Lemon Poppy Seed Breakfast Rolls (2024)

January 28, 2022 by Joy the Baker 35 Comments

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These Lemon Poppy Seed Rolls are good enough for print but too good to keep from you here on The Internet.

This recipe is one of the most popular recipes in Joy the Baker Magazine Winter 2021 which, as it so happens, is leaving newsstands this weekend. If you meant to snag one and haven’t gotten your mitts on a copy yet – last chance! – grab one online here! I put so much love into these magazines! I mean for them to live on your cookbook shelf forever as a little piece of my heart.

But THESE ROLLS tho! Think: cinnamon roll (-cinnamon) (+lemon zest) (+poppyseeds) plus/minus the square root of b(squared) minus 4ac divided by 2a.

Kidding on that last part. I’m just still looking for a reason to have learned the quadratic formula, you know?

These are OVERNIGHT rolls, meaning the shaped rolls rest overnight in the refrigerator before baking the following morning. You can skip this step if you need the rolls in a hurry, but I love the overnight option to develop the flavor of the yeasted dough and to let me sleep in while still flaunting an amazing morning pastry.

If you’d like to FREEZE the unbaked rolls, double wrap the shaped rolls and freeze for up to 1 month. The night before you’d like to bake, transfer the frozen rolls to the refrigerator to thaw. Allow the rolls the rest at room temperature to warm and rise as directed below before baking.

These rolls are also delicious with meyer lemon or orange zest instead of classic lemon.

Rate and comment this recipe if you’ve made it and leave any baking questions below! xo

Lemon Poppy Seed Breakfast Rolls

5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star5 from 12 reviews

Author: Joy the Baker
Prep Time: 2 hours + overnight
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 25 minutes + overnight
Yield: 12 rolls 1x
Category: breakfast, brunch

Print Recipe

Description

A sweet and citrusy warm and gooey breakfast roll. The dough rests in the refrigerator overnight for fresh pastries in the morning!

Ingredients

Scale

For the Dough:

1 cup whole milk, warmed to just warmer than body temperature about 105–110 degrees F.
1-package (2 ¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast
1/3 cup (66 grams) granulated sugar
4 1/3 cups (574 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
3 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup (1 stick, 113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into large chunks
3 large eggs, at room temperature and beaten to combine

For the Filling:

½ cup (1 stick, 113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Zest of two lemons (about 2 ½ tablespoons)
¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar

For the Glaze:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
¼ cup (4 tablespoons, 56 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Zest of two lemons (about 2 ½ tablespoons)
1 1/2 cups (150 grams) powdered sugar, sifted if clumpy
Pinch of kosher salt
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

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Instructions

To make the dough, sprinkle the yeast over the warmed milk. Add a pinch of sugar from the 1/3 cup sugar and allow the yeast to activate. After 5 minutes, the yeast mixture should be foamy and fluffy.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add remaining sugar, flour, poppy seeds, and salt. Stir with a spatula to combine. Add the butter chunks, beaten eggs and finally the yeasty milk mixture. Stir again with a spatula to combine into a shaggy dough.
Place the mixer on medium speed and allow to knead for 3 minutes. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and return to medium speed to knead for another 5 minutes. The dough should mostly come into a cohesive ball that gathers around the dough hook. The bottom of the dough may stick to the bowl. If the dough seems too sticky to do this, add a few more tablespoons of flour.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead my hand a few turns just to ensure the dough is smooth and bouncy. Lightly grease a bowl (you can absolutely use the bowl you mixed the dough in), place the dough in the greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour.
To make the filling, in a small bowl combine lemon zest and sugar. Rub together with your fingers until evenly combined and fragrant.
To make the glaze, place cream cheese in a medium bowl. Make sure that the cream cheese is very well softened and if not, microwave it for a few seconds to make sure it’s supremely softened. Use a spatula to spread the cream cheese around the bowl, making it super pliable. Add the softened butter and stir until no lumps from either the cream cheese or butter remain.
Add the lemon zest, powdered sugar, poppy seeds, and salt and slowly work to combine. Drizzle in lemon juice and stir until smooth. Cover and set aside.
When the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured counter and press gently. Use a rolling pin to roll into a 14×20-inch rectangle, with the longest side facing you.
Spread with softened butter. Sprinkle generously with lemon sugar. Starting from the long side nearest you, roll into a tight coil ending seam side down. Slide a piece of plain dental floss under the middle of the dough and bring the ends of the floss up and around the log and pull together to cut the dough cleanly. Use the same technique to divide each half log into six equal pieces, about 1 ½-inches thick, for 12 rolls total. Arrange rolls in a lightly greased 9×13-inch baking dish, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Remove the rolls from the refrigerator. Allow to come to room temperature and proof slightly for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Place a rack in the upper third or center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover the rolls and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and puffed and cooked through. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes. While still warm, top with half of the glaze mixture. Allow to soak in. Cool the rolls even further, 15-20 minutes, and glaze once again. Serve warm and enjoy! Rolls are best the day they are made but last up to 3 days. For best results the day after baking, toast in a toaster oven before serving.

Notes

To make these rolls without the overnight rest, shape the rolls, cover with plastic wrap and allow t0 rise for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. Proceed with baking as detailed above
To freeze the rolls, double wrap the shaped rolls and freeze for up to 1 month. The night before you’d like to bake, transfer the frozen rolls to the refrigerator to thaw. Allow the rolls the rest at room temperature to warm and rise as directed below before baking.

Photos with Emily Ferretti for Joy The Baker Magazine

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Reader Interactions

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I Made This

Questions

Rebecca

April 1, 2024 at 1:36 pm

Made these as well as some standby super rich cinnamon rolls for Easter and these got special mention from the family! The lemon and sugar filling cooks out a little and makes a crackly edge that was a great addition. I will make these again relatively soon because I had one of those situations where I *thought* I had plenty of poppy seeds and *thought* I had cream cheese on hand, etc., etc., and had to wing a variety of details when it turned out I was wrong. . . Happily, the rolls were still delicious, light, unusual, and easy to make! Thanks for the recipe!

Reply
Annie Romero

January 10, 2024 at 1:06 pm

instead of using instant yeast can I use my sourdough starter?
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Reply
- Joy the Baker
  
  January 15, 2024 at 2:58 pm
  
  I’m not super experienced with sourdough starter baking. For some reason I can never keep mine alive, lol. So I believe the answer is YES, but you’ll have to rely on your own starter baking experience for measurments.
  
  Reply
Monica

July 20, 2023 at 5:13 am

I doubled these using the recipe scaling tool built into the site – just a heads up that the measurements update for butter but “1 stick” does not. I ended up using half the butter and the result wasn’t great. This is my fault for not reading the recipe carefully – but wanted to share that feedback about the recipe scaler.

Reply
Jennifer L Mastick

April 3, 2023 at 6:58 pm

Truly amazing… I don’t know why these aren’t in all the bakeries.

Reply
Kay

January 3, 2023 at 10:18 am

Absolutely incredible! Love the tart citrus combined with the creamy and sweet icing. I made this for my mothers’s birthday brunch and it disappeared in record speed. Already planning to make another. :)

Reply
Gilbo

December 25, 2022 at 5:42 pm

AMAZING

Reply
Liz

July 22, 2022 at 5:56 am

These are deadset amazing and worth the effort. Thanks for this great recipe

Reply
Liz H

June 16, 2022 at 9:31 pm

These are so easy and consistently come out amazing! It’s the perfect blend of sweet and sour. The only downside is it’s hard to not eat the whole pan in one sitting!

Reply
Missy

March 6, 2022 at 8:48 pm

Wow these have easily become my new stable for brunch/breakfast/snack! Could you substitute a GF flour mix for celiac?

Reply
- Abby Mallett
  
  June 22, 2022 at 2:13 pm
  
  Hello Missy! You can absolutely sub in GF flour like Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 flour or Cup4Cup!
  
  Reply
Erica

February 7, 2022 at 10:04 am

Oh my goodness- these were AMAZING! My whole family loved them. What a perfect treat for a cold winter morning. Thanks for this recipe!

Reply
Amanda

February 5, 2022 at 5:24 pm

These were SO GOOD – nice and bright and lemony! Will definitely be a repeat in my household. Joy – if I wanted to halve the recipe, how many eggs should I use?

Reply
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- Abby Mallett
  
  February 10, 2022 at 11:23 am
  
  Hi Amanda! I’m so glad you liked them. In reference to halving the recipe, because the eggs are beaten, you could technically use 3 eggs and only put in half, reserving the remaining eggs covered in the refrigerator for an omelette or something. Alternatively, you could use 1 extra large egg in lieu of using 3 and splitting them. I hope this helps!
  
  Reply
Amber

February 1, 2022 at 4:46 pm

These rolls were absolutely delightful and so easy to make. The only problem I had was with the yeast. Sprinkling didn’t activate the yeast for me. Had to start fresh and stir the yeast/ milk/ sugar together. Other than that these were amazing! Thank you Joy.

Reply
- Abby Mallett
  
  February 10, 2022 at 11:27 am
  
  Hi, Amber! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe. Regarding the yeast, there are a number of factors that can cause it not to bloom – many out of your control, but you were absolutely right to start fresh. I’m sure they were amazing! – xo
  
  Reply
Emma

January 30, 2022 at 5:09 pm

These were amazing! I split the recipe into two cake pans and froze one so we can have them another time. I followed the recipe except that I substituted a plant-based milk because that’s what we had on hand. Delicious! I will definitely make them again.

Reply
samantha campanini

January 30, 2022 at 8:53 am

Still trying to do the math, but surely I’ll love those rolls anyway!!

Reply
Emily

January 30, 2022 at 6:42 am

These rolls are incredibly delicious. So so so good! To quote my sister after I brought these to New Year brunch- “ These are a triumph!”
Thank you Joy!

Reply
Kate

January 29, 2022 at 10:11 am

My family loathes cream cheese icing (except me!). Any thoughts on how to make a glaze without cream cheese?

Reply
- Diane
  
  January 29, 2022 at 12:09 pm
  
  Do you soak the poppy seeds beforehand since they’re hard seeds (30 minutes)?
  
  Reply
- Anne
  
  January 29, 2022 at 3:31 pm
  
  Here’s just the first of many results of a search for “glaze without cream cheese”: https://cakewhiz.com/easy-cinnamon-roll-icing-recipe/
  
  Reply
  - Erin
    
    April 10, 2024 at 2:30 pm
    
    I was surprised to see there isn’t any lemon in the dough itself. I love lemon baked goods to have a strong lemon flavor; how punchy is the lemon in this recipe? Going to make them ASAP but wondered if I should up the lemon flavor some.
    
    Reply
- Jillian
  
  February 13, 2022 at 5:25 pm
  
  My family and I are not cream cheese icing fans and we loved this recipe! I put half the icing on the hot rolls as directed and left the other half on the side for people to add more as they wished. All this to say- the icing is not super cream-cheese forward and compliments the recipe beautifully.
  
  Reply
Noreen

January 29, 2022 at 8:38 am

Definitely making these this weekend. Directions are super clear but one question… do you stir slightly the milk yeast sugar mixture?
Thanks Joy!

Reply
Patrizia

January 29, 2022 at 7:46 am

Could these be made with an active sourdough starter instead of the yeast? If so, what would be the proportions? Thx!
I just joined and site is amazing!

Reply
- Brook
  
  May 10, 2022 at 10:06 am
  
  My sister made these over the weekend using her usual sourdough cinnamon roll dough recipe and Joy’s filling and frosting and they were amazing!
  
  Reply
  - Joy the Baker - Founder
    
    May 10, 2022 at 1:15 pm
    
    Oh that’s excellent!
    
    Reply
Suzy Parker

January 29, 2022 at 5:51 am

I am making these today for our big brunch tomorrow morning because they sound delicious, plus where else but Joy the Baker. Com can you find the quadratic equation mentioned along with breakfast roles??? Great Job Joy!
Suzy Parker

Reply
- Hannah Forman
  
  February 6, 2022 at 8:32 am
  
  Made ’em, loved ’em. I split the recipe into two round baking dishes and gave one to my sister-in-law the night before with baking instructions. Took a little longer than 25-30 min in my oven (per usual) because I’m a “210-degrees-internal-temp-or-bust” kind of girl when it comes to yeasted dough. So perfect for late winter when we’re getting the itch for spring.
  
  Reply
Corrie S

January 28, 2022 at 7:03 pm

I really want to make these (ok, I mostly just want to eat them!) However I do not own a food processor. I know, I don’t deserve to bake! I do have a good processor…? Suggestions appreciated!

Reply
- joythebaker
  
  February 1, 2022 at 12:14 pm
  
  Do you mean a stand mixer? You can make these rolls by hand, the dough will be just a bit sticky – not enough to completely stick to your hands.
  
  Reply
Sophia

January 28, 2022 at 3:21 pm

These look delicious! Do you think the recipe could be easily halved?

Reply
- joythebaker
  
  February 1, 2022 at 12:15 pm
  
  Yes absolutely! The recipe can be halved and baked in a 9×9-inch square pan!
  
  Reply
Laura

January 28, 2022 at 8:15 am

Delicious! I only used the filling & frosting recipe – I’m in the tiny baby season so went with my standard, I know it by heart cinnamon bun dough recipe -SO Good! My husband was a little sad I gave some buns away… but really, we do not need 6 each!

Reply

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