Blueberry Breakfast Buns with Zesty Lemon Icing Recipe (Dairy-Free)

These zesty blueberry breakfast buns are a tasty twist on traditional cinnamon rolls. The recipe was submitted by Pam Correll as a Sweet entry in our BIG Snackable Recipe Contest (entries are now closed, but the winners will be announced on that post!).

These breakfast buns are just like cinnamon rolls, but instead of cinnamon, they’re filled with a fruity lemon-blueberry blend. The dough and icing are also infused with lemon for sweet and zesty treat.

If you want to prepare them ahead, make the rolls up to step 2, when you’ve placed them in your baking pan. Cover and place them in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, put the rolls on the counter to warm up while your oven is preheating. Bake as directed.

Special Diet Notes: Lemon Blueberry Breakfast Buns

By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, optionally nut-free, peanut-free, optionally soy-free, and vegetarian.

For egg-free and vegan blueberry breakfast buns, substitute your favorite powdered egg replacer or about a scant 1/4 cup applesauce or mashed banana for the egg. See our Egg Substitute Guide for even more options.

Blueberry Breakfast Buns with Lemon Icing

Prep time

40 mins

Cook time

24 mins

Total time

1 hour 4 mins

Note that you will need about 2 medium lemons for the juice and zest used throughout this recipe. Also, these buns come together relatively quickly, but the Prep time does not include rising time. This is a great recipe to bake while puttering around the house.

Author: Pam Correll

Recipe type: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Serves: 12 blueberry breakfast buns

Ingredients

For the Dough

⅔ cup dairy-free milk beverage
1 package active dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
⅓ cup + ½ teaspoon sugar, divided
3 tablespoons dairy-free buttery spread or sticks, softened
1 egg (see post above for vegan option)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour, divided (plus more for kneading)

For the Filling

½ cup sugar
¼ cup dairy-free buttery spread or sticks, softened
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 cups fresh blueberries

For the Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons dairy-free buttery spread or sticks, melted
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Garnish:

2 teaspoons lemon zest

Instructions

To Make the Dough

Warm the milk beverage to 115°F in a small saucepan. Stir in the yeast and ½ teaspoon sugar and let sit 5 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ⅓ cup sugar, buttery spread, egg, lemon juice, zest, and salt. Add the yeast mixture and stir well for 1 minute. Add 1½ cups of the flour and mix for 1 minute. Add the remaining flour and stir to make a soft dough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, about 5 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover and let set in a warm place for 2 hours, or until doubled in bulk.

To Make the Filling

Stir together the sugar, buttery spread, flour and lemon zest until it forms a paste.

To Make the Rolls

Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface to form a rectangle measuring 12x16-inch. Spread the filling over the rectangle and distribute the fresh blueberries on top.
Roll the dough up tightly from the long end. Slice into 12 equal pieces. Place the rolls, cut sides up into a greased 9x13-inch baking pan.
Cover and let sit in a warm place for 1 hour.
Bake the buns in a preheated 350°F oven for 24 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove the pan to a cooling rack and let cool while you make the frosting.

To Make the Icing:

In a medium bowl, whisk the powdered sugar, buttery spread, and lemon juice until smooth.
Drizzle the icing over the warm rolls.
Sprinkle the lemon zest garnish atop the iced blueberry breakfast buns.