I’m joining my friends Cindy and Mary Ann for Sunday favorites, and these old-fashioned orange rolls will be perfect for any Sunday or maybe even Easter brunch! I love an “old school” recipe that reminds me of something my grandmother would have made.
This recipe is from Genevieve Ko in New York Times Cooking.
PrintOld-Fashioned Orange Rolls
This recipe is based on the recipe from Genevieve Ko. I made a few changes because we used what we had on hand; we used blood oranges and loved the results, but you could use any oranges. The more zest the better!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 27 minutes
- Total Time: 47 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: breakfast
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 blood orange
- 3 tablespoons cold butter, cubed. Plus, more softened butter for the skillet.
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese
- 2/3 cup whole milk
For the Filling
- 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
For the Glaze
- 1/4 cup cream cheese, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- Juice and zest of one blood orange
Instructions
- Make the dough: Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and whisk together. Add the butter and cream cheese and combine. Add the milk and stir and form into a ball.
- Place in the freezer while you make the filling.
- Butter a 10-12″ cast-iron skillet.
- To make the filling, combine the brown sugar and the zest of one orange. (zest the orange over the bowl), and add the cinnamon and cardamom.
- Roll the dough on a floured surface in a rectangle that measures about 12-by-5 inches.
- Spread the softened butter over the surface and cover it with the sugar mixture.
- Then roll lengthwise into a log, cut in half, and again until you have eight pieces.
- Space evenly in the skillet, with 1/2″ space between each slice, and bake in a 375º oven for 24-27 minutes.
- Make the glaze and spread it all over the rolls. Adding more orange zest if you would like! Enjoy!
Now onto a few more Sunday favorites about home decor
I’m a neutral girl, but lately, I’ve been loving color!
Our first homes in Phoenix and Southern California were filled with color. It was only a few years, but when I say color, I mean a bright pink and white striped sofa, a red dining room table, and a chair covered in a bold, colorful pattern. We even had an accent wall in the living room painted bold cobalt blue. It was the late 1980s, so imagine the Mexican glassware with the blue rim that was the inspiration for the wall color. It was bold, and we loved it.
Shabby Chic
Then we fell in love with Shabby Chic. Distressed painted furniture, white denim slipcovers, and washed woven fabrics in warm colors for pillows. We shopped the boutiques along Montana Avenue and, in those days, couldn’t afford to buy a lot, so that’s when Brent built our farm table that we still use today.
Neutrals
Since those early days, we have stayed with neutrals. White, cream, black, gray, leather, natural seagrass, and wood. It makes it easy to mix and match from room to room. Even moving, things get repurposed around the house, but everything blends beautifully from the living room to the attic to the bedrooms and office.
Is it possible we are getting tired of neutrals?
So many brands like Jenni Kayne have made it easy to love neutrals. There’s plenty of texture with boucles, sheepskins, linens, and wood. But is it possible that it’s over-saturated? Rooms start to look alike. It’s hard to tell if you’ve seen it before. Do you know what I mean?
Is Color Trending?
I may always be a neutral girl, but lately, I must admit I have been drawn to color. I have noticed one particular kitchen that keeps appearing in my feed, and I love it each time.
In addition to this Holland Park project from Lonika Chande, I’m sharing a few of my favorite homes and spaces that use beautiful colors!
Design by Lonika Chande
London
Amanda Holland – Small Acorns
Wellington, New Zealand
Hollie Velten
Maplewood, New Jersey
Sarah Brown
West London
Serena & Lily
Everything (including sale items) is 20% off at Serena & Lily with code SPRING.
Thank you for being here…
So that’s it from my desk this week! Delicious old-fashioned orange cinnamon rolls just in time for Easter brunch and lots of talk on color vs. neutrals. I would love to hear your thoughts.
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Interesting recipe Annie! As you know I have anxiety around working with yeast and typically stay away from cinnamon rolls for that reason. Love that these use baking powder and the orange sounds like a winner working with all that sweetness! Can’t wait to try! xo
They were way easier but still delicious! And a lot quicker!
Hi Annie,
Lovely post thank you! I adore color and love having saturated color around the house in little pieces that captures the eye but for the big things like furniture l tend to stick with neutrals now. You made ma laugh about the Shabby Chic time as l could not afford any of the pieces but would still try and get to the flea markets early to find good furniture to whitewash. Those gorgeous sofas of Shabby Chic !!One of my biggest shopping regrets was not buying two large glass bottomed lamps that were a gorgeous apple green l found once. Very bold and dramatic. Over my budget of course and l fell hard. Love these designers thank you for posting. Happy week Annie xo
Francesca,
I don’t think I ever bought a thing at Shabby Chic, but every time I visited, I left with inspiration on what to look for at flea markets and for things that my husband would build! I know the feeling of leaving something behind and can’t quite get it out of your mind! Those glass-bottomed apple-green lamps do sound gorgeous!
xx
Annie those rolls look yummy and I love the colorful interiors you featured. Is the neutral girl going for color? I can’t wait to see that! I love color but prefer to keep my main furniture pieces neutral so I can easily change things out!
These cinnamon rolls sound amazing! I would love to share them on my newsletter.
Renae! That would be amazing! They are so yummy! Thank you! ❤️
Those orange rolls really struck a nostalgic chord with me, as I remember my mom making them. I’m sure hers were the kind that you popped out of a tube, but still a sweet memory.
Love those colorful rooms! Our family room in the 90’s was full of bright blue, turquoise, and orange pillows and vases, and bold prints (Thomas McKnight, Raoul Dufy).
Sarah, I had to look up those artists, I wasn’t familiar. Lots of color! Fun!
Hey Annie! I am color all the way! Never met a color I didn’t like. I love all these pretty interiors. And if I was still eating gluten I would make those yummy rolls….Hey wait – maybe they would work with almond flour?!! 🤔
Gray! I don’t know why they couldn’t be made with almond flour….I need to be making more swaps like that!
It must be my imagination but I swear I smell your orange rolls baking. I haven’t made a yeast roll in a while … it’s time! I love color … and those London kitchens are swoon-worthy. So cheerful and happy. Thanks for the heads up on the Serena & Lily sale … I need a few things for spring. I spring ever comes to California. Ha! xo
Juliet,
There’s no yeast in these rolls! They are so quick, but they don’t taste like it! I hope you are finally getting some sun in California this weekend!
xx
I have been looking for some new Blood Orange recipes and these Cinnamon rolls will fit the bill. , Thank you. I am a neutral girl, but like you, ‘I am starting to love color again. I just purchased a Liberty print Blue dress, which I love for later in the Spring and Summer. But I also bought some Navy things to transition into the warmer months. I wore my 10 year old navy pinstriped pants suit with a white silk blouse to a luncheon on Saturday. My friends told me that I looked taller– it’s my posture project that has made the difference.
Beth,
I’m intrigued by your “posture project” -a navy pinstriped pantsuit is the perfect year-round and especially spring suit to have…makes me wish I had one from 10 years ago in the back of my closet! So smart to hang onto good pieces!
A
Look at Anna Spiro , Australian interior designer. She does colour so well.
Hi Rita! Yes! Thank you for reminding me of Anna Spiro! I love her work!
I’m salivating over here!!! Those breakfast rolls look amazing,
I think I am gravitating toward pops of color…like blue and green since it is all around us here. I’m wondering what you are planning with color?!