Strawberry Rolls with Sweet Lemon Glaze

A summery twist on cinnamon rolls, these glazed strawberry rolls can be made ahead to save time in the morning.

First, thank you for all your excitement over my new photography blog! I’ve been looking forward to sharing this new addition to Sally’s Baking Addiction for quite some time and am eager to see where it takes me. Do you have any questions on how to follow my photography blog? Let me know!

Second, I’m finally home. And it feels so, so good. From NYC –> Baltimore –> central PA, I’m finally home in Philly for a week before heading out to Seattle. I’m working on putting together some posts for my photography blog of all this travel! Stay tuned.

Third, let’s eat!

Make-ahead strawberry rolls are on the menu this week and there’s no breakfast more tempting. The rolls are soft and fluffy with a homemade strawberry filling, topped off with a sweet and tangy lemon glaze that seeps into every crevice.

Everyone’s had a cinnamon roll before but how many of you can say you’ve had a strawberry lemon roll?! Consider these summer’s version of a cinnamon roll!

You may have already spotted this recipe on People a couple months ago. I first made them when the weather began warming up and have made them almost a half dozen times since. (We do not take weekend breakfast lightly in this house. Go BIG or go back to bed.) Oh, the best part! You can easily freeze the rolls and wake up to warm, gooey, soft, and sweet strawberry rolls in the morning. For freezing directions, see the recipe below.

A Few Quick Tips.

I want everyone to make these rolls successfully because no one should be denied their sweeeeeet strawberry satisfaction! This recipe starts off as a regular yeasted roll. The importance of some dough ingredients:

Use whole milk for the best taste. Whole milk, with its creamy and thick texture, will produce the softest, fluffiest dough. Shocking, I know. 2% works, yes, but whole milk is best! I don’t recommend anything else.

Butter = flavor. You simply cannot create a buttery, tender dough like this without butter! Make sure it is softened. Not melted or cold. Softened to room temperature.

Eggs are everything in dough. Bread dough that is rich with eggs will rise very high because eggs aid in leavening. Not only this, the fat in the yolks help tenderize and lighten up the dough. I always use Eggland’s Best in bread dough recipes whether that’s making strawberry rolls, cinnamon rolls, monkey bread, you name it.

The strawberry filling is homemade. Because, yes, I like to put you to work in the summer. Kidding! The filling’s actually really really easy. It’s the same filling I use for my strawberry shortcake cupcakes, only slightly scaled down. Nothing artificial or fake, just pure strawberry goodness. Shortcut tip: you can use your favorite strawberry jam or preserves if that’s more convenient. I’m not judging!

The glaze is all lemon, baby! These rolls are kind of like a big ol’ glass of strawberry lemonade. Only 1,000x better because it’s a doughy sweet roll. If lemon isn’t your fave, try my cream cheese icing instead. If lemon IS your fave, you need to try my blueberry version too! (–> Different dough recipe. Today’s dough, with two rises, is a little more tender!)

A few napkins are necessary. These rolls are as sticky as the balmy 100°F++ weather heating up my city. Am I weird?* I’m kind of digging this heatwave. Picnics, parks, outdoor folk concerts. S-U-M-M-E-R!

*Don’t answer that.

Follow me on Instagram and tag #sallysbakingaddiction so I can see all the SBA recipes you make! ♥

Strawberry Rolls with Sweet Lemon Glaze

Yield: 12 rolls

Prep Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 5 hours and 40 minutes or overnight

A summery twist on cinnamon rolls, these glazed strawberry rolls can be made ahead to save time in the morning.

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

Dough

• 1 cup (240ml) whole milk¹


• 2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar


• 1 and ½ Tablespoons (14g) active dry yeast (2 standard size packets)


• 1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature and cut into 4 pieces


• 2 large Eggland's Best eggs, at room temperature


• 1/2 teaspoon salt


• 4 and ½ cups (558g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting/rolling (measured correctly)

Filling

• 1 and ¾ cups (222g) finely chopped strawberries²


• 1/3 cup (68g) granulated sugar


• 1 and ½ Tablespoons cornstarch

Lemon Glaze

• 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted


• 2- 3 Tablespoons (30-45ml) fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Make the dough: In a small saucepan, warm the milk over low heat until lukewarm-- about 95°F (35°C). Pour the warm milk into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment (OR you can use a handheld mixer). With a spoon, manually stir in the sugar and yeast. Cover the bowl with a towel and let sit until the yeast is foamy, about 5-10 minutes. If the yeast does not dissolve and foam, start over with fresh yeast. On low speed, beat in the softened butter until it is slightly broken up. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the salt. The butter won’t really be mixing into the mixture, so don’t be alarmed if it stays in pieces. On low speed, gradually add the flour. Once it is all added, beat on medium speed until a soft dough forms-- about 4 minutes.


2. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until the dough is soft and supple, about 6 minutes longer. If you do not have a stand-mixer with a hook attachment, knead the dough by hand in this step.


3. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it with your hands for 1 minute. Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a lightly greased bowl. Cover the dough loosely with plastic wrap, a paper towel, or aluminum foil and let sit in a warm place until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Here’s what I do: turn the oven on to 200°F (93°C). Turn the oven off. Stick the covered dough inside the oven and allow it to rise in this warm environment.


4. As the dough rises, make the filling: Warm the strawberries in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly for 4 minutes until the strawberries begin to release juices. Add the granulated sugar and cornstarch and continue to stir for another 2 minutes. The mixture will thicken. Remove from the heat, spoon into a heatproof bowl or container, and chill until ready to use. You do not want a warm filling as you spread it onto the dough.


5. Grease the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish, then line with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and, using a rolling pin, roll into a 12×18 inch rectangle. Make sure the dough is smooth and evenly thick, even at the corners.


6. Spread the strawberry filling all over the dough. Tightly roll up the dough to form an 18-inch-long log. Cut into 12 even rolls (about 1.5 inches in width each). Arrange them in the prepared baking pan.


7. Cover the rolls and allow to rise in a warm environment once again until the are puffy—about 1 – 2 hours (or overnight, see Overnight instructions.)


8. After the rolls have risen, preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Bake for about 25 minutes, until they are golden brown. About halfway through the bake time, I like to cover the rolls loosely with aluminum foil so the tops don’t brown too much. Remove pan from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes as you make the glaze.


9. Make the glaze: Whisk the lemon juice and confectioners’ sugar together until smooth. Pour over warm rolls and serve. Cover leftovers tightly and keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Baked rolls can be frozen up to 2-3 months and warmed up to enjoy at a later date.

Recipe Notes:

Overnight: For the second rise in step 7, cover the sliced rolls very tightly and let sit overnight in the refrigerator. In the morning, remove from the refrigerator, keep covered, and allow to rise in a warm environment for 1 hour then continue with step 8.

Freezing then baking: Let the rolls rise as instructed in step 7. Bake them at 375°F (190°C) for only about 10 minutes. Cool completely, then cover tightly and freeze up to 2-3 months. Take the rolls out of the freezer and thaw completely in the refrigerator. Then, finish baking them.

1. Whole milk encouraged. 2% is fine, but whole milk is best with its higher fat content. For best taste and texture, I don't recommend any other milk or milk substitutes.


2. Fresh or frozen chopped strawberries work. Do not thaw first if using frozen.

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Same flavors: Strawberry Lemon Poppy Seed Scones and Honey-Sweetened Strawberry Lemonade.

Try my Strawberries ‘n Orange Cream Crepes next!

Eggland’s Best provided me with eggs to bring you this recipe.

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