Coconut Cinnamon Rolls with Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

Ever thought cinnamon rolls couldn’t get any better? Well think again because these Coconut Cinnamon Rolls are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Like keep the entire batch for yourself good. These rolls are warm and pull apart delicious. But the best part is the ginger cream cheese frosting. The frosting has just enough ginger, vanilla, and nutmeg to perfectly complement the flavors in the cinnamon roll. This one’s a real winner folks.

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OK, so some of you are probably thinking, “what is a cinnamon roll recipe doing on a Caribbean blog?” Well, I started this blog so that I can experiment with making recipes that blend the traditional Caribbean flavors I grew up enjoying with new flavors I encounter. This recipe is such a perfect example of that. The warm cinnamon taste that screams fall and beautiful swirls are taken up a notch thanks to the addition of coconut, ginger, vanilla, and nutmeg. I mean everything in the Caribbean is amazing so it’s no surprise that Caribbean flavors make these cinnamon rolls taste even better than the original. 😀

I think I had my first cinnamon roll in college (tragedy!!!), and it was from the frozen aisle at the grocery store. But I loved it! Fast forward a few years and I can assure you all that I’ve had enough cinnamon rolls for a lifetime. While I love traditional cinnamon rolls, I’m always down to try something new. After a bit of experimenting, I thought up this cinnamon rolls recipe. This recipe is special for a number of reasons. First, I substituted coconut oil and low fat coconut milk for the typical milk and butter in order to give the rolls a subtle coconut flavor. Next, I added desiccated coconut inside the filling, along with some warm fall spices that are staples in most Caribbean desserts. When I made these, I used coconut strips which aren’t as soft and sweet as desiccated coconut, so they didn’t roll well into the filling. Pro tip – use the right type of coconut!

For the frosting, I made the traditional cream cheese frosting even better by adding ground ginger, nutmeg, and vanilla extract. It’s not too sweet, which means you won’t want to stop eating it. I only used a little bit of ground ginger since I didn’t want it to overpower the coconut flavor in the rolls, but there’s enough ginger to add a little color to the frosting and leave your taste buds singing. This stuff is so good. I literally licked the frosting off the side of my mixing bowl as I waited for the rolls to finish baking. I repeat: SO. GOOD!

Let’s just get straight to the good stuff, shall we? Check out the recipe below and get to making these rolls! Don’t be scared by how long the instructions are, this recipe has three distinct elements, the dough, the filling, and the frosting, so it is slightly time consuming, but oh so worth it.

I had a few of my friends test this recipe for you all and they loved it, so I know you will too!  Be sure to give these a try and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Coconut Cinnamon Rolls with Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

Author: Sweet & Sorrel

3.40 from 5 votes

A Caribbean twist on traditional cinnamon rolls.

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Prep Time 2 hours hrs

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Servings 8 people

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American, Caribbean

Ingredients

Dough

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 3/4 cup warm lite coconut milk
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbp organic cane cugar
• 1 egg
• 4 tbsp melted coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt

Filling

• 1 tbs ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup desiccated coconut
• 4 tbsp salted butter room temperature
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp ground ginger

Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

• 4 oz low fat cream cheese
• 4 tbsp salted butter room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions 

• Add warm coconut milk to bowl of stand mixer with the dough hook attached. Add yeast and 1 tbsp of sugar and gently stir. Let sit until foamy, approx. 10 minutes.
• Add remaining sugar, melted coconut oil, vanilla extract, and egg. Whisk to combine. Add flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Knead with dough hook until dough forms a smooth ball. Note: you may have to stop periodically and use a spatula to scrap sides of the bowl. Remove dough from bowl and knead with hands for 1-2 minutes. Spray bowl with cooking spray. Add dough back to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough sit for 2 hours or until dough doubles in size.
• While the dough is rising, make the filling. Combine cinnamon, sugar, butter, ginger, and nutmeg to a clean bowl and mix until batter forms a paste.
• Once dough rises, roll the dough into a 12 x 24 in rectangle on a floured surface. Spread the cinnamon sugar paste onto the dough. Sprinkle desiccated coconut on top of the filling. Carefully roll the dough into a log, making sure to roll the dough tightly. Use a sharp knife to cut the dough into 10-12 even rolls.
• Grease a 9 x 13 baking tin. Place rolls on the baking tin and cover with a warm, damp towel until the dough doubles in size (about 30 minutes).
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove towel and bake rolls for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
• While the rolls are baking, make the ginger cream cheese filling by creaming butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl on low speed (use the whisk attachment). Add ginger, nutmeg, and vanilla extract and mix until the frosting is fluffy and well combined. Keep at room temperature until rolls are done baking.
• Remove rolls from the oven. Spread frosting onto warm rolls and let the rolls cool. Enjoy!

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Keyword breakfast, cinnamon roll, dessert