How to Make Fresh & Fruity Blueberry Lemon Rolls

We’ve made cinnamon rolls. We’ve made pumpkin rolls. One can never have too many rolls, so now we’re making delicious blueberry and lemon rolls. Scalding is my method of choice for creating ultimate softness and it works extremely well in this recipe.

You can customize these rolls by filling them with any other filling that you like or simply swap the blueberries with any other berry. Leave the lemon out of the dough and fill them with cheese and herbs for a savoury option.

As I demonstrate in the video you can either bake these rolls on the same day or refrigerate them after final proofing and bake them the next morning for breakfast.

This recipe makes 6 large rolls. To make more simply multiply all the ingredients.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the filling –

200g (7oz) berries

30g (1oz) lemon juice

40g (1.4oz) sugar

10g (0.35oz) cornstarch

For the frosting –

50g (1.75oz) full fat cream cheese

30g (1oz) soft butter

5g (0.17oz) vanilla paste

1 lemon worth of zest

140g (4.9oz) icing sugar

For the scald –

50g (1.75oz) white bread flour

160g (5.65oz) boiling water

20g (0.7oz) sugar

5g (0.17oz) salt

50g (1.75oz) melted butter

For the main dough –

4g (0.14oz) instant dry yeast or 4.8g (0.16oz) active dry yeast or 12g (0.42oz) fresh yeast

1 egg yolk

1 lemon worth of zest

200g (7oz) white bread flour

To learn more about no-knead bread dough temperature control click here.

The flour I use has a protein content of 13%. If your flour is weaker, then you may need to lower the hydration. 

If you are using active dry yeast, then you may need to let it sit in the water for 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients or else it could take a lot longer to raise the dough.

If you are curious about why the dough contains butter, egg, and sugar, click the links to learn more about the effects those ingredients have on bread dough.

Method

1. Make the filling. Combine the blueberries and lemon juice in a small pan and set it on high heat. Cook for around 6 minutes until slightly thickened. Add the sugar and cornstarch, mix, and keep cooking for another 2 minutes. Pour into a bowl and place in the fridge to cool down completely.
2. Make the topping. Combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and lemon zest. Mix well. Add the icing sugar and mix until smooth. Refrigerate until needed.
3. Make the scald. Pour the boiling water over the flour and mix well. Add the sugar, salt, and butter. Mix until smooth. Cover and leave to cool down.
4. Make the dough. Add the yeast, lemon zest, and egg yolk to the scald. Mix to dissolve the yeast. Add the flour and mix to a dough. *Desired dough temperature around 24C (75F). If your dough is warmer, then it will ferment more rapidly. If it is cooler, then it will take longer. Adjust fermentation time accordingly.
5. Cover and ferment for 1 hour.
6. Fold.
7. Ferment for 1 hour.
8. Roll the dough out to a large rectangle. Spread the filling over it evenly leaving an exposed edge at the top. Brush the edge with water. Roll the dough up and seal it.
9. Brush the roll with butter and cut it into 6 equal pieces. You can cut it into 8 if you want smaller rolls. Place in a non-stick paper lined baking tray and press down to flatten them slightly. Cover.
10. Final proof 1.5 hours. After this you can bake them right away. Or do what I did and cold ferment them for 12 hours and bake the next day.
11. Let the rolls warm up white the oven is pre-heating.
12. Brush with the egg white and bake at 170C (340F) fan on for 25 minutes.
13. Cool down before topping with the frosting. Tuck in!

Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.

Your oven may be different too, so your baking time may vary.