Light and fluffy Orange Rolls will be your new breakfast go-to recipe.  These rolls are the “melt in your mouth” kind of good, the “stuff that dreams are made of” kind of good.  They are buttery soft and every crevice is filled with a delicious sweet orange filling.  If you love the flavor of orange, make sure to check out my orange creamsicle cupcakes!

Orange Sweet Rolls, Piece

Orange Rolls

I have been on a complete orange kick lately.  Actually, an Orange Creamsicle kick! From fresh oranges and fresh-squeezed orange juice to orange desserts like orange bars and orange creamsicle puppy chow.  When I decided to experiment with this recipe I was going to call them “Orange Creamsicle Rolls” but opted for the simple title of Orange rolls. 🙂

The other day we were having company over for breakfast and I promised them a sweet roll.  I tend to fall back on my tried and true cinnamon rolls for this type of occasion, but this time I wanted to try something new.  Don’t get me wrong, they are amazing, but I am always looking to expand my baking!  I love the idea of combining two things I love, in this case, breakfast rolls and orange.  Let me tell you, cinnamon rolls have met their match with this combo!

Glazing Orange Sweet Rolls

Orange Rolls Recipe

There are three primary sections to this recipe.  The dough, the filling, and the glaze.  Start by preparing your ingredients:

Orange Sweet Rolls

Sweet Roll Dough

The base for this sweet roll dough is the same as our raspberry cream cheese rolls and Lemon Blueberry Sweet Rolls. It is one of the easiest doughs to work in part due to the ingredients and in part due to the process.  To make this dough whisk together the milk, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and the yeast.   Let that sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes.  The mixture will get a little foamy.  Add in eggs and whisk until the mixture is smooth.

Next, move to your stand mixer.  Make sure it is fitted with a dough hook.  In the bowl, combine the remaining sugar, flour, and salt.  Add the milk mixture and turn the mixer on low.  Slowly add pats of butter, blending well between additions.  Once everything is combined, turn the mixer to medium for 1 minute and then switch to medium-high to knead until the dough is soft (about 5 minutes).

Transfer the dough to a medium-sized buttered dish.  Brush the top of the dough with melted butter and cover with plastic wrap.  Let the dough rise in a warm area until doubled in size (about 1 hour).  Give the dough a good punch and turn it out onto a floured surface.  Roll out a 10×15 rectangle, that is about 1/4 inch thick.

One bite of Orange Rolls

How to Make Orange Rolls

Once your dough is rolled out the rest is a piece of cake…or roll:) Just combine the marmalade salt and melted butter.  Spread that on top of your dough.  Then, sprinkle brown sugar over the entire thing (leaving about a 1/2 inch on the top edge clear for sealing at the end).  Tightly roll the dough into a log using the bottom long edge as a starting point.  Using a very sharp knife or dental floss (I will explain that later), cut the rolls into 8-12 equal pieces.  I like my rolls a little bigger so I usually go with 8.  Place each roll into a greased 9×13 pan.  Put the pan in a warm, dry place and let them rise again (about 1 hour) and then pop them in the oven for about 25 minutes.  You are going for a golden-brown crust.  Remove them from the oven and let them sit on the counter for about 5 minutes while you prepare the glaze.

Orange Roll Glaze

In a small bowl, mix together the heavy cream and the confectioners sugar until smooth.  Add more heavy cream if you want the glaze to be lighter.  Pour this mixture over the warm rolls and serve!

Orange Sweet Rolls on Plate

How to Slice Sweet Rolls with Dental Floss

After rolling all the goodness up into sweet rolls, sometimes it’s hard to slice them into individual-sized rolls without smooshing them. If the knife you are using is not sharp enough, that can lead to the squishing of the rolls before they are baked. A great method to save you from frustration is dental floss! Yep, dental floss.

To use dental floss, first, make sure it is plain (not flavored) floss. Slide a long piece of floss underneath the rolled-up rolls and wrap the floss around the roll about 2 inches in. Pull to slice through the roll. Continue this method every two inches or so. Now, don’t forget to go floss your teeth, but use a new piece of floss!

Looking for More Breakfast Recipes?

Loaded Hashbrown Breakfast Nachos

Breakfast Donut Ball Coffee Cake

Blueberry Breakfast Cake

Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole

Raspberry Cream Cheese Sweet Rolls

Blueberry Lemon Sweet Rolls

Orange Sweet Rolls
5 from 4 votes

Orange Rolls

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Rest/Rise 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes
Light and fluffy Orange Rolls will be your new breakfast go-to recipe.  These rolls are the "melt in your mouth" kind of good, the "stuff that dreams are made of" kind of good.  They are buttery soft and every crevice is filled with a delicious sweet orange filling.

Ingredients

Dough

  • cup whole milk, warmed in microwave for about 30 seconds
  • 5 tablespoons sugar, divided
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, room temperature
  • ½ tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Orange Filling

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 cup orange marmalade
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup brown sugar

Glaze

  • 4 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar

Instructions

Dough

  • In a medium bowl, combine milk and 1 tablespoon sugar. Sprinkle yeast over milk and whisk to blend. Let sit until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs; whisk until smooth.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine remaining 4 tablespoons sugar, flour, and salt. Add the milk mixture. With the mixer running, add butter, 1 piece at a time, blending well between additions.
  • Mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Knead on medium-high speed until the dough is soft, about 5 minutes.
  • Brush a medium bowl with some melted butter; place the dough in the bowl. Brush the top of the dough with the remaining melted butter; cover with plastic wrap.
  • Let dough rise in a warm, draft-free area until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
  • When you are ready, punch the dough, turn out onto a floured surface, and roll into a 10x15 rectangle (it should be about 1/4 inch thick).

Orange Filling

  • In a small bowl combine the butter, marmalade, and salt.
  • Spread the orange mixture over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the far edge. Sprinkle the brown sugar all over. Roll the dough up, pinching with your fingers to keep it tightly rolled. Press the seam to seal before positioning the log seam side down.
  • Use a very sharp knife cut the dough into 8 equal pieces. Place in a greased 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
  • Place the rolls in a warm dry space and allow them to rise for 1 hour.

Baking

  • Bake at 350°F for about 25-30 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes.

Icing

  • While the rolls cool, whisk together the icing ingredients until smooth. Drizzle all over the warm rolls and serve.

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Meet Amanda Rettke

Amanda Rettke is the creator of I Am Baker, and the bestselling author of Surprise Inside Cakes: Amazing Cakes for Every Occasion – With a Little Something Extra Inside.Over the course of her 15+ year blogging adventure, she has been featured in and collaborated with the Food Network, New York Times, LA Times, Country Living Magazine, People Magazine, Epicurious, Brides, Romantic Homes, life:beautiful, Publishers Weekly, The Daily Mail, Star Tribune, The Globe and Mail, DailyCandy, YumSugar, The Knot, The Kitchn, and Parade, to name a few.

Reader Comments

  1. Through trial and error. I warmed the milk in microwave lightly. This help the yeast become active. While mixing with dough hook I noticed the recipe needed a bit more flour. I added up to another 1/4 cup. Dough was perfectly soft and formed. I also found that confectioners sugar was a lot smoother for the icing. Granulated sugar was very grainy and never smoothed out. I also mixed the brown sugar in with the marmalade instead of sprinkling on top. Much better mixture. ENJOY.

  2. After eating a roll I found that there really isn’t enough flavor. I think the next time I make this I will add orange extract to the icing. The dough with my changes was really good. The recipe alone needs to be adjusted. Remember to slightly warm the milk for the yeast. Add orange extract to icing. Add additional flour while mixing until you get the right consistency. This dough would Make a great cinnamon roll too.

  3. Did you ever try putting a little orange juice in the glaze.? The ones I remember had a little orange in the glaze.
    I change recipes all the time omit things I don’t like and things I do like.

  4. Made these today for our Breakfast for Dinner. They are AMAZING and not hard to make. I added a T of melted butter and 2 T marmalade to the icing. Seriously, bakery quality – better than bakery actually!

  5. Can we use ORANGE ZEST AND ORANGE JUICE for orange rolls please. Trust me they are good!!!
    BUT I need a good recepi. I am NOT a fan of marmalade. Do not at all like it.

    Thank you
    8-26-23

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