Luscious, Lemon-y Pull Apart Rolls!

Here in northeast Ohio, we have had one lonnnnnngggggg, coooooolllllldddddd winter. While I was out shoveling the driveway last week , my neighbor drove by, then pulled back and rolled down her window. "It's been forever since we've seen you!" she moaned. "This weather is so isolating!" Oh, and that is so true. But thankfully,  it's March 7 today and this 40 degree, sunny day reminds us that brighter days are ahead! The streets are busier, the lines at the car wash are lengthy and we even went to our first 2014 garage sale this morning- a sure sign of Spring!

In anticipation and representation of Spring's arrival, I made these gorgeous Lemon Pull-Apart Rolls this morning for the neighborhood coffee shop. Every "leaf" of the roll is full of lemon-y fragrance and color, not to mention, lots of "ZING"! The construction of these rolls is really MUCH easier than perhaps the instructions would lead you to believe......take a moment and read through them, then get busy and THINK SPRING!!

Luscious, Lemony Pull-Apart Rolls 

Dough Ingredients: 

1/4 Cup warm water

1 packet/Tbsp.Red Star Platinum yeast  

1/3 Cup warm milk 

2 3/4 Cup unbleached, all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 Cup sugar

1/4 Cup softened butter

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 eggs

Place warm water in EZ DOH bucket and stir in yeast. Let rest 1-2 minutes. Add milk, then remaining ingredients. EZ-DOH-it, or mix by traditional methods, until dough is smooth and soft. (Add additional flour slowly if necessary). Gently remove dough from bucket, spray interior of bucket with cooking spray and then replace the dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled. Meantime, mix Filling ingredients ;set aside: 

Lemon-y Filling 

1/2 Cup sugar

2 Tbsp. lemon zest and 1 Tbsp. orange zest 

1/4 Cup butter, melted

Constructing the Rolls: Divide the risen dough in half. Divide each half into 30 equal pieces. (It's easier to work with one half at a time :-) ) . Roll each piece into an oval shape approximately 6x3" . Lightly brush each oval with melted butter, then sprinkle with 1/2-1 tsp. lemon-y filling. Stack five ovals together, then cut the stack in half,width-wise. Take each "half-stack" and gently pinch the base together, causing the top to flare slightly. Place in greased muffin tins (I lined and sprayed mine). Gently pull and shape the layers. Continue until all the muffin tins are full. Sprinkle remaining Filling over the rolls. Cover and let rise till puffy. Bake at 375 for 18-23 minutes. Let cool slightly, then glaze with 1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice mixed with 1 Cup powdered sugar. 

Luscious, Lemon-y Pull Apart Rolls!