When life throws you lemons, you make a large batch of lemon sweet rolls! This fresh spin on classic cinnamon rolls incorporates lemon in three ways. First, there’s a hint of lemon zest in the yeasted dough. Second, a heavy dose of lemon zest is mixed into in the sugar filling. And for the grand finale, fresh squeezed lemon juice and additional lemon zest are whipped into the luscious cream cheese frosting.
These lemon sweet rolls are soft, fluffy, and flavorful. They are best enjoyed warm or at room temperature they day they are baked. However, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in the microwave or in a toaster oven to soften the bread.
How to make lemon sweet rolls:
This recipe uses instant yeast. However, you can use dry active yeast as well. Simply dissolve the dry active yeast in warm milk. Let sit for 5 to 7 minutes until bubbly and fragrant. Then proceed with the remaining ingredients. The dough is very easy to work up and it doesn’t take much effort roll out. The filling for these lemon sweet rolls is a mixture of softened butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and a generous amount of finely grated lemon zest. For even more lemon flavor, you could add a tiny amount of lemon extract. But it’s not necessary. The lemon zest should impart enough lemon essence. The dough is rolled into a log and cut into 12 equal parts. As you can see in the image above, the cut rolls will look rather small in the baking pan. Don’t worry, they’ll puff up and expand during their quick rest. At this point, you can either let the rolls rest before baking or store the assembled rolls in the fridge overnight for later use.
As the lemon sweet rolls bake in the oven, the lemon sugar mixture will bubble and melt. Some of the lemon sugar mixture will caramelize at the bottom of the pan. While the lemon sugar mixture at the top will turn into a sweet crunchy bits! While the rolls can be enjoyed sans frosting, I highly recommend the addition of the lemon cream cheese!
These lemon sweet rolls are a combination of sweet and tangy, soft and crunchy, and bright and creamy. It’s a wonderful treat to serve for Easter or Mother’s Day! Not a fan of lemons? You can swap in orange, grapefruit, or lime! Or for a citrus explosion, do a mixture of different citrus zests! If you’re interested in more breakfast rolls and sweet buns, you might like this Cinnamon Swirl Bread or Raspberry Lemon Loaf. This Orange Almond Bostock or Pecan Sticky Buns are also delicious options!
