Fluffy and exquisitely tender, these Lemon Sweet Rolls are swirled with both lemon sugar AND luscious lemon curd, and generously smothered in lemon cream cheese frosting!
Cinnamon rolls are without a doubt my FAVORITE breakfast pastry. There’s just no beating that heavenly combination of fluffy dough, cinnamon-brown sugar filling, and tangy cream cheese frosting. I’ve also made it my sole mission to incorporate as many flavors into this classic confectionery as possible. So far, I’ve done blackberry, blueberry, strawberry, raspberry, apple, peach, pumpkin, bacon (YES, BACON!!), cookie butter, red velvet, and even carrot cake.
Judging by this list, it might seem as though I’ve hit every flavor possible. However, there is one flavor that I’ve been absolutely dying to try…
LEMON!!!
These Lemon Sweet Rolls are intoxicating, to say the very least. As opposed to cinnamon brown sugar, these rolls are swirled with lemon sugar AND homemade lemon curd. After they’ve baked to sinful perfection in the oven, each roll is slathered in a generous cloak of lemon cream cheese frosting and a dab or two of lemon curd.
I mean, COME ON. These have lemon heaven written ALL. OVER. THEM.
Why You’ll Love These Lemon Sweet Rolls
UNBELIEVABLY Soft and Fluffy: Thanks to a few special ingredients and some helpful tips, these sweet rolls are guaranteed to be some of the softest, doughiest rolls you’ve ever had in your whole life. I’m not even being dramatic. Even the corner pieces are completely soft and tender throughout! I promise you won’t find a dry crumb anywhere.
A Tart and Tangy Take on a Classic: With a double dose of lemon swirled throughout each roll, these Lemon Sweet Rolls are absolutely bursting with lemony flavor. Not to mention, the lemon cream cheese frosting is artfully intertwined with the lemon curd. These are a lemon lover’s DREAM.
Make Ahead, Bake Later: I don’t know about you, but I’m not much of a morning person. This recipe gives you the option of making the rolls up ahead of time, and baking them the next day. Simply prepare the rolls up to the point of placing them into the baking dish, cover with plastic wrap, then keep in the refrigerator. The next morning, take them out, allow them to sit at room temperature for an hour, then bake as instructed.
I like to make the lemon curd first to give it ample time to cool and set properly. If this is your first time making lemon curd, no need to stress! It’s honestly so darn easy to make, and requires very few ingredients.
All you have to do is whisk some egg yolks, one whole egg, some sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt together in a medium saucepan until combined. Add a few tablespoons of butter, then place the saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. After 3 minutes or so, the mixture should begin to thicken. Once it’s reached a pudding-like consistency, immediately remove the lemon curd from the heat and pour through a fine mesh sieve into a shallow bowl. (The shallow bowl will allow it to cool faster.) Straining the curd not only removes the zest, but it also ensures a smooth consistency throughout. Allow curd to cool at room temperature for an hour before placing in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Can I use store-bought lemon curd?
You most certainly can! However, I will add that it’s really hard to beat the fresh tang of homemade lemon curd. Also, store-bought lemon curd can be rather expensive, especially when you consider how easy it is to make at home.
Tips for Making The BEST Lemon Sweet Rolls
Activate/Proof the Yeast First: Activating the yeast helps to ensure that it’s not dead or expired. To do this, just combine a packet of active dry yeast with 1/4 cup of warm water along with a teaspoon of granulated sugar. Make sure that the water isn’t too hot or cold by using an instant read thermometer to gauge the temperature. It usually needs to be between 110ºF and 115ºF. If the yeast is alive and safe to use, it’ll foam up and bubble after about 5-10 minutes. If it doesn’t bubble up at all, your yeast is likely dead and your dough won’t rise. Toss it out, and try a new packet of yeast.
Add Pudding to the Dough: Instant vanilla pudding, to be exact. This is what keeps the rolls soft, tender, and extra fluffy for days. It also adds just enough sweetness to the dough, so that no extra sugar is needed. You’ll literally whip up a small batch of vanilla pudding (using the instant mix), and combine it with the rest of the ingredients. It’s that simple!
Don’t Over-Work the Dough: Along with adding pudding mix, abstaining from over-working or over-mixing the dough will result in a softer sweet roll. The only kneading that needs to be done is in the mixer. Once you’ve turned it out on the floured board, sprinkle a little flour onto it, and roll it out. Make sure the rolling pin is dusted with flour as well to keep it from sticking.
Soften the Lemon Sugar Filling: Make sure that the lemon filling is smooth and easily spreadable. This will prevent it from tearing into the dough as you spread it across the surface. If it’s too thick, heat it in the microwave for 5-8 seconds to soften it a bit. You also don’t want to melt the butter, so don’t heat it for too long.
Completely Chill the Lemon Curd: You want the curd to set up COMPLETELY before you spread it on top of the lemon sugar filling. This means that you’ve allowed it to cool for an hour at room temperature and chilled it in the refrigerator of at least 2 hours. The curd should be cold and thick, which will allow it to stay in place as you roll the dough into a log.
Cut with flavorless unwaxed floss: This tip is a total game changer, folks. Not only does it produce the cleanest cuts imaginable, but it prevents the rolls from getting smashed. To cut with floss, simply tear off a piece (about 8-10 inches long), carefully shimmy it underneath the dough log to where you want to slice, pull both ends up and around the log, then pull tightly. Keep repeating these steps until you’ve got 12 even rolls.
Tent with foil: As the rolls are baking in the oven, I like to place a sheet of tin foil loosely over the top of the rolls for the first 10 minutes of baking. This prevents them from getting too dark or browned.
Happy Baking!!
Lemon Sweet Rolls
Fluffy and exquisitely tender, these Lemon Sweet Rolls are swirled with both lemon sugar AND luscious lemon curd, and generously smothered in lemon cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
Lemon Curd:
- 6 egg yolks
- 1 whole egg
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup + 2 Tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest
- Pinch of salt
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into half-inch pieces
Dough:
- ¼ cup warm water*
- 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet)
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- ¼ cup instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 cup milk, warmed in microwave for 30-40 seconds
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 Tablespoon Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3-3 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
Lemon Sugar Filling:
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter, softened
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 5 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 2 Tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon corn syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Make the Lemon Curd:
In a medium saucepan, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, and sugar together until combined. Whisk in the lemon juice, zest, and salt. Add the butter and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened to a pudding-like consistency. This should take about 3-5 minutes minutes.
Immediately strain the curd through a fine-mesh strainer into a shallow bowl (for quicker cooling). Allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour before placing in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Make the Dough:
In a glass measuring cup, combine the water, yeast, and sugar; set aside to foam for about 5-10 minutes.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the pudding mix and milk together until combined and thickened. Add the butter, Greek yogurt, egg, and salt, beating until fully combined.
Switch to the dough hook, and add the yeast mixture and 3 cups of the flour. Mix the dough on low and allow it to knead for about 6-7 minutes. If dough is still too sticky, add more flour, 1 Tablespoon at a time, until dough just cleans the bowl, but is very soft. It should still stick to the bottom of the bowl.
Coat a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray and place dough in bowl. Seal tightly with plastic wrap. Place bowl in a warm place and allow dough to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. In the meantime, spray a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
After dough has doubled in size, punch it down. Turn dough out onto a floured Silpat or floured countertop. With a rolling pin (dusted in flour), roll it out to an 18-by-12-inch rectangle. Sprinkle extra flour onto the dough if it begins to stick to the rolling pin.
Make the lemon sugar filling by combining the butter, sugar and lemon zest together in a bowl. Spread the filling evenly over the entire surface of the dough. Transfer 1/2 cup of the lemon curd to another bowl--save for later. Spoon the rest of the lemon curd on top of the lemon sugar filling. Make sure to spread evenly. Roll dough tightly into a log, ending with the seam side down.**
Using plain, unwaxed dental floss (or a bench scraper), slice the rolls into 12 evenly-sized rolls. Arrange the rolls cut side down in the prepared baking dish. Cover tightly with plastic wrap.
*Or...If You Want to Bake the Rolls the Next Day
Place covered rolls in the refrigerator for up to 20 hours. Before baking, let the rolls sit at room temperature until they have nearly doubled in size, about 1 hour.***
Baking:
For either version, bake at 350ºF for 25-30 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown. While the rolls bake, prepare the cream cheese frosting.
Make the Frosting:
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese together on medium speed for about 1 minute. Add the lemon juice, corn syrup, vanilla, and salt, and beat until combined. Gradually add the powdered sugar, a half cup at a time, beating until well incorporated. Scrape down sides of the bowl, if necessary.
Once the rolls have baked, remove from the oven. Allow to rest/cool for 20 minutes.
Spread the cream cheese frosting over the cinnamon rolls. Take the reserved lemon curd, drop teaspoonfuls on the tops of each roll, then use a knife or spatula to swirl it into the frosting. Serve immediately.
Rolls are best eaten fresh, but will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat leftover rolls for 10-15 seconds in the microwave before serving.
Notes
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