These buttery and bright Lemon Rolls are made with a soft and fluffy yeasted dough, gooey lemon curd filling, and creamy lemon frosting on top!
Need some sunshine to get through these last dreary days of winter?! These lemon sweet rolls are bright and sunny and easy to bake to brighten even the darkest winter day. With a fluffy and tender dough made with milk and butter (like my Buttery Garlic Knots recipe) for extra richness and flavor, lemon filling made with lemon curd, butter, and lemon zest, and a creamy icing on top, these rolls are sure to be a hit!
I like to think that there are "lemon people". In the same way, there are "chocolate people" and "coffee people". Basically, people who really like a certain flavor or food to the point that it becomes a little part of who they are (or at least how others perceive them). These "lemon people" are who you think of when you eat or make something with lemon and say, "wow, so-and-so would really love this!"
Anyways, that's how I think. Here are some more delicious lemony recipes to try if you are a "lemon person" or someone else in your life is! My Raspberry Lemon Tarts are delightfully tart (no pun intended) and easy to make. Lemon Cranberry Muffins are a perfect bake for when fresh cranberries are available in stores. Or this creamy Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake is one of my favorite no-bake cheesecakes for summer!
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⭐️ Why You're Going to Love This Recipe
- Flavor: With lemon zest and curd in the filling and a touch of lemon curd in the icing, these rolls have plenty of lemony flavor.
- Texture: This dough is made with milk, egg, and butter, which produces a very rich dough that is soft but slightly more dense and substantial (like brioche) from the rich ingredients. The dough is very similar to the dough for my Best Glazed Yeast Doughnuts!
- Method: Baking with yeast is a breeze, don't worry! Follow my helpful step-by-step instructional photos below in the post to guide you every step of the way.
🧈 Ingredients
Here are the ingredients needed to make these lemon sweet rolls.
Ingredient Notes
- Yeast: This recipe requires active dry yeast, which is also sometimes called "traditional yeast". This type of yeast needs to "bloom" in warm water to dissolve and froth before adding it to the recipe.
- Sugars: You will need granulated white sugar and powdered sugar. A little white sugar goes in the dough, and the rest is for the filling. The powdered sugar will be used for the icing.
- Salt: Don't forget the salt!! Salt is extremely important for flavor development in dough. Without it, the dough will be very bland and just taste like flour.
- Flour: Nothing fancy is required; as in most of my recipes for bread and rolls, all-purpose flour is perfect for this recipe.
- Lemon Zest: We will just need the lemon zest for this recipe, which gives a bright lemon flavor without introducing too much added liquid or acidity to the recipe.
- Lemon Curd: You could use homemade if you are feeling fancy, but I love to use a good store-bought lemon curd for ease and convenience.
See the recipe card for the full list of ingredients with measurements.
📃 Instructions
Step 1: Whisk together the warm water, ½ teaspoon of sugar, and active dry yeast. Let it bloom for about 10 minutes or until frothy and bubbly.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, whisk together the warm milk, sugar, melted butter, egg, vanilla, and salt. Add the frothy yeast mixture.
Step 3: Add about 2 ½ cups of the flour and fold until a dough begins to form. Turn onto the countertop and knead for about 5 minutes, adding the last ¼ cup of flour as needed, until a soft and smooth dough that is still slightly tacky but not sticking to your hands forms.
Step 4: Place the dough back into the bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Once risen, punch the dough down completely to deflate.
Step 5: Stir together the softened butter and lemon curd.
Step 6: Stir together the sugar and lemon zest.
Step 7: Roll out the dough into a large rectangle about 16"x12. Spread the lemon curd and butter mixture evenly on top. Then, sprinkle the lemon zest sugar evenly over top.
Step 8: Roll the dough up tightly from the long edge. Slice with a sharp knife or use unflavoured dental floss to cut into 12 rolls. Arrange in a baking pan that has been greased with butter.
Step 9: Cover the pan and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350℉.
Step 10: Uncover and bake the risen rolls in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top.
Stir together the melted butter, lemon curd, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream to make a smooth icing. Spread over the rolls while still hot.
💡 Top Tip
These rolls would be super yummy with cream cheese frosting instead! Cut the frosting recipe from my Pumpkin Cake in half if you would prefer them with cream cheese icing.
🍋 More Lemon Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
If you tried these Lemon Curd Rolls or any other recipe on my website, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and write a little note telling me how it went in the comments below. Thank you!!
📖 Recipe
Lemon Rolls
Equipment
- measuring cups & spoons
- mixing bowls
- whisk
- rolling pin
- silicone spatula
- 9x13-inch baking pan
Ingredients
For the Dough
- ¼ cup warm water (110℉)
- ½ teaspoon granulated white sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- ½ cup warm milk (110℉)
- 3 tablespoons salted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½-2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
For the Filling
- ¼ cup salted butter softened
- ⅓ cup lemon curd *
- ⅓ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
For the Icing
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- 1 tablespoon lemon curd *
- ¾ cup powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons whipping cream
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the warm water, ½ teaspoon of sugar, and active dry yeast. Let it bloom for about 10 minutes or until frothy and bubbly.¼ cup warm water, ½ teaspoon granulated white sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the warm milk, sugar, melted butter, egg, vanilla, and salt. Mix in the frothy yeast mixture.½ cup warm milk, 3 tablespoons salted butter, 3 tablespoons granulated white sugar, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon salt
- Add about 2 ½ cups of the flour and fold until a dough begins to form. Turn onto the countertop and knead for about 5 minutes, adding the last ¼ cup of flour as needed, until a soft and smooth dough that is still slightly tacky but not sticking to your hands forms.2 ½-2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- Place the dough back into the bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Once risen, punch the dough down completely to deflate.
- In a small bowl, stir together the softened butter and lemon curd. In a separate bowl, stir together the sugar and lemon zest.¼ cup salted butter, ⅓ cup lemon curd, ⅓ cup granulated white sugar, 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- Roll out the dough into a large rectangle about 16"x12. Spread the lemon curd and butter mixture evenly on top. Then, sprinkle the lemon zest sugar evenly over top. Roll the dough up tightly from the long edge. Slice or use unflavoured dental floss to cut into 12 rolls. Arrange in a baking pan that has been greased with butter.
- Cover the pan and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350℉. Uncover and bake the risen rolls in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top.
- Stir together the melted butter, lemon curd, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream to make a smooth icing. Spread over the rolls while still hot. Enjoy!1 tablespoon salted butter, 1 tablespoon lemon curd, ¾ cup powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 tablespoons whipping cream
Notes
- You could use homemade if you are feeling fancy, but I love to use a good store-bought lemon curd for ease and convenience.
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