Easy Cranberry Rolls

Fill your bread basket with Cranberry Rolls. Loaded with dried cranberries and orange zest, these aren’t just any cranberry dinner rolls. Serve these cranberry orange yeast rolls for breakfast with Sweet Cream Cheese, butter, or jam or load the dinnertime bread basket with them for a sweet to mix with your savory.

These Cranberry Rolls are great for a Holiday Dinner or to include as a side dish for a Lunchtime Meal Prep. They make a great addition to a Snacky Dinner or an alternative to Cinnamon Rolls at your Christmas Brunch. Cranberry Rolls are an all around good cheap eat.

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These Cranberry Rolls are some of our family’s favorite, particularly at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Each time I make them, I wonder why I don’t do it more often. They are delicious and they disappear in a flash!

Why Make This

They are delicious. These cranberry yeast rolls are similar to Hot Cross Buns, but without the icing. They don’t need it! They’re so good with just a bit of butter.

They’re easy. Whether you want to make the dough in the bread machine, in the stand mixer, or just by hand, these cranberry rolls come together in a flash. Add them to your list of Easy Brunch Ideas & Recipes.

They’re whole grain. One of the things that I love about these cranberry orange rolls is that they contain a good amount of whole wheat flour, but they don’t taste “wheaty”. I think this is thanks to the white whole wheat flour. It’s a whole grain, but doesn’t have that strong wheat flavor that some whole wheat flours have.

They’re cheap! With prices what they are these days, doing your own baking is always a good idea. These Cranberry Rolls are pretty cheap to make, especially since they’re made with regular grocery staples.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make Cranberry Rolls:

milk – I use whatever dairy milk I have on hand, but you can use plant or dairy milk in this recipe.

egg – You just need one egg to help soften the texture of these whole wheat dinner rolls.

butter – Butter also helps the texture of the rolls. You can also use margarine, oil, or a plant-based butter if you like. Have extra for spreading on the warm buns. If you use unsalted butter, increase the salt by ⅛ teasponon.

honey – Honey is a great sweetener for these rolls. You can also use sugar or maple syrup.

flour – I use both white whole wheat flour and unbleached, all purpose flour. The white whole wheat brings whole grain without making it too heavy.

salt – Salt does a lot of good things for bread. Don’t omit it. 

spices – I use just a bit of ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg to flavor this Cranberry Rolls recipe. You can also use ground ginger or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to bring other flavors to the dough.

orange – The zest is all you need, so make a plan to slice the orange or use the orange juice in another way.

active dry yeast – You’ll need yeast to help these sweet rolls rise.

dried cranberries – I like the addition of the dried cranberries. Not everyone likes Cranberry Sauce, so this is a great way to bring the tart berry to the table. And if — IF — there are leftover Cranberry Rolls, they’d be great made into sandwiches with the Turkey Leftovers. 

Variations

For smaller rolls: divide the dough into 12 or 16 portions. Reduce the baking time to be sure not to burn the rolls.

For Cranberry Swirl Rolls: If you’d like to make these more cinnamon roll-style, these will be next level Cranberry Rolls. Once the dough is prepared, roll it out to a 9×13-inch rectangle. Spread ½ cup softened butter over it. Sprinkle ½ cup brown sugar over the butter. Starting at one long edge, roll it up, jelly-roll style. Slice into 12 rounds and place in the prepared pan. Bake as directed.  Frost with a ½ batch of our Fluffy Cream Cheese Frosting.

Step-by-Step Instructions

There are three different ways to prep the dough for Cranberry Rolls. Choose the one that works best for what tools you have in your kitchen.

To make the dough in a stand mixer:

• Combine the milk, butter, honey, and yeast in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Allow to proof for five minutes. 
• Add the egg, flours, spices, salt, orange zest, and dried cranberries. Knead until a smooth dough forms. 
• Transfer to a greased bowl and turn the dough ball to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

To make the dough in bread machine:

• Combine the milk, egg, butter, honey, flours, gluten, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, orange zest, and yeast in the pan of your bread machine according to the manufacturer’s directions. 
• Set on the dough cycle and start the machine. After a few minutes of kneading, add the cranberries. Scrape down the sides of the pan, and make sure a dough ball forms. Allow it to continue for the rest of the dough cycle.

To make the dough by hand:

• Place the milk, butter, and honey in a large mixing bowl and add the yeast. Stir and allow the yeast to proof for 5 minutes. 
• Add the egg, flours, cranberries, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and zest. Stir to combine into a shaggy dough. 
• Turn the mixture onto a lightly floured surface and knead. Continue kneading for 5 minutes, to create a smooth, elastic dough, adding more of the all-purpose flour as necessary. 
• Transfer to a greased bowl and turn the dough ball to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

When the dough is ready:

• Line a 9×13-inch pan with parchment paper.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and divide it into 8 portions. Form each portion into a tight round. 
• Place the buns in the prepared pan and allow it to double in bulk, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
• Brush the tops of the rolls with milk and bake the rolls for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a rack before serving.

These rolls are definitely best served the day of baking, hot from the oven and slathered with butter, but you can make them in advance and store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Freeze Cranberry Rolls for longer storage. When ready to serve, thaw them on the counter, wrapped. You can warm them in the oven (350 for about 5 minutes) before serving if you like.

TLDR? Watch the Easy Cranberry Rolls for Breakfast or Dinner web story.

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5 from 1 vote

Cranberry Rolls Recipe

Whole grain rolls dotted with sweet cranberries — what's not to love? Bake a batch of Cranberry Rolls to eat now and one to freeze for later.

Prep Time2 hrs

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time2 hrs 20 mins

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: 8

Calories: 337kcal

Author: Jessica Fisher

Cost: $5

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

• ▢
  stand mixer
• ▢
  bread machine
• ▢
  large mixing bowl
• ▢
  9×13-inch baking dish
• ▢
  parchment paper
• ▢
  wire rack

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 cup milk, warmed plus extra for brushing
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ ¼ cup butter, melted
• ▢ ¼ cup honey or maple syrup
• ▢ 2 cup white whole wheat flour
• ▢ 1 ½ cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ▢ 1 orange zested
• ▢ 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
• ▢ ½ cup dried cranberries

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

To make the dough in a stand mixer

• Combine the milk, butter, honey, and yeast in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Allow to proof for five minutes. 
• Add the egg, flours, spices, salt, orange zest, and dried cranberries. Knead until a smooth dough forms. 
• Transfer to a greased bowl and turn the dough ball to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

To make the dough in a bread machine

• Combine the milk, egg, butter, honey, flours, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, orange zest, and yeast in the pan of your bread machine according to the manufacturer’s directions. 
• Set on the dough cycle and start the machine. After a few minutes of kneading, add the cranberries. Scrape down the sides of the pan, and make sure a dough ball forms. Allow it to continue for the rest of the dough cycle.

To make the dough by hand

• Place the milk, butter, and honey in a large mixing bowl and add the yeast. Stir and allow the yeast to proof for 5 minutes. 
• Add the egg, flours, cranberries salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and zest. Stir to combine into a shaggy dough. 
• Turn the mixture onto a lightly floured surface and knead. Continue kneading for 5 minutes, to create a smooth, elastic dough, adding more of the all-purpose flour as necessary. 
• Transfer to a greased bowl and turn the dough ball to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

When the dough is ready

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 9×13-inch pan with parchment paper.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and divide it into 8 portions. Form each portion into a tight round. 
• Place the buns in the prepared pan and allow it to double in bulk, about 30 minutes.
• Brush the tops of the rolls with milk and bake the rolls for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a rack before serving.
• To make this in advance: The baked and cooled rolls can be placed in a ziptop freezer bag and stored in the freezer. Thaw them on the counter before serving. Rolls can be reheated in a 350° oven for five minutes to warm.

Notes

Nutritional values are approximate and are based on 1 roll from the recipe (makes 8). Refrigerate leftovers promptly and use within 3 days.

For smaller rolls: divide the dough into 12 or 16 portions. Reduce the baking time to be sure not to burn the rolls.

For Cranberry Swirl Rolls: If you’d like to make these more cinnamon roll-style, these will be next level Cranberry Rolls. Once the dough is prepared, roll it out to a 9×13-inch rectangle. Spread ½ cup softened butter over it. Sprinkle ½ cup brown sugar over the butter. Starting at one long edge, roll it up, jelly-roll style. Slice into 12 rounds and place in the prepared pan. Bake as directed.  Frost with a ½ batch of our Fluffy Cream Cheese Frosting.

To freeze: Allow the rolls to cool completely on a rack, then transfer to a ziptop freezer bag. Seal, removing as much excess air as possible. Store in the freezer for up to 6 weeks. When ready to serve, thaw them on the counter, wrapped. You can warm them in the oven (350 for about 5 minutes) before serving if you like.

Nutrition

Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 359mg | Potassium: 185mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 294IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 76mg | Iron: 2mg

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This post was originally published on November , 2013. It has been updated for content and clarity.