These rhubarb sweet rolls are the perfect combination of tart and sweet! With a sweet roll base, a tart rhubarb filling, and a lemon-y sugar glaze, these rhubarb sweet rolls will be a great way to use up that extra rhubarb you might have.

rhubarb sweet rolls sit on a plate with cast iron pan filled with more rhubarb sweet rolls

Ahh, it’s finally spring! And spring means time to start harvesting some of those early crops from the garden like rhubarb. I’ve whipped up quite a few batches of my easy old-fashioned rhubarb muffins and a naturally sweetened rhubarb raspberry cobbler, but I wanted to experiment and see if I could create a new recipe this year. Experimenting in the kitchen is one of my favorite things to do, and I was really excited with the results here- so excited I thought I should share them with you!

These rhubarb sweet rolls are created with my cinnamon roll sweet roll dough slightly modified and then filled with a tart rhubarb filling. After baking, these delicious sweet rolls are topped with a lemon powdered sugar glaze to pull everything together for a delicious dessert! I hope you enjoy them! Let me know in the comments what you think!

Ingredients for Rhubarb Sweet Rolls
Steps to Making Rhubarb Sweet Rolls
Printable Recipe
More Recipes to Try
More Rhubarb Recipes
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Ingredients for Rhubarb Sweet Rolls

Like all of my recipes, these rhubarb sweet rolls are made with wholesome ingredients that you probably already have at home.

Sweet roll dough:

Lukewarm Milk: The milk provides flavor and texture to the rolls. Making it lukewarm helps the yeast to start to “wake up”.
Active Dry Yeast: This is the leavening agent to get those sweet rolls to be fluffy and light
2 Large Eggs: For binding, flavor, and coloring
Butter: For softness and flavor
Sugar: For sweetness

Rhubarb filling:

Rhubarb: Fresh from the spring garden and cut into small pieces will work beautifully, but frozen will also work
Lemon Juice: For flavor
Vanilla: We like to use our homemade vanilla, which adds flavor.
Sugar: For sweetness
Cinnamon: For flavor
Butter: For softness and flavor
Flour: To thicken and absorb the moisture

Lemon glaze:

Butter
Vanilla
Lemon Juice
Powdered Sugar

Steps to Making Rhubarb Sweet Rolls

These rhubarb sweet rolls have a couple different steps, but they are definitely worth it!

Prepare the Sweet Roll Dough

Warm your milk to a lukewarm temperature. You’ll want it to be warm, but definitely not hot. The warmth of the milk is what will help activate the yeast.
Whisk in the eggs, butter, and sugar. Mix completely.
Slowly add in the flour, one cup at a time. The amount of flour that you actually use will vary based on how your dough feels. You’ll be looking for a dough that is tacky, but not sticky. It should not be covering/sticking all over your hands after kneading it, but it should still be a tacky texture. Finding the perfect dough consistency takes some practice and trial and error, but once you figure out what it feels like exactly, you’ll remember forever!
Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes, adding more flour in as needed (if it becomes too sticky). Knead your dough into a rounded ball, then return to a greased bowl to allow it to rise. A good way to get your bread to rise quickly is by placing your dough in a sunny spot in the house, or turning the oven onto the lowest temperature, then once it’s preheated, turn it off and place the dough inside to rise. If the temperature is too hot, it will kill the yeast and no rising action will happen at all! You want a warm, dark place to allow the rising to happen.
Allow the dough to double in size. This should take between 20-30 minutes. Don’t think that a longer rise is better- it’s not. The longer the rise, the more airy the cinnamon rolls will be. We want a chewy, gooey texture, so just allow the dough to rise long enough to double.

Rhubarb sweet rolls sit on a plate with more in the background

Prepare the Rhubarb Filling

To a saucepan over low/medium heat, add your chopped rhubarb, lemon juice, vanilla, sugar, flour, and cinnamon.
Stir the rhubarb filling as it heats, cooking until the rhubarb has softened and sauce has thickened.

Create the Sweet Rolls

Now that the dough is risen and a fluffy ball of air, you’ll want to punch it down.
Remove the dough from the bowl and knead it a few times to remove any air bubbles that might have formed.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a long rectangle. If you have a cookie sheet, that can work great for this!
Roll your dough out to be about 1/2 inch thick. A little more or a little less won’t hurt anything, but around the 1/2 inch mark is your goal.
Spread your softened butter on the dough, covering it completely.
Next, spread the rhubarb filling evenly across the dough.
As tightly as you can, roll the cinnamon rolls up. You’ll want to roll the long side up towards the other long side of your rectangle.
Using a very sharp knife, cut your cinnamon rolls into 12 equal pieces. I’ve found the easiest way to do this is to cut the log in half, then cut each half into thirds, then cut the thirds in half. This helps keep the rolls about the same size.
Place the rolls in your gently greased cast iron pan. Be sure to leave a little room for rising within the pan. I always end up using two cast iron pans to complete this, but you can always do your cinnamon rolls in batches.
Cover your cinnamon rolls with a towel, and allow them to rise for about 15-20 minutes or until they are almost doubled in size.

Bake the Rhubarb Sweet Rolls and Prepare the Glaze

Bake the rhubarb sweet rolls at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Watch your rolls carefully. They should be slightly browned when they have finished baking.
While they bake, prepare your glaze by beating together the soft butter, vanilla, lemon juice, and powdered sugar.
Spread the glaze onto the slightly cooled, but still warm rolls allowing the glaze to melt into all the cracks and crevices.

These rhubarb sweet rolls are amazing fresh and warm from the oven and are best enjoyed the same day as they’re made. They will last up to two days in a container if you do have some leftovers.

Printable Recipe

See below for a printable recipe for these delicious rhubarb sweet rolls.

Yield: 12 rolls