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The Best Glazed Orange Sweet Rolls

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These homemade orange rolls are filled with a buttery orange filling and are topped with a simple orange glaze. They can be prepped the night before, if needed.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, or as needed
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast, one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum
  • pinch salt, to taste
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • 2 large eggs, lightly whisked

Instructions

  1. Make the Dough
  2. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook (or use a large mixing bowl and wooden spoon and your hands), add 3 cups flour, sugar, yeast, salt; set aside.
  3. In 2-cup glass measuring cup or microwave-safe bowl, and the butter and heat to melt, about 1 minute on high power.
  4. Add buttermilk to melted butter and warm to temperature, about 45 seconds on high power in the microwave. (Based on the type of yeast used, milk temperatures will vary. Red Star Platinum yeast calls for warmer temperatures than most, 120 to 130F; other brands and yeast call for much lower temperatures, about 95 to 105F. Heat the mixture according to manufacturers recommendations on the packaging. Taking the temperature with a digital thermometer is highly recommended, but if youre not, make sure the milk is warm, not hot. Err on the cooler rather than hotter side so you dont kill the yeast.) If the milk separates or gets a little funny looking after being warmed, whisk it to smooth it out.
  5. Add butter-buttermilk mixture to the dry ingredients in mixing bowl.
  6. In a small bowl, crack and lightly whisk the eggs, and then add eggs to mixing bowl.
  7. Turn mixer on low speed and allow it to knead dough for about 5 to 7 minutes (about 7 to 10 minutes by hand using a wooden spoon and then switching to your hands). 3 cups of flour and 5 minutes is perfect for me, but if after 5 minutes your dough is very sloppy, wet, and wont come together, add up to 1/4 cup flour, or as needed until it does come together. However, the more flour added, the denser and heavier the rolls will be; wetter dough is preferred to overly dry. If dough is dry or crumbly, drizzle in buttermilk until it comes together.
  8. Remove dough from the mixing bowl, spray a large bowl with cooking spray, place the dough in the bowl, and flip it over once so its lightly oiled on both top and bottom.
  9. Cover bowl with plasticwrap and place it in a warm, draft-free place to rise for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or doubled in size. I keep my bowl inside a powered-off oven that I preheated for 1 minute to 400F, then its powered off. Do not, repeat do not, keep the oven on. The pre-heated, warm oven creates a nice 85F-ish environment, ideal for yeast. If your rising spot is cold, rising will likely take longer than 2 1/2 hours.
  10. While dough rises, line a 9×13-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
  11. Roll Out the Dough & Fill
  12. After dough has doubled in size, punch it down. Turn dough out onto a Silpat or floured countertop.
  13. With a rolling pin, roll it out to about 26-by-13-inches. Use the 13-inch side of the 9-x13 pan to eyeball it, no need use a ruler.
  14. Using a knife, evenly spread butter over dough, leaving a 1/2-inch bare margin.
  15. Add about 3/4 cup marmalade, more as needed, and smooth it with a knife. It should be a thin-ish layer; too much and you risk it leaking, but not enough and the rolls arent orangey enough; use your judgment. The butter and marmalade get smeared together, which is okay.
  16. Evenly sprinkle the brown sugar over the top, and lightly pat it down with your fingertips to help it adhere.
  17. Slice the Dough
  18. Starting with a long edge (the 26-inch side), roll the dough into a tightly wound log, with the seam side down.
  19. Using a knife, make small hash marks so there will be 20 evenly sized rolls (about 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide; or make bigger rolls and yield 12 to 16). Hash marks create less guesswork once you start slicing and things get messier and harder to eyeball where to slice; the hash marks are nice place-markers.
  20. Use plain, unwaxed dental floss to slice the rolls. I highly recommend slicing the rolls with floss, not knives. Floss does not squish or compact the log like knives do.
  21. Arrange the rolls in the prepared pan, 5 rows of 4 rolls across. Cover with plastic wrap.
  22. Let rise in a warm, draft-free place until the rolls have nearly doubled in size, about 1 hour. (See note below)*
  23. Bake the Orange Rolls
  24. Bake at 375F for about 15 minutes, or until lightly golden on top and cooked through (ovens, dough, and climates vary and so will baking duration, but 1 to 2 minutes matters in this recipe). Watch rolls like a hawk and dont overbake or they wont taste nearly as good.
  25. Make the Orange Glaze
  26. In a medium bowl, add the orange juice, vanilla, confectioners sugar, optional salt, and whisk to combine; mixture will be thick.
  27. Drizzle in the milk as needed until mixture can be whisked smooth and is to desired consistency.
  28. Whisk in 2 teaspoons zest; set aside remainder.
  29. Evenly pour glaze over rolls.
  30. Evenly sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon zest.
  31. Serve immediately. Rolls are best warm and fresh, but will keep airtight at room temp for up to 4 days; reheat in micro for about 5 seconds to re-soften or as desired. I am comfortable keeping glazed rolls at room temp and do not recommend storing them in the fridge because they will dry out.

Notes

*To make the orange rolls the night before: Dont let rolls rise after theyve been sliced and placed in covered pan. Place pan in refrigerator for up to 16 hours. Before baking, let the rolls rise at room temperature until they have nearly doubled in size, about 1 hour. Then move onto the section labeled “Bake the Orange Rolls.”
To freeze these rolls: Rolls can be made and baked to completion, and then frozen for up to 6 months; unthaw and glaze immediately prior to serving. I recommend baking them from start to finish and then freezing, rather than trying to freeze unbaked dough, if you want to make in bulk in advance.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://www.delicetreats.com/the-best-glazed-orange-sweet-rolls/