🍓 Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Glaze are soft, sweet, fluffy rolls filled with strawberry jam. Topped with a sweet and tangy cream cheese glaze, they’re an easy make-ahead option perfect for Easter, Mother’s Day, or weekends. Soft, buttery, and tender, they’re perfect with a cup of coffee and always disappear fast!
Easy Sweet Strawberry Rolls Recipe
I had been wanting to make a fruit-based sweet roll for a while, so I finally did, and made them as a little Mother’s Day gift to myself. These soft, tender rolls are filled with strawberry jam and topped with a dreamy vanilla cream cheese glaze.
Even better, I took a page from my overnight cinnamon rolls, turning these strawberry rolls into a make-ahead treat. So you can skip the 5 am wake-up call. Inspired by a larger batch recipe, I scaled these down for a smaller family and experimented with coconut milk, as I did in my Soft and Chewy Coconut Milk Bread.
They’re a little messy to roll. Jam will escape, and that’s part of the fun. The result is absolutely worth it: fluffy, buttery rolls packed with sweet, sticky fruit and finished with a glaze that stays perfectly soft. Waking up, popping them in the oven, and filling the house with that warm strawberry-bread scent made for the kind of Sunday morning that ends with a very happy clean plate club.
I have made this recipe multiple times! Always comes out perfect and always a hit. Oh.. and that left over glaze? Also makes a heck of a coffee creamer!
Lorna Hill
Ingredients You’ll Need
These strawberry sweet rolls come together with simple, easy-to-find ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Egg
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour for soft, fluffy rolls. You can also use bread flour, but your strawberry sweet rolls will have a chewier bite
- Granulated Sugar
- Oil: Use a neutral-tasting oil like canola oil or vegetable oil
- Instant Dry Yeast: I used Red Star Platinum instant yeast, which is my gold standard. It’s an instant dry yeast, so you don’t have to proof it first with water and wait for it to get bubbly and foamy. Do not substitute active dry yeast. It’s not the same
- Salt
- Milk: I prefer whole milk for a richer taste and tender texture, but any milk or even heavy cream will work
- Filling: Unsalted butter and strawberry preserves or jam. You can also swap the strawberry flavor by using blueberry, raspberry, peach, or apricot preserves or jam
- Cream Cheese Glaze: Cream cheese, granulated sugar, unsalted butter, and vanilla extract
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Strawberry Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze
These strawberry sweet rolls are simple to prepare. However, there are quite a few steps. So, I highly recommend reading through the entire recipe below and planning accordingly.
- Prepare the dough: Combine all the ingredients except the milk in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Activate the yeast by combining it with warm milk. Then, pour the milk over the dry ingredients, and knead to combine.
- Proof the dough: Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover, and let it rise and double in size in a warm place. Then, transfer the risen dough to a lightly floured surface and knead to combine.
- Roll the dough: Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle, and spread butter over the surface. Spread the strawberry filling in an even layer, leaving a small, roughly 2-inch border around the edges. Roll the dough into a tight log, as I do with my chocolate cinnamon rolls.
- Proof: Slice the dough log into rolls. I like to use unflavored dental floss for clean, even slices! Transfer them to a prepared baking pan, cover with plastic wrap or a towel, and rest for a second rise. Or, chill in the fridge! Arrange the rolls in a prepared baking dish seam side down, and bake until lightly golden brown and cooked through.
- Add the glaze: While the rolls cool, combine all the glaze ingredients with a stand mixer or hand mixer. Then, spread the glaze over the top of the rolls. Feel free to add a sprinkle of powdered sugar and fresh diced strawberries, too. Enjoy!
Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Glaze
Equipment
- 1 Stand Mixer Fitted with a Paddle Attachment
- 1 (9-inch) Round Glass Pie Plate
- 1 Small Bowl
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 large egg
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus up to 1/4 cup additional, to be added only if necessary
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
- 2 ¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- ½ cup milk, I used Trader Joe’s Light Coconut Milk in a can; try buttermilk, cow, goat, almond, soy
- For the Filling
Filling
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, very soft – let it sit out while dough rises
- about 3/4 cup strawberry preserves or jam, or try another flavor; blueberry, raspberry, peach, apricot
- For the Cream Cheese Glaze
Cream Cheese Glaze
- about 3 ounces, about 1/3 cup cream cheese, softened
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- For the Dough – To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or make and knead by hand using a large mixing bowl; plan to knead for about 10 minutes), combine all ingredients other than milk; set aside. For now, use 2 1/4 cups flour. Note – Use all-purpose flour, or bread flour as a substitute. Do not use whole-wheat, white-whole wheat or any ‘wheaty’ flours. When people have issues with dough not rising, it’s usually because they used whole wheat flour. This recipe was not tested or developed for whole wheat flour.
- Add milk to a glass measuring cup and warm to temperature, about 45 seconds on high power in the microwave. (Based on the type of yeast used, milk temperatures will vary. Red Star Platinum yeast calls for warmer temperatures than most, 120 to 130F; other brands and yeast call for much lower temperatures, about 95 to 105F. Warm milk according to manufacturer’s recommendations on the packaging. Taking the temperature with a digital thermometer is highly recommended, but if you’re not, make sure the milk is warm, not hot. Err on the cooler rather than hotter side so you don’t kill the yeast.)
- Pour the milk over the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl and knead on low speed for about 7 minutes (10 minutes by hand).
- If after 5 minutes dough is very sticky and it seems more flour is needed, add the remaining 1/4 cup flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough clears the side of the bowl, but sticking to the bottom is okay. The dough is sticky and tacky, although not excessively so. Don’t be tempted to over-flour it. It’s supposed to be loose and moist; that’s normal. The more flour you add now, the less fluffy and more dense the rolls will be. Dough should clear the sides of the mixer while kneading but sticking to the bottom is fine. If you’re kneading by hand, you’ll likely need more flour than if kneading via stand mixer. With all bread-making, evaluate your dough and if you deem it necessary to add more flour than I called for given my dry San Diego climate, then do so.
- After kneading, turn the dough out into a large, greased bowl, cover with plasticwrap, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 2 hours, or until doubled in size. Create a warm environment by preheating your oven for 1 to 2 minutes to 400F, then shutting it off. This creates a 90F-ish warm spot. Slide the bowl in and wait while the yeast works. Just make sure your oven is off.
- After the dough has doubled, punch it down, turn it out onto a floured surface or Silpat and knead it for about 3 minutes.
- For the Filling – Spray a 9 or 10-inch pie plate or similar sized baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.
- With a rolling pin, roll dough into approximately an 18-inch-by-12-inch rectangle, just eyeball it.
- Add the butter, and spread evenly over the surface.
- Add the jelly and spread evenly, leaving a small margin near edges.
- Starting with a long side, roll to form a tight cylinder.
- Slice the cylinder into 8 to 10 evenly sized pieces (I made 9 pieces, each about 2 inches wide) using a bench scraper, serrated knife, or plain unwaxed dental floss (works great to not squish and compact the log). Jelly will escape out; it’s to be expected. Push back in what you can but don’t worry about it.
- Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking pan. Cover with plasticwrap.
- At this point you can…Either – Allow the rolls to rise in a warm, draft-free place until nearly doubled, about 60 to 75 minutes and then bake. (I use the 400F oven trick for 1 minute again)
- Or – Refrigerate the rolls for up to 18 hours. This is the Make-Ahead/Overnight Option. Prior to baking, let dough rise in a warm, draft-free place until nearly doubled, about 60 to 75 minutes. (I use the 400F oven trick for 1 minute again)
- Which ever option you choose, in the last minutes of rising, preheat oven to 350F.
- Bake at 350F for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly golden on top and cooked through. If you notice your rolls are becoming darker before centers are cooking through, covering with foil in the second half of cooking will reduce over-browning, however I did not need to do this, but ovens and dough vary.
- While rolls bake, make the Cream Cheese Glaze by combing all ingredients in a small bowl and beating until smooth, either with a whisk or a mixer. Play with ratios of all ingredients to suit your taste
- After baking, generously drizzle glaze over the warm rolls. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I have made this recipe multiple times! Always comes out perfect and always a hit. Oh.. and that left over glaze? Also makes a heck of a coffee creamer!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Lorna, and I’m glad that you’ve made these multiple times and they’re perfect! I LOVE your suggestion about leftover glaze…I am trying that next time!
I made these rolls for a picnic bunch yesterday. They were superb! Texture and flavor were both marvelous. I doubled the recipe for a 9 x 13 pan and that worked perfectly. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad they were superb!
I made these rolls for a picnic bunch yesterday. They were superb! Texture and flavor were both marvelous. I doubled the recipe for a 9 x 13 pan and that worked perfectly. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
I made this rolls for Christmas and LOVED them — they turned out great. I used a stand mixer and I guess I only kneaded the dough until it was a silky texture. I loved the texture that the oil and coconut milk provided too! So yummy!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad you loved them and they were great!
I just made them. Put them in fridge and plan on baking them tomorrow. I also found the dough hard. I even double checked if I used the right amount of milk. I used a cherry preserve I got at Costco. That’s what I had at home. Hope they will taste as good as they look.
Hi. I had this pinned for a while because I LOVE strawberries! I followed the recipe but like others, was kind of disappointed with the dough. It’s quite bland. I wonder if cinnamon roll dough would work. Maybe there isn’t enough salt? I will try these again with a different dough. I LOVE this idea!
Salt will add more flavor, yes. Between the jam and the glaze, I don’t find it lacking but if you do and want to experiment with salt, go for it. Thanks for trying the recipe.