Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch
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Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Looking for a super easy and delicious Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch recipe to make the cereal at home?
Maybe because you found out the store bought breakfast cereal isn’t vegan.
Originally Published: December 10th, 2021
And… all of the other recipes online for homemade Cinnamon Toast Crunch wants you to make your own dough. Which is entirely too much work!
Below you’ll find a 15 minute recipe, from start to finish, for making cinnamon toast crunch cereal anytime you have that cinnamon cereal craving!
And, it only needs 4 ingredients!
This is my picky eaters FAVORITE breakfast recipe!!
If you’ve ever tried to please a picky eater, or any child for that matter, when it comes to food; you’ll tend to find that the simpler the dish the better things go…such as cinnamon & sugar chips, vegan French toast, or even Muddy Buddies!
And when boxed, cold, processed cereals isn’t something you often buy; this recipe is absolutely a special treat for everyone!
Ingredients for Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Tortillas: Instead of making our dough, we’re going to use a simple, pantry staple, that you probably already have in your home; tortillas!
The tortillas called for in this recipe are large flour tortillas. However, if you have mini tortillas, or gluten-free, feel free to use what you already have.
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil is used, and needed, to get the cinnamon & sugar mixture to stick to the tortilla pieces while baking, and to keep it on them after non-dairy milk is poured on top of this homemade cereal.
Sugar: For this recipe, I use granulated sugar, be sure it’s vegan! The key to using the right type of sugar in this recipe is to make sure the sugar crystals are fine, this way they mix well with the cinnamon.
Cinnamon: Cinnamon is the star of the show here! Without cinnamon, you can’t have cinnamon toast crunch- there is no omitting this or substitution for cinnamon.
Substitutions & Additions
Gluten-free Tortillas: If you need to recipe to be gluten-free, be sure to use your favorite gluten-free tortillas in place of the flour ones.
Other Tortillas: I wouldn’t recommend corn or spinach tortillas for this recipe, but wheat tortillas or mini tortillas will absolutely work!
Just be sure to use more than 2 tortillas if you’re using mini tortillas, as they’re smaller; 4-6 may work in place of the 2 tortillas in the recipe.
Replacing the Coconut Oil: use other oils or plant-based butter (melted or softened) to coat the tortillas if you don’t have, or use, coconut oil.
Sugar: Brown sugar works in this recipe! Others you may consider using are coconut or cane sugar. Just note that the smaller the grain of sugar, the better it’ll be for this recipe.
Cocoa Powder: Make it a chocolate cinnamon toast crunch by adding a tablespoon of cocoa powder!
How to Make Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Making Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal is simple.
ALL YOU DO IS…
- Preheat the oven
- Spread melted coconut oil on a tortilla
- Cut the tortilla into tiny squares and add cinnamon & sugar
- Bake
- Cool & you’re ready to enjoy it with some non-dairy milk!
If you’re a visual person, and like seeing the steps in action, simply scroll through the Step-by-Step Photos for Making Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Step one: Preheat the oven and mix together the cinnamon & sugar.
Step two: Brush melted coconut oil on the tortillas and cut into strips, then again in the opposite direction to make 1/2- 1 inch squares.
Step three: Place the tortilla pieces and cinnamon sugar mixture into a gallon sized bag (or container that has a lid), and shake until the tortilla pieces are well coated.
Step four: Spread the tortilla pieces out on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silpat.
Step five: Bake for 10-13 minutes, stirring or pushing around every 3-4 minutes to ensure they cook evenly.
Remove when golden to brown and crispy. Allow to cool and enjoy with some non-dairy milk!
And it’ll probably disappear before you can make another batch!
It’s really that simple!
Why you’ll love this healthy copycat cereal…
Well, you already know it’s easy and you can make it pretty quickly.
It’s a special treat (like say, for Christmas morning or any special day, even just the weekend)!
It can be a fine motor skill, or baking, lesson for kids.
The cinnamon & sugar aroma will make your house smell amazing while it’s baking.
It still has the crunchy texture of cinnamon toast crunch cereal, without all the preservatives!
*Do note that the recipe below is for 2 to 3 small servings. You may have to multiply the ingredients as needed.
For example, it’s enough for me to share with my 10 year old with no leftovers OR enough for a 4, 7, and 10 year old to have 1 small bowl each.
However, if you’re making them for a teenager, I’m sure they’ll have no problem eating all of it in one sitting.
Or simply make a large batch, use a whole bag or tortillas, and save in a gallon sized bag.
It does not need to be refrigerated, but be sure to eat it within a few days. (I’ve only been able to test this for up to 3 days, I can’t seem to keep it from being eaten any longer than that.)
These vegan homemade cinnamon toast crunch copycat recipe is truly the best of both worlds; delicious and can please picky eaters, super easy and affordable.
You really can’t ask for anything better!
Homemade Cereal Tips & Tricks:
- Keep an eye on the oven while these bake, they need to be stirred often (every 3-4 minutes) to help prevent the chance of burning and to make sure they cook evenly. (Don’t worry, I’ve never burned these before and have left them in the oven for a full 13 minutes, pushing them around with a spatula 2-3 times.)
- Spread them out as evenly as possible on your baking sheet. This will help them cook evenly, and possibly cook faster.
- If cutting this recipe in half, it should only take around 7 minutes in the oven, stirring them around halfway through.
- Watch the video for learning the fastest way to get this recipe made!
How to serve homemade Cereal
Serve just as you would regular cereal!
Pour it in a milk and add non-dairy milk, or eat it plain, as is. Up to you!
Or, have fun with it and add it as a topping for smoothie bowls, banana ice cream, and more!
How to Store
If for some reason you have leftovers, we never do in our home, there are a couple different ways you can save it.
Room Temperature: If you think it’ll be gone within a day or two, save it in a glass jar, container, or plastic bag at room temperature, just like you would store regular cereal.
Fridge: If you think it’ll take you longer than 2 days to finish it, store it in a glass jar or container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days, then serve as normal.
At first glance, you may think it is, it doesn’t have any suspicious looking ingredients or have the dairy or egg allergy warning on it.
However, there are certain ingredients that are, unfortunately, derived (or potentially derived) from animals and not clear on whether or not they are vegan.
Such as D3, which is generally an animal derived ingredient and found in Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Another ingredient in the cereal that’s iffy is ‘natural flavors’, it’s really hard to tell where the flavors are sourced, animal or not.
So, no, the original Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal is not vegan friendly.
The recipe below tastes almost just like the real Cinnamon Toast Crunch. It’s crispy, cinnmony, and sugary, and tastes great in milk. Making sure you use refined coconut oil will certainly help you not have a coconut flavor after they are baked. The only flavor difference, is the tortilla flavor does show through in the cereal, but it’s texture totally changes!
Absolutely! Luckily, there are gluten-free versions of almost anything nowadays! Just grab gluten-free tortillas and enjoy your gluten-free cinnamon toast crunch!
Be sure to bake them until they start to brown and allow them to cool. Keeping them in a container, or bag, will also help they stay crunchy. And eating them the day you make it will ensure optimum crunchiness!
More Easy, cinnamon-y vegan breakfast recipes you’ll love:
- Easy Vegan Cinnamon and Sugar Tortilla Chips with Fruit Dip
- Warm Overnight Chia Oats (with Sautéed Fruit)
- Vegan Apple Muffins
- Easy Vegan Apple Pie Burritos
- Vegan French Toast Recipe
*Only looking for store bought alternatives for Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but a vegan version?
Below you’ll find cereals just like Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but vegan (and probably a little healthier, too).
- Cascadian Farms – Cinnamon Crunch Cereal – find it on Amazon here.
- Van’s – Gluten Free Cereals – Cinnamon Heaven – find it on Amazon here.
- Catalina Crunch Cereal – Cinnamon Taste – find it on Amazon here.
Vegan Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Shawna ClapperEquipment
- cutting board
- gallon size bag
- bowl & spoon
- Parchment or Silpat
Ingredients
- 2 tortilla large
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400℉ and line a cookie sheet with parchment, or a silpat.
- Stir together the cinnamon and sugar.
- Then lightly brush both sides of each tortilla with the melted coconut oil.
- Cut the tortillas into ½-1 inch strips, and then cut again the other way to make squares.
- Place the tiny squares in a gallon sized bag, then add cinnamon and sugar; shake to coat all the tiny squares.
- Dump the tiny squares onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes; you can start pushing the cereal around on the baking sheet in the oven at 3-4 minutes to help them bake more evenly, and then again every 3-4 minutes.
- Remove from oven when they have goldened or slightly browned and are crisp; let cool and enjoy topped with some non-dairy milk, or dry, whichever you prefer!
Video
Notes
- Does not matter the type of sugar is used.
- If you need this to be gluten free, be sure to use gluten free tortillas.
- Store at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the fridge for 4-5 days in an airtight container.
- The larger your cookie sheet, the less time it will take to bake, as the cereal will be less crowded.
This was a fun and easy recipe to do with my daughter. She was so excited that we had to keep reminding her they need to brown just a little bit to ensure the crispiness like the cereal. Once she was able to try a few she was on cloud nine! Thank you for the kid friendly and easy recipe, we will be making more!