Lemon Honey Dinner Rolls
The one Thanksgiving I forgot dinner rolls, my family never let me live it down, so let's make sure the rolls are memorable. These lemon honey dinner rolls are soft, pull-apart fluffy, and bright with real lemon zest baked right into the dough. I brush warm honey butter over them the moment they leave the oven, so it melts into every layer.
What I Love About My Honey Lemon Dinner Rolls
These rolls carry real lemon zest, lemon extract, and honey baked right into the dough, not just brushed on top.
- Lemon in every layer: you taste it in the dough, and again in the butter brushed on after baking.
- A softer crumb than a plain white roll: whole milk and egg give these a rich, tender bite. They hold up well next to gravy or soup.
- A pretty presentation without extra work: bake them in two round pans for a flower shape. Or use one 9×13 pan for the same rolls with less fuss.
- Made from real ingredients: there’s no shortcut mix here, just butter, lemon, and honey you can pronounce. You know exactly what’s going into the dough.
Table of Contents
Key Ingredient Notes
- Lemon extract and lemon zest: using both adds up to a fuller lemon flavor than either one alone. The zest brings fresh lemon oil and aroma, and the extract carries a steady flavor throughout the dough.
- Honey: it plays two roles here: sweetness inside the dough, and richness in the warm butter topping at the end.
- Rapid Rise yeast: it goes straight into the dry ingredients without blooming in warm liquid first. It also moves through both rises faster than active dry yeast. If active dry yeast is what you have, it will still work. Just bloom it in the warm milk mixture for about 15 minutes first, and plan on a longer rise.
- Whole milk: the fat in whole milk is what makes this dough so soft and tender. Lower-fat milk works in a pinch, but the rolls won’t be quite as rich or moist.
How to Make Lemon Honey Dinner Rolls
- Bloom the yeast. Combine sugar and Rapid Rise yeast in a mixing bowl, then stir in milk warmed to 120°F. Let it sit for 10 minutes, until foamy.
- Start the dough. Combine 3 cups of flour and salt in a stand mixer bowl. Mix on low while pouring in the yeast mixture. Add the egg, melted butter, honey, lemon extract, and lemon zest.
- Add the rest of the flour. With the mixer running on low, add the remaining flour a quarter cup at a time until it’s just combined. The dough will be thick, sticky, and starting to pull from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead and let it rise. Turn the dough onto a floured surface, knead it a few times, and shape it into a ball. Cover and let it rise in a warm spot for 30-45 minutes, until roughly doubled. PRO TIP: I like turning on the oven light and setting the covered dough nearby. It keeps a warm, draft-free spot without heating up the kitchen.
- Divide and shape. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each one into a smooth ball.
- Let the rolls rise again. Place the dough balls into two greased 9-inch round pans, six per pan, for a flower shape. Or place all twelve into one greased 9×13 pan for something simpler. Cover and let rise for 30-60 minutes, until doubled.
- Bake. Preheat the oven to 375°F and bake for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown on top.
- Add the topping. Whisk together melted butter, honey, and lemon extract. Brush it generously over the warm rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.
How to Know When Lemon Honey Dinner Rolls Are Done
Golden brown on top is a good visual cue. But yeast dough can look done on the outside before it’s baked through in the center. For a more reliable check, an instant-read thermometer inserted into the middle of a center roll should read about 190°F. Pull the rolls as soon as they hit that mark so they stay soft instead of drying out.
Ways to Serve Honey Lemon Rolls
- Alongside a holiday dinner: these fit right in next to a classic spread of mashed potatoes, turkey gravy, and stuffing.
- With a bowl of soup: dunk one into chicken noodle soup, or pair it with classic tomato soup for lunch.
- As a next-day breakfast: split a leftover roll, toast it, and add a little butter. Or use it as the bun for a quick breakfast sandwich with egg and bacon.
- For sandwich sliders: use extra rolls as a base for Thanksgiving turkey sliders piled with leftover turkey and stuffing.
How to Store, Freeze, and Reheat Lemon Honey Dinner Rolls
- Store: in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Or keep them in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Freeze: baked rolls without the honey butter topping, wrapped tightly, for up to 2 months. Brush on a fresh batch of honey butter after reheating instead of before freezing. The topping can turn soggy in the freezer otherwise.
- Reheat: warm rolls in a 300°F oven for about 10 minutes, or microwave individual rolls for a few seconds.
Lemon Honey Dinner Rolls Recipe FAQs
What’s the difference between rapid rise yeast and active dry yeast in lemon honey dinner rolls?
Rapid Rise yeast mixes right into the dry ingredients and moves through both rises faster. Active dry yeast needs to bloom in the warm milk mixture for about 15 minutes first. The dough will also need extra time to rise at each stage.
Why are lemon honey dinner rolls turning out dense instead of fluffy?
Dense rolls usually come down to the yeast or the rise time. Check that the milk was warm enough to activate the yeast without killing it, about 120°F for Rapid Rise. Then give the dough its full rise time at both stages, instead of rushing it into the oven early.
What pan works best for lemon honey dinner rolls?
Two 9-inch round pans give the rolls a pretty flower shape for a holiday table. One 9×13 pan works just as well for a simpler shape, with no change to the bake time.
How far ahead can lemon honey dinner rolls be made?
Shape the rolls the day before and refrigerate them, covered, right in the baking pan. The next day, let them sit out at room temperature to finish rising. This takes about 30 minutes to an hour, then bake as usual.
More Recipes From Me
- Soft and Fluffy Amish Potato Rolls
- Cheesy Dinner Rolls
- Caramelized Onion Dinner Rolls
- Honey Butter Biscuits
- Easy Southern Buttermilk Biscuits
- Buttermilk Cornbread
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Honey Lemon Dinner Rolls Recipe
The one Thanksgiving I forgot dinner rolls, my family never let me live it down, so let's make sure the rolls are memorable. These lemon honey dinner rolls are soft, pull-apart fluffy, and bright with real lemon zest baked right into the dough. I brush warm honey butter over them the moment they leave the oven, so it melts into every layer.
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Servings: 12 rolls
Calories: 251kcal
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 Tbsp white granulated sugar
- 1/4 oz packet of Rapid Rise yeast
- 4 to 4 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp salted butter melted
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp lemon extract
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp salt
Butter topping:
- 2 Tbsp salted butter melted
- 1 1/2 Tbsp honey
- 1/4 tsp lemon extract
Instructions
- Combine sugar and yeast in a mixing bowl.
- Warm up your milk to 120 degrees and add warm milk to the sugar and yeast. Stir and let the mixture bloom for 10 minutes.
- Add 3 cups of flour and salt to the mixing bowl of the electric mixer. Start mixing on low and pour in the milk mixture.
- Add egg, melted butter, honey, lemon extract and lemon zest to the mixing bowl as well.
- Add remaining flour to the mixture, while it's stirring, 1/4 cup at a time. Mix until all flour is just combined. The dough will be thick and coming off the walls but still sticky.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it a few times.
- Shape it into a circle, cover with some saran wrap and a towel and let it rest and rise for 30-45 minutes. (I usually put my dough on a thick cutting board and I leave it on or near a warm stove. Make sure the stove-top is NOT on but the oven is on low temperature.)
- Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. (You can make smaller rolls and more rolls but dividing into 24 pieces but you will have to adjust baking temperature.)
- Very lightly flour your hands and roll each dough piece into a ball.
- I chose to do these dinner roll in 2 9-inch round pans because I wanted to achieve a flower look. You can choose to use a 9×13 pan and place all dough balls into one pan. Make sure to grease the pans you use.
- Add rolled dough balls into greased pans. Divide the dough balls into 6 in each round pan (or place all 12 in a 9×13 pan). Cover with a towel and let them rise for 30-60 minutes, until doubled in size.
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Bake dinner rolls for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown on top. (Remember to adjust time if making 24 smaller rolls.)
- Melt butter in the microwave and mix it with honey and lemon extract. Brush all dinner rolls generously with the butter mixture.
Notes
- Lemon: using both zest and extract creates the fullest flavor. If only one is on hand, zest alone offers a lighter, fresher note. Extract alone leans more subtle and even, without the fresh oil.
- Lemon extract: in none on hand, you can use lemon zest from 1 lemon, it will be visible though.
- Milk: whole milk makes the richest texture; 2% works but the rolls will be slightly less tender.
- Yeast: substituting active dry yeast for Rapid Rise means blooming it in the warm milk mixture for 15 minutes first. Both rises will also take longer.
- Pan: two 9-inch round pans (6 rolls each) or one 9×13 pan work equally well; only the shape changes.
Nutrition
Calories: 251kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 250mg | Potassium: 108mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 0.03mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 2mg
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Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Made these yesterday for a Lemon-themed dinner party. They were outstanding!!! I did use half bread flour because I had it, and swapped the glaze for a simple egg wash. Formed the dough into double-knotted rolls (4oz each) and baked for 15 minutes at 375 degrees. Not only were the rolls beautiful, they were delicious! The lemon was subtle but apparent, the texture was chewy and spongy, and they were a big hit. Will definitely make again. I took a photo of my finished rolls but don’t see how I can post the picture.
That sounds lovely! I am glad the recipe worked out for you! 🙂
These came out great! Fantastic recipe!
So glad you liked them, Melissa!
These were amazing!
Aw thank you, Sara!