I love a good breakfast pastry. Warm from the oven and paired with a cup of tea or coffee, it’s exactly how I want to start the weekend. My perfect Saturday starts early with a morning run before my kids and husband are up, then a delicious breakfast together before we have a family adventure day. These strawberry lemon morning buns can be made in advance and allowed to rise in the refrigerator overnight, which means all you need to do in the morning is pop them in the oven! You can’t beat that. They’re perfect for weekend brunch, great for when you have company over, and absolutely delicious warm from the oven. My recipe Ebook includes a recipe for maple bourbon cinnamon rolls that are also made in advance and rise in the refrigerator overnight. It saves you from spending hours in the kitchen in the morning!
These strawberry lemon morning buns have a simple yeast dough similar to what you would find in cinnamon rolls. Richer than a bread dough, it has an egg and melted butter in it to add to the richness and make it feel more like a pastry. The dough also has both lemon extract and lemon zest in it to really bring you that bright lemon flavor. Strawberry jam is used as the filling, and while I used my homemade strawberry jam, you can also use store-bought and it will be just as delicous! After rolling and cutting the buns, they’re rise overnight in the refrigerator. Making them all the same day? Simply let the buns rise for about an hour in the baking dish or pan before baking. The lemon glaze is the final perfect addition to these pastries before you can dive in! 
Since the filling of these morning buns is a jam, you can substitute any jam that you want to change the flavor! Raspberry, blackberry, cherry, peach, or apricot preserves would all be delicious here. Feel free to customize the filling to make it your own! But you can’t go wrong with the strawberry and lemon flavor combination. These breakfast pastries are sure to be a hit; they’re perfect for the long Fourth of July weekend coming up, but also great for Easter, Mother’s Day, a bridal or baby shower, or even a baptism brunch! Really they are delicious for any occasion.
- ¾ cup warm whole milk
- 1 packet active dry yeast
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup melted and cooled butter
- 1 tsp. lemon extract
- 1 tbsp. lemon zest
- 3 cups bread flour
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 to 1½ cups strawberry jam
- 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
- Juice of ½ lemon
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk, yeast, and 1 tbsp. of the sugar. Make sure your milk isn't too hot or it will kill the yeast. Let sit for a few minutes for the yeast to bloom. The mixture should begin to appear foamy and smell "yeasty." If that doesn't happen after 5-8 minutes, start over with fresh yeast.
- Add the remaining sugar, egg, melted butter, lemon extract and lemon zest, and mix to combine.
- In a medium bowl whisk together flour and salt to combine.
- Add flour mixture to the bowl of the stand mixer and mix to combine. Knead the mixture until smooth, only adding more flour if necessary. Add no more than ⅓ cup of additional flour if needed.
- If you aren't using a stand mixer, transfer the mixture to a floured surface and knead with your hands for 10 minutes until the dough is elastic.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise at least one hour until doubled in size.
- Use your hands to punch the dough down (the most fun part!), then roll out the dough into a large rectangle about ¼ inch to ½ inch in thickness. Spread the jam onto the surface.
- To roll, tuck in the ends and then roll gently but tightly into a long log. Cut into individual buns with a sharp knife or bench scraper. I cut mine into 9 buns but you can also cut it into more or less depending on how large you want the buns to be.
- Place the buns in a greased baking dish and cover with plastic wrap. You can let them rise at in a warm place for one hour, or refrigerate them overnight and then bake.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown.
- While the buns are cooling, make the frosting. Using a hand mixer and bowl or a stand mixer, mix together cream cheese, lemon juice, and powdered sugar until smooth. Drizzle over the morning buns and serve warm.
- Enjoy!
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