Whipping Up Alabama Orange Rolls with Ease in a Bread Machine

Sneak Preview: These Alabama Orange Rolls are my best copycat version of the rolls served at All-Steak restaurant in Alabama. They may not be identical, but they are incredibly addicting, especially for orange lovers. The recipe includes directions for mixing and kneading in a bread machine, but you can do it by hand or use a stand mixer. See the recipe notes for details.

Alabama Orange Rolls in a large panPin

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A food magazine that printed a recipe for the famous orange rolls served at a steak house in Alabama inspired me. Of course, the first step was to figure out how to use my bread machine to mix and knead it. No problem.

Unfortunately, the rolls from that recipe in the magazine didn’t turn out quite like the famous ones. But that inspired me to see if I could do better.

Why You Might Want To Try These Orange Rolls

  1. The orange flavor is much stronger than most orange roll recipes due to orange juice concentrate and grated orange peel. If you love orange, these are for you.
  2. There is no cinnamon in these rolls. In other words, they are not cinnamon rolls with orange icing. They are orange rolls through and through.
  3. Make the DOUGH in your bread machine, then shape the rolls by hand. See the recipe notes if you prefer or need to mix the dough with a stand mixer or by hand.

(If you would like to know how to convert almost any regular bread recipe to use in your bread machine, see this post.)

Recipe Inspiration

My sister from Alabama has been talking about the famous orange rolls for years. She often encouraged me to come up with a recipe to make them herself at home.

During my annual visit last year, we stopped by the restaurant and picked up some orange rolls. They were still hot and a bit doughy. They were extraordinarily orange in color and taste. The sweet stuff on top was a glaze, not icing like you might put on traditional cinnamon rolls.

Rolling out the dough and cutting rollsPin
Rolling out the dough and cutting rolls

Parting thoughts: These rolls are mighty tasty and so fabulous that I wanted to eat half the pan. Therefore, I’m declaring this experiment DONE!

Although these Alabama orange rolls aren’t exactly like the famous orange rolls from the restaurant, they have earned a space in my bread machine roll collection.



Help at Your Fingertips: For questions or suggestions, email Paula at saladinajar.com. If you need help, I’m happy to troubleshoot via email (faster than leaving a comment). Attach pictures and as many details as possible for the best advice.


Alabama Orange Rolls in a large panPin
Yield: 20 rolls

Alabama Orange Rolls: A Bread Machine Recipe

Try these distinctly orange-flavored sweet yeast rolls you can mix and knead with your bread machine.

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Prep time: 40 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Mix and Rise Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Total time: 4 hours 40 minutes

Ingredients
 

Dough:

  • ¼ cup (57 g) milk
  • ½ cup (120 g) frozen orange juice concentrate (thawed to room temperature)
  • 1 teaspoon table or sea salt
  • 1 large (68 g) egg plus 1 yolk
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 cups (360 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons bread machine or instant yeast

Filling:

  • 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons grated orange zest from two medium oranges

Glaze:

  • ¼ cup (51 g) heavy cream
  • ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons orange juice concentrate
  • 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter
  • teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Add ingredients to a bread machine pan in order given: 1/4 cup (57 g) milk , 1/2 cup (120 g) frozen orange juice concentrate, 1 teaspoon table or sea salt, 1 large (68 g) egg plus 1 yolk, 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, softened, 3 cups (360 g) unbleached all-purpose flour, and 2 teaspoons bread machine or instant yeast Select the DOUGH cycle and press START.
  • Check the dough at least twice by lifting the lid to take a peek. Do this right after the machine starts to see if the paddles are correctly engaged and the dough is starting to form a ball.
    Recheck the consistency of the dough again 15 minutes into the DOUGH cycle.
    If your dough is too wet, add flour one tablespoon at a time. The dough should stick to the side, then pull away cleanly.
    Conversely, if the dough is too dry, add one tablespoon of liquid at a time until the dough looks just right. Find out more about this surprising secret to success with a bread machine here.
  • When the dough cycle finishes, check to make sure the dough has doubled in size. If not, allow dough to continue to rise in the pan until it is double the original volume. IMPORTANT NOTE: Because this is a highly enriched dough, it takes longer than usual to rise. Allow at least an extra hour for this.
  • Remove the dough from the bread machine pan onto a floured surface. Roll into a rectangle measuring approximately 12 x 17 inches.
  • Spread 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, softened over rolled-out dough until it is completely covered. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons grated orange zest and 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar evenly over butter.
  • Begin rolling dough from the long side. Roll as tightly as you can. Cut long roll in quarters. Cut each quarter into 5 evenly-sized rolls.
  • Place inside a buttered 9 x 13 inch pan, cover with a tea towel, and allow to rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes before baking.
  • Preheat oven to 325˚F (165˚C). Bake rolls for 25-30 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 190˚F (88˚C).
  • Mix the glaze while the rolls bake. Combine all ingredients:1/4 cup (51 g) heavy cream, 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons orange juice concentrate, 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, and 1/8 teaspoon ( teaspoon) salt into a small saucepan and heat over medium temperature until the mixture turns syrupy and coats the back of a spoon. Set aside to cool.
  • Pour glaze over hot rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.

Notes

Directions for making bread with a stand mixer or by hand:
  • To make this recipe in a heavy-duty stand mixer:  Add ingredients to the bowl in the same order. Turn on LOW to mix until all ingredients are moistened. Then, using a dough hook, turn the speed to 2 or 3. Continue beating/kneading until dough becomes smooth and elastic (about 5-10 minutes). Cover and allow to rise in a warm place. Deflate dough gently and shape as indicated in the recipe.
  • If making by hand: Combine all ingredients into a shaggy ball in a large bowl. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead with your hands until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Kneading will likely take 10-20 minutes, depending on your experience. Place the dough ball into a greased bowl. Cover and allow to rise until double. Deflate the dough gently and shape as indicated in the recipe.
  • Please note: If you only have active dry yeast, use 1/4 teaspoon more than called for in the recipe. It no longer needs to be dissolved first, but you can if you prefer.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 181kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 124mg | Potassium: 102mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 271IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg

All images and text ©️ Paula Rhodes for Salad in a Jar.com

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15 Comments

  1. Please clarify whether the bread machine lid is open or closed. Instruction #1 says, ” Add ingredients to bread machine pan in order given. Leave lid open.” Instruction #2 says “Check the dough at least twice by lifting the lid to take a peek.” Thank you.

    1. Thanks so much for writing. I recently had to transfer all my recipes to a different kind of recipe card. A few things slipped by me. I have corrected the recipe. To be honest, I usually leave the lid of my bread machine open for the entire mixing and kneading process because I like to keep an eye on it if I’m in the kitchen. Once the kneading stops, I close the lid because the machine keeps the dough slightly warm. However, some of the new machines are now built to stop when you open the lid. So, I’ll have to figure out a different method to deal with that “improvement” whenever my current bread machines die.

      Good luck with your bread.

  2. What can I sub for the heavy cream?? Thanks.

    1. Hi Ju,
      You can use milk but they won’t be quite as rich.

  3. Pls can I use fresh orange juice?

    1. Yes, you can use fresh orange juice. The flavor will be a milder orange. You might like it even better.

  4. Hey Paula, thank you for the Orange Roll recipe. You have got my curiosity up as to where these rolls are originated since I am an Alabama girl. Can you email me as to their whereabouts? I’ve got an idea, but not sure. Thanks! Can’t wait to try these, they look delicious!

  5. How much difference does it make whether the butter I use is salted or unsalted? Is that a “healthy” issue or it because of the interaction in the dough?

    1. No, salted vs unsalted is not a health issue. There’s pretty much nothing healthy about these rolls except maybe a little Vitamin C from the oranges. The reason I use unsalted butter, in general, is because it allows me to control the salt more precisely. If you are using salted butter, cut back on the amount of table salt. How much to cut back is kind of a guess since you don’t know exactly how much salt is in your salted butter.

  6. Paula, these orange rolls look fabulous.
    I can almost smell the orange, from your description. Love the story of how these came about.

    1. Thanks Glenda. Appreciate ya.

  7. Paula, you are an inspiration to bread makers everywhere! This new recipe looks wonderful. Would you please elaborate regarding the instructions on forming the rolls, and how many rolls will this recipe make? Thanks so much.
    Nita

    1. Hi Nita,
      Hopefully, the instructions in the recipe are complete enough to guide you on forming the rolls. It’s basically just like cinnamon rolls. I get 20 rolls when I make them. But you can certainly make yours bigger or smaller if you want to. Feel free to write again if you hit a snag.

  8. Mai Bouchard says:

    Hi Paula, Happy Mother’s Day ! I really like the way you wrote the history of making your recipes. I found it very special and appreciate. Thank you for the new recipe ! Mai Bouchard

    1. Thank you for your kind words, Mai.