Easy Overnight Orange Rolls (Printer-Friendly)

Fluffy rolls brightened with orange zest, softened butter, and a sweet citrus glaze for a delightful morning.

# What You Need:

→ Dough

01 - 3.5 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 0.25 cup granulated sugar
03 - 2.25 teaspoons instant dry yeast
04 - 0.5 teaspoon salt
05 - 0.75 cup whole milk, lukewarm
06 - 0.25 cup unsalted butter, melted
07 - 2 large eggs, room temperature
08 - Zest of 2 large oranges

→ Filling

09 - 0.25 cup unsalted butter, softened
10 - 0.5 cup granulated sugar
11 - Zest of 1 large orange

→ Glaze

12 - 1 cup powdered sugar
13 - 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
14 - 1 teaspoon orange zest

# How To Make It:

01 - In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.
02 - In a separate bowl, combine milk, melted butter, eggs, and orange zest.
03 - Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until a sticky dough forms.
04 - Knead by hand or with a stand mixer using dough hook for 7 to 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
05 - Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours until doubled in size.
06 - Punch down the dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to a 10 by 16 inch rectangle.
07 - Spread softened butter over the dough, then sprinkle with sugar and orange zest.
08 - Roll up the dough tightly from the longer edge and cut into 12 even rolls.
09 - Arrange rolls in a greased 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
10 - In the morning, let the rolls sit at room temperature for 45 to 60 minutes, until puffy.
11 - Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
12 - Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.
13 - While baking, whisk together powdered sugar, orange juice, and zest until smooth.
14 - Drizzle glaze over warm rolls before serving.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The overnight rise means you wake up to rolls that are already puffed and ready to bake—no scrambling, just pop them in the oven.
  • Fresh orange zest scattered through the dough and filling creates an unexpected brightness that somehow tastes both elegant and homey.
  • They're soft enough that even people who say they don't bake get excited watching them turn golden.
02 -
  • If you forget to take the rolls out to warm up in the morning and panic, just give them a full 90 minutes at room temperature instead—they'll still puff beautifully, just take a bit longer.
  • The orange juice in the glaze can sometimes be too acidic and curdle the powdered sugar; if this happens, add just a touch more powdered sugar or use a squeeze of honey instead for smoothness.
03 -
  • If you don't have a microplane, use the smallest holes on your box grater held at a shallow angle, which prevents you from grating too much of the bitter white pith along with the zest.
  • The moment you pull these from the oven, the rolls are fragile—wait at least a minute before drizzling glaze so it doesn't all run off, but don't wait more than five minutes or the rolls cool too much for the glaze to set properly.
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