I have some seriously amazingly delicious sweet rolls to share with you guys, BUT FIRST —
A wee bit of news.
Yes sir, yes ma’am, me and the mister are expecting a little one next May! We are beyond excited (and a little terrified), but mostly just really, really ridiculously excited.
I’m also very excited about chocolate milk right now. And orange juice. And green olives. And McDonald’s cheeseburgers. And pretzels. But sadly, NOT. AT. ALL. about fall produce like sweet potatoes (unless they’re pureed and doused in butter and/or sugar) and butternut squash. Or chickpeas. Yeeesh. No can do.
I’ll be 13 weeks along on Sunday, and I’m hoping that will also be the day that I kick this dang nausea and constant exhaustion. Mayhaps you’ve noticed, mayhaps you haven’t, but I feel like my work has taken a hit in quality in the last few weeks because it takes all the energies to make and shoot a recipe, and by the time I’m taking the final photos I’m basically asleep standing up. It’s been fun. On opposite day.
Anyway, all that to say we are very excited. And trying to enjoy our sleep. We hear rumors that we won’t be sleeping next spring.
All of this news also comes during a week when we found out my aunt Evy passed away suddenly, leaving behind my two teenage cousins and my uncle. It’s been a bittersweet week, to be sure. It has made us ever more aware of how precious life is, whether remembered or celebrated. And I know my aunt was excited about our little bun, too.
There’s really no way to not awkwardly segue to talking about these sweet rolls, so let’s just get to it. I have a confession about them: They are my first-ever experience with Meyer lemons. I KNOW. Frankly I don’t know why I was so daft to wait this long to try them because hello, they’re tasty. That sweet-tart flavor? I can’t get enough of it. Especially when it’s rolled up into a sweet roll with some crunchy poppy seeds, sugar and butter.
The rolls take a little time to make, I’ll admit, but you spend most of that time sleeping (my favorite hobby as of late) so I wouldn’t say it’s a bad thing. The best part is half of the work is done by morning, so you have less time to wait to get these into your tummy for breakfast or brunch. Plus, you don’t have to wait for them to fully cool before you eat them — just drizzle them with some glaze, pull them apart and dig in.
And I mean really, there is nothing much better than a warm, fresh-baked sweet roll straight from the oven, am I right? Well, except maybe chocolate milk. Gosh that stuff is good.
Lemon Poppy Seed Sweet Rolls
Ingredients
For the dough:
- ⅓ cup milk
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for shaping
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast, 1 packet
- ¼ cup warm water
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the filling:
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons Meyer lemon zest, from about 3 small lemons
- Zest of 1 orange
- 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the glaze:
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice, or fresh squeeze lemon juice
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter until butter is just melted. Remove from heat; cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together flour, sugar and yeast.
- Whisk water, eggs and vanilla into milk mixture until combined. Pour over flour mixture in bowl. Add salt. Stir until a dough forms.
- Knead dough by hand on a lightly floured surface 5 to 6 minutes, adding more flour as needed until dough is smooth and elastic; OR, knead dough with dough hook attachment in stand mixer 3 to 4 minutes, adding more flour as needed until dough is smooth and elastic.
- Transfer dough to a lightly greased bowl; turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place 1 to 2 hours until doubled. Punch down dough; chill in fridge overnight, covered.
- The next morning, make the filling: Combine sugar, lemon zest, orange zest and poppy seeds in a small bowl. Grease a 9-inch springform pan; line the bottom with parchment paper.
- Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a 20-by-10-inch rectangle. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle filling on top. Roll up from the long end tightly into a log. Slice the log into 12 equal rolls.
- Place the rolls evenly, cut-side up, in prepared pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 to 1 1/2 hours until doubled.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake rolls 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack; cool 10 minutes. Whisk together glaze ingredients and drizzle over warm rolls. Serve rolls warm or room temperature.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Oh! My! Goodness! I am so excited for you. You will be a wonderful mom. Warm thoughts that the morning sickness will subside soon and for a happy, healthy pregnancy and birth. Also, I wish you could have seen my reaction when I saw the photo. Best wishes, Steph.
How exciting! and what a great way to announce 🙂 last spring was my first experience with meyer lemons and I also felt like I had really missed out! i made this gluten free meyer lemon olive oil cake twice. http://heartbeetkitchen.com/2013/recipes/dessert/meyer-lemon-almond-cake/
i just wish they more readily available in Minnesota!
And also, sorry for your loss 🙁 Hang in there.
Oh my goodness, that is such fantastic news about your new addition Stephanie!:)))) Soo happy for you guys but really sorry to hear about your aunt.
That is so great of you to keep posting all these wonderful recipes while you were having morning sickness – I remember barely even being able to look at food for a few months with my little one- it’s finally starting to subside now.
Hope your nausea goes away soon for you too and I love the cute photo of you and your mister 🙂 You two will be wonderful parents and must be super excited! And these lemony rolls look incredible – perfect for announcing this joyous occasion! Congratulations:)))
Congratulations, dear! Cutest way to announce ever! So sorry to hear of your aunt’s passing – bittersweet weeks are tough. I’m praying for you! As for these rolls, it may be your first experience with Meyer lemons, but you did them proud :).
I am so so excited for you!!! Being a mommy is the most incredible thing ever!! Stock up on the rolls! You’ll need em for energy 🙂
Whaaaa?!?!?! Welcome to the club! So happy for you guys! Once you hit the 16 week mark you should be feeling back to normal. That second trimester is amazing. Lots of energy and no more nausea, hopefully. I’m in the third and let me tell you, taking pics and cooking with a giant belly is not easy. But, don’t worry about that now! This kind of amazing news always comes at the time it is supposed to. Though it may be hard to say bye to your aunt, at least you have that little guy/girl/both to look forward to! Congrats!!!
Congratulations to both of you!! I’m sure this is a very special time for you. Enjoy it!
I’m really sorry to hear about your aunt.
How weird life is huh? Always the good and the bad mingled up together and we have to face everything without being prepared. That’s the beauty of it I guess.
All the best to you and your family!
CONGRATULAAAAATIOOOOOOOOONS! I’m so excited for you, girly! I definitely haven’t noticed a change in the awesomeness in your work, in fact, the first thing I thought was: “wow, she’s pregnant AND she’s still rocking her blog” I think I speak for everyone when I say you have our full support, and I wish I could give you a big hug right now! Huge congrats! Alright, baby and me need some meyer lemon poppy seed rolls!
Ahhhh!!!! So excited for you, dear! You’re going to be the cutest mom!!
Such lovely news and many thanks to you for sharing. What a cute picture at the top of the post.
So sorry for your uncle, and cousins though. Your family is in my thoughts.