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Incredibly soft and fluffy, these frosted orange rolls have a no-knead dough that is filled and topped with a sweet orange icing. Prep these sweet rolls the night before and bake them in the morning for a delicious holiday breakfast.

Two frosted orange rolls arranged on a white plate.

My grandma Poor has always been a source of some of my favorite recipes. Cream cheese ranch roll ups? Veggie pizza? You can thank Grandma for those. 

When I was a little girl, I remember spending the night at my grandma and grandpa Poor’s house on a Saturday night and waking up to Grandma’s cinnamon rolls on Sunday morning.

I’m biased, but no cinnamon roll has ever lived up to Grandma’s soft, pillowy rolls. 

When I moved out on my own and started this site, Grandma sent me her cinnamon roll recipe, which she inherited from her mother, and I learned that it’s one of those recipes that uses one dough to make about 3 or 4 different flavor variations.

This frosted orange roll version is one of my very favorites. Over the years, I have a number of friends who have created their own family traditions around this recipe, making these orange rolls for Christmas or Easter morning.

And that, friends, is exactly why I do what I do. There’s no better feeling than seeing a recipe you grew up loving become a part of other families’ special traditions.

If you haven’t tried Grandma’s orange rolls yet, you absolutely must. I bet they’ll become a favorite for your family, too.

Cake server lifting up a frosted orange roll from the baking dish.

What are frosted orange rolls?

These frosted orange rolls are a sweet, citrusy take on cinnamon rolls. 

They use a cinnamon roll dough, but the cinnamon-sugar filling has been replaced with an orange-flavored icing. Then, after baking, they’re topped with even more orange icing.

Holy moly. 

And remember how I said that no other recipe has ever matched the soft pillowy texture of Grandma’s rolls? Well, that’s because this dough requires absolutely no kneading.

That’s right, this is a no-knead dough, just like my no-knead refrigerator rolls! Eliminating that step means that the dough stays incredibly soft and pliable, making for the absolute softest sweet rolls you’ve ever eaten.

Now, just because there’s no kneading doesn’t mean there’s no rising and waiting time involved. But I’ll walk you through how to make these ahead of time so you’re ready to dive right into warm and delicious orange rolls for breakfast.

Hand pulling apart a frosted orange roll on a white plate.

How to make my grandma’s no-knead frosted orange rolls

The dough for these orange rolls takes a bit of time to rise, but it’s super easy to make. You don’t even need a mixer! 

Ingredients you’ll need

For the dough itself, you will need:

  • 1 envelope active dry yeast
  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1 1/2 cups warm milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar, divided
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 4 1/2 cups flour, divided
  • 1/4 cup shortening, melted
Ingredients for frosted orange rolls arranged on a countertop.

If you have a jar of yeast instead of envelope packets, one envelope of yeast is equal to 2 ¼ teaspoons.

The water and the milk should be warm to the touch, but not hot. On an instant-read thermometer (which I highly recommend having), they should be between 110°F-120°F.

If you don’t have an instant-read thermometer, test the temperature on the inside of your wrist to make sure it is warm but not hot. If the liquid is too hot, it will kill the yeast and your dough won’t rise.

For the orange icing, which is used for filling and topping these orange rolls, you will need:

  • 4 1/2 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons orange zest
  • 3 tablespoons orange juice
  • 2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

I prefer using freshly squeezed orange juice in the icing, since I already have to zest an orange for it anyway. But you can use the orange juice you already have in your fridge if you like.

Making this recipe

To make the dough for these frosted orange rolls, start by dissolving the yeast in the warm water. Add the milk, along with ¼ cup of the sugar and the salt.

Stir in 3 cups of the flour. The mixture will be runny – don’t panic, it’s supposed to be. 

Sweet roll dough after the first rise.

Lightly cover the bowl and let the mixture rise in a warm place for about 1 hour.

After an hour, stir in the rest of the sugar and the melted shortening, then add the rest of the flour. The dough will still be pretty wet, but don’t be tempted to add any more flour!

Cover and let it rise again until doubled, about an hour.

While the dough is doing its second rise, make the icing.

Cream the softened butter, then add the orange zest, juice, and powdered sugar and beat until well combined.

Bowl of orange icing.

Once the dough has doubled in size, dump it onto a well-floured surface and divide it in half.

Using a floured rolling pin, roll each half of the dough into a large rectangle about 15 inches long. Spread ⅓ of the icing onto each portion of the dough, reserving the last ⅓ of icing for topping the rolls.

Roll the dough into a log from the long side and cut each log into 6 equal pieces – they’ll be pretty big!

Place the cut rolls into a greased 9×13-inch pan. Because the dough is so soft, the cut rolls will slump over, but that’s ok. As they continue to rise and bake, they will regain their shape.

If you are baking the orange rolls right away, cover the pan and let them rise until they have doubled, about 30-45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350°F.

Bake the rolls for 25-35 minutes, or until golden brown. Let the rolls cool for a few minutes before frosting with the remaining orange icing.

Overnight and make-ahead tips

Ok so, if you’re anything like me, this is not a recipe you want to mess with early in the morning. Luckily, I’ve got a couple ways around that.

Making the rolls overnight

I’m a big fan of overnight cinnamon rolls, so that’s one of my favorite methods to use with these orange rolls, too.

To make the rolls the night before, follow the recipe directions up through rolling, shaping, and cutting the rolls.

Place the cut rolls into your baking pan. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. 

Pop the rest of your orange icing into an airtight container in the fridge, too.

In the morning, allow the pan of now-risen orange rolls to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. Bake and frost the rolls as directed.

Overhead view of frosted orange rolls in a white pan.

Freezing the rolls

I spent all of my childhood thinking Grandma was getting up with the sun to bake a pan of cinnamon rolls before church on Sunday morning. Turns out, she absolutely was not.

Instead, she would let the rolls cool completely, cut them apart, and place them in zip-top freezer bags.

Then, whenever she needed them, she could take out as many as she wanted and microwave each one for 30-60 seconds. This thaws the rolls and warms them through.

This is a great way to keep leftover rolls for whenever you get a random orange-roll craving!

Frosted orange roll on a white plate with a glass of milk and the pan of rolls in the background.

Recipe FAQs

If you are using an instant-read thermometer, the milk and water should both be between 110°F-120°F, which is warm but not hot to the touch.

If you don’t have a thermometer, use the inside of your wrist to test how warm the liquids are. It’s just the right sensitivity to alert when things are too hot! 

If your dough is taking forever to rise, it’s probably because your house is a bit cold. 

Some newer ovens have a “proofing” setting that works great. Turn that on and it will make the inside of your oven the perfect temperature for letting your dough rise.

If your oven doesn’t have a proofing setting, try placing the dough in the oven with JUST the oven light on. The light will warm up the oven just enough to give the dough a head start.

My mom used to place the dough on top of the dryer while the dryer was running, too! So keep in mind that a “warm place” doesn’t have to always be in your kitchen. Even a sunny window can work in a pinch.

Frosted orange rolls in a white baking dish.

Frosted Orange Rolls

Incredibly soft and fluffy, these frosted orange rolls have a no-knead dough that is filled and topped with a sweet orange icing. Prep these sweet rolls the night before and bake them in the morning for a delicious holiday breakfast.
4.84 from 12 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Rising Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 20 minutes
Servings12 rolls

Ingredients
 
 

For the dough:

  • 1 envelope active dry yeast 2 ¼ teaspoons
  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1 1/2 cups warm milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar divided
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 4 1/2 cups flour divided
  • 1/4 cup shortening melted

For the orange icing:

Instructions
 

  • In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add milk, 1/4 cup of the sugar and salt. Stir in 3 cups of the flour. Mixture will be runny. Let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour.
  • Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and shortening. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour. Dough will still be wet – this is ok, don’t be tempted to add any more flour! Let rise until doubled, about an hour.
  • Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, cream butter for icing. Add orange zest, juice and powdered sugar and beat until well incorporated.
  • After second rise, dump dough on a well-floured surface and divide in half. With a floured rolling pin, roll each half into a large rectangle, about 15 inches long. Spread each rectangle with 1/3 of the icing. Roll up into a log from the long side. Cut each roll into 6 equal pieces. Place cut rolls into a greased 9×13-inch pan. Let rise until doubled, about 30-45 minutes (see notes for overnight directions).
  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • After the final rise, bake rolls for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before frosting with the remaining icing. If freezing, allow to cool completely before cutting apart and placing in zip-top bags.

Notes

This recipe makes 12 large rolls. If you prefer to make smaller rolls, roll each half of the dough into a rectangle about 18-inches long and cut each roll into 9 pieces for 18 total rolls. Divide into 2-3 cake pans or place in an 11×14-inch pan. Rise as directed and bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.
The water and milk for the dough should be warm, but not hot to the touch. The inside of your wrist is a perfect place to test this if you don’t have an instant-read thermometer. If you do have a thermometer, you want to aim for around 115°F.
For overnight rolls:
  • Roll out, shape, and cut the rolls. Place into your baking pan and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place the pan into the refrigerator overnight.
  • The next morning, allow the pan to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. Bake and frost as directed.

Nutrition

Serving: 1roll | Calories: 388kcal | Carbohydrates: 69g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 339mg | Potassium: 114mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 192IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

37 Comments

  1. thanks for sharing your recipe…i love cinnamon rolls, tried to make several times but i can’t get the right softness of my dough…i always ended up asking my supervisor at work to make some for me…orange glaze sounds delicious, can’t wait to try your recipe! thanks!

    1. Please let me know what you think! In spite of all of the risings, this dough really isn’t too hard to pull together and is just so pillowy soft. Also…you could totally do a cinnamon filling and top them with the orange icing, for the ultimate cinnamon roll/orange roll combo…

      1. Are the rolls supposed to come out like a biscuits texture? Mine did, I was thinking they be more like a cinnamon roll texture ,Maybe i did spmething wrong,

  2. Oh how fun! I’m hosting a bridal shower, too! I’m doing cupcake fondue! Tons of mini cupcakes and two different glazes and bowls upon bowls of sprinkles, crushed cookies & candy!

    I love these rolls. Haven’t had them since I was a kid. Need to change that asap!

  3. These look sooooo good. I shamefully admit that I’ve always loved the Pillsbury Orange Rolls. So I can only imagine how much more I’d love them home made 😀

  4. I would place the rolls in two eight inch round pans. Then you can freeze one after baking. I prepare rolls filled with butter, a little sugar, fresh blueberries and blueberry preserves like this. In my glaze, I use milk and fresh lemon juice. I can’t wait to bake the orange rolls.

  5. I made these yesterday and shared with my neighbors. My 85 yo neighbor said they were the Best thing I’ve ever made. My daughter swears I did not bake them but bought them from a bakery – ‘they are too good to be homemade.’ These were Delicious, a big hit and I will be sharing your recipe with everyone I know! THANK YOU!

  6. I made these today, they turned out perfect. I am so glad you told us not to be tempted to add flour, or I am sure I would have. I have them in the freezer for Easter. They truly are pillow soft.

  7. These look good. My husband loves to cook so I wrote this recipe down for him and going to get everything he needs to make them. Thank you for sharing all your good recipes with us

  8. I made your copycat Texas Rhoadhouse roles a couple weeks ago and though they aren’t quite like Texas Rhoadhouse, they were DELICIOUS! I came back to your website today to find another bread to make (bc you did NOT let me down last time) and came across these. OH. MY. GOSH! These are SO SO GOOD (and I’m kind of a good snob). Bless your grandma’s heart for having this recipe and passing it on to you. And bless YOUR heart for sharing!! Thanks!

  9. Well, tried to read thru the posts on this, and may have missed it, but do you use all purpose flour or self rising? These look delicious!

  10. A sincere Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your willingness to share this treasure of a recipe with us!!
    It will definitely become one my sons and their families request!
    Maybe a Christmas Eve tradition as our love language is defined FOOD! ❤️

4.84 from 12 votes (12 ratings without comment)

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