make baked goods super soft and moist
• I tend to have plenty of ripe bananas in my kitchen

After baking for a while, I noticed that I rarely find recipes that would combine bananas and yeast. For instance, you look at a basic banana bread recipe, you won’t find yeast included. I wondered why that was the case until I tried it myself. I noticed that once I added the yeast into a banana bread recipe, the banana flavor and the sweetness mellowed out a lot. When I thought about it, it totally made sense. The sweetness dissipates as the yeast feeds on sugar and converts it to alcohol.

So what did I do to get more of the banana flavor into the roll?  I simply added more bananas.  I settled on three bananas for this recipe; it strikes the right balance of banana flavor without tasting like banana bread.

The Greek Yogurt Frosting

This frosting is simple to make and only requires two ingredients.

I have to admit, nothing can beat your plain old cream cheese and powdered sugar frosting, but I’d rather give up a little on the taste for something much healthier. I decided to use Greek yogurt since the consistency is very similar to cream cheese. It also as a tangy flavor similar to cream cheese.

Instead of the powdered sugar, I opted for honey as the sweetener. Honey is all-natural, contains nutrients and antioxidants – helping to lower blood pressure.

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Banana Cinnamon Rolls

August 31, 2020 healthysuelutions

• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes
• Total time: 2 hours 40 minutes

• Serves: 8

Fluffy cinnamon rolls that are made with natural sweeteners such as bananas, dates, and apples

Ingredients

Dough

• 2 ripe or overripe (225g) medium sized bananas, mashed
• 2 tbsp honey, or maple syrup
• 2 & 1/4 tsp active dry yeast, 1 packet
• 2 & 1/2 cup (282g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Filling

• 1 sweet apple, or unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 & 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
• 4 medjool dates

Icing

• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp honey, or maple syrup

Method

Making the Rolls

• 1)

  Combine the mashed bananas, honey, and vanilla extract in a medium sized bowl

• 2)

  Combine the flour, baking powder, yeast, cinnamon, and salt in a large mixing bowl

• 3)

  Pour the banana mixture into the flour mixture and combine with a spatula. Once you cannot combine it any further, transfer the dough onto a silpat or a lightly floured surface and begin kneading using your hands. Knead for at least 15 minutes.

• 4)

  Place the dough into an oiled bowl and let rise in a warm place about 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size

Making the Filling

• 1)

  Using a blender or food processor, combine the apple, cinnamon and dates.

Adding the Filling to the Rolls

• 1)

  Once the dough has doubled in size, place it onto a lightly floured surface or silpat and began rolling it into a 16″ x 12″ rectangle.

• 2)

  Spread the filling mixture onto the rolled out dough

• 3)

  Carefully using the long end, begin rolling from the long end all the way to the bottom

• 4)

  Slice the log into 8 pieces. I find it best to use non-flavored floss for this.

• 5)

  Place the slices into a well greased 9″ round baking pan. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes or until it has doubled in size.

• 6)

  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

• 7)

  Once the dough has risen, place the baking pan into the oven and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

• 8)

  Once the rolls are done, remove from the oven and let them sit in the pan for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

• 9)

  Once cool, top the cinnamon rolls with the Greek yogurt icing and enjoy!

Making the icing

• 1)

  Combine the Greek yogurt and honey

Notes

Store in the refrigerator. They can last up to 5 days in the fridge. Be sure to microwave them for at least 20 seconds after removing from the fridge and before eating.

Nutrition

I hope you’ll like this recipe and please if you make it, snap a pic and hashtag it #healthysuelutions – I’d love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter! Please stay in touch with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram for all the latest updates.