Sourdough Blueberry Rolls
Soft and fluffy sourdough sweet rolls filled with homemade blueberry filling and topped with blueberry cream cheese frosting.
The dough for these sweet rolls is similar to a brioche dough but slightly less enriched. This makes it easier to work by hand than with a buttery sourdough brioche. There is still the addition of eggs and butter for flavor, just not as much.
An active sourdough starter is required for this recipe, and it will be fed as a stiff starter. Stiff starters have lower hydration, so they take longer to rise. This slower rise provides steady growth with less risk of peaking too early.
The starter is fed (in weight) overnight. 1 part starter, 2 parts flour, and 1 part water. It makes a stiff dough ball. In the morning, it will have doubled and be ready to use.
If you haven’t got your sourdough starter yet, learn how to create a sourdough starter.
Equipment
A stand mixer fitted with a dough hook will provide the easiest results. The dough can be quite sticky, mainly when working in the butter, and the additional fat can slow down the gluten development. However, it’s still possible to knead the dough by hand, but be prepared to exert some extra effort.
You’ll also need a 9×13-inch baking pan to bake the sourdough blueberry rolls. You could also use a large 12inch cast iron skillet.
Ingredients
The ingredient amounts are listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is just a rundown of what you will need.
The dough
- All-purpose flour or bread flour – This recipe works well with a strong all-purpose flour with around 11-12% protein.
- Active sourdough starter
- Granulated sugar
- Large eggs
- Whole milk
- Butter – this can be salted or unsalted butter
- Salt
The blueberry filling
- Blueberries – fresh blueberries or frozen blueberries can be used
- Granulated sugar
- Lemon juice
- Cornstarch
- Ground cinnamon
The frosting
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract or paste
- A little bit of the blueberry filling
Baker’s schedule
Here is a rough outline of the baker’s schedule to get an idea of the timings.
The evening before
- Feed your starter
Day 1
- 9 am – Mix the dough
- 9:30 am – Let it rise in a warm spot until bulked out by half (approximately 4 hours, depending on the temperature)
- 1:30 pm – Refrigerate the dough for at least 4 or up to 24 hours. Make the blueberry filling.
Day 2
- 9 am – Shape the rolls and let them proof in a warm spot until doubled in size. This will take between 5-8 hours.
- 2pm – Bake.
Alternate timings
You can also make overnight sourdough sweet rolls, where the rolls will proof and rise at room temperature overnight, for 8-10 hours. This works if your kitchen isn’t too warm.
Method
The evening before
Mix 30g starter with 60g flour and 30g water. Knead it for a minute or two into a stiff dough ball.
Place this into a lightly oiled jar. Brush the top of the ball dough with a little water (so it doesn’t dry out too much overnight). Loosely cover it with a lid and leave it to rise for 8-12 hours until more than doubled.
The following day
Mixing in a mixer
Add the softened butter to the bowl of your stand mixer, a little bit at a time. Incorporate each cube before the next addition.
Add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and all the stiff starter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment
Turn the mixer on low and combine until it forms a thick but slightly sticky dough.
Mix this dough on medium-low speed for around 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten.
Add the softened butter to the bowl of your stand mixer, a little bit at a time. Incorporate each cube before the next addition.
Turn the mixer on medium speed and keep it mixing for around 15 minutes until the sticky and soft dough strengthens, comes together, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Once finished mixing, leave the smooth dough to rest for a few minutes, then grab a piece and see if you can stretch it out thin, so it’s almost see-through, without it tearing.
This is called the ‘window pane’ effect and shows proper gluten development.
Mixing by hand
Add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and the ripe sourdough starter in a large mixing bowl. Use a fork or wooden spoon to mix it into a shaggy dough. Tip the dough onto a floured work surface and knead it for 5 minutes to develop the gluten.
Begin to knead in the butter, a few cubes at a time. The butter is going to make the dough very sticky. Slap and fold the dough on the bench to create strength. Slap it down, and fold it over.
Once all the butter has been incorporated, slap and fold for a minute or so more, then leave the dough to rest for 5-10 minutes, then return to it. Keep slapping and folding for 10 minutes until you feel the dough becomes strong and glossy. Use a bench scraper to gather up any loose pieces of dough. If at any point you need another break, take it! It’s easier coming back to it with clean hands, and the gluten in the dough does well with rest.
Bulk ferment
Once the dough is kneaded, shape it into a smooth ball and place it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel, compostable plastic wrap, or lid.
Place the dough in a warm spot, ideally around 25°C / 76°F, and let it rise.
It won’t double but should bulk out by at least 50%. This will take around 4-6 hours, but the rise time will change depending on the temperature. You can create a warm and humid proofing spot by placing a large mug of boiled water in a turned-off oven and putting the dough in there.
Replace the water with freshly boiled water if it cools down.
Once risen, place the dough in the fridge until you’re ready to shape.
The blueberry filling
Whisk the water and corn flour in a small saucepan to create a slurry.
Add the blueberries, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt and place it over low heat. Keep stirring until they begin to break down.
Once they have broken down and released their juices, turn the stove to medium heat and let the mixture boil for around 4-5 minutes, stirring the whole time.
As the mixture boils, it will thicken and become jelly-like. Make sure to keep stirring, so it doesn’t burn. Once thick, remove it from the heat, scrape it into a bowl, and let it cool to room temperature. Then cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator until needed.
Shaping
Grease or line a 9×13-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
Pull it from the bowl onto a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle.
Dollop the cold blueberry mixture over the dough, but keep aside two tablespoons for the frosting.
An offset spatula spreads the blueberries out, leaving about 2 inches uncovered on the bottom long side.
Carefully roll the dough up, starting from the longest side up the top, into a log.
Cut the log into 12 equal pieces using unflavored dental floss or a sharp knife.
Place the rolls into the prepared pan. Cover them with some plastic wrap or beeswax wrap to stop the top of the dough from drying out. Let them have their final rise until they double in size.
Bake the rolls in the oven for around 30 minutes until golden brown. If they are browning too fast, you can cover the top of the rolls loosely with aluminum foil.
Frosting
While the rolls are baking, make the frosting. In a large bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
Add in the reserved blueberries and powdered sugar. Beat until creamy and combined.
Dollop it over the still-warm rolls.
Storing
Leftover sourdough blueberry rolls can store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. They can be gently rewarmed in the microwave on the following days.
More sourdough recipes
Sourdough Blueberry Rolls
Soft and fluffy sourdough sweet rolls filled with homemade blueberry filling and topped with blueberry cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Stiff starter
- 30g starter
- 60g all-purpose flour
- 30g water
Dough
- 500g all-purpose flour with around 11% protein, or bread flour
- 50g granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 200g milk
- All the stiff starter
- 8g salt
- 100g unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed
Blueberry Filling
- 1 ½ Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ Tablespoon water
- 300g blueberries, fresh or frozen
- 50g granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Frosting
- 113g cream cheese, room temperature
- 30g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 180g powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
- Pinch of salt
- 2 Tablespoons blueberry filling
Instructions
The evening before
- Mix 30g starter with 60g flour and 30g water. Knead it for a minute or two into a stiff dough ball.
- Place this into a lightly oiled jar. Brush the top of the ball dough with a little water (so it doesn't dry out too much overnight). Loosely cover it with a lid and leave it to rise for 8-12 hours until more than doubled.
Mixing in a mixer
- Add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and all the stiff starter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Turn the mixer on low and combine until it forms a thick but slightly sticky dough.
- Mix this dough on medium-low speed for around 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten.
- Add the softened butter to the bowl of your stand mixer, a little bit at a time. Incorporate each cube before the next addition.
- Turn the mixer on medium speed and keep it mixing for around 15 minutes until the sticky and soft dough strengthens, comes together, and pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
- Once finished mixing, leave the smooth dough to rest for a few minutes, then grab a piece and see if you can stretch it out thin so it’s almost see-through, without it tearing. This is called the 'window pane' effect and shows proper gluten development.
Mixing by hand
- Add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and the ripe sourdough starter in a large mixing bowl. Use a fork or wooden spoon to mix it into a shaggy dough. Tip the dough onto a floured work surface and knead it for 5 minutes to develop the gluten.
- Begin to knead in the butter, a few cubes at a time. The butter is going to make the dough very sticky. Slap and fold the dough on the bench to create strength. Slap it down, and fold it over.
- Once all the butter has been incorporated, slap and fold for a minute or so more, then leave the dough to rest for 5-10 minutes, then return to it. Keep slapping and folding for 10 minutes until the dough becomes strong and glossy.
- Use a bench scraper to gather up any loose pieces of dough. If at any point you need another break, take it! It's easier coming back to it with clean hands, and the gluten in the dough does well with rest.
Bulk ferment
- Once the dough is kneaded, shape it into a smooth ball and place it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel, compostable plastic wrap, or lid.
- Place the dough in a warm spot, ideally around 25°C / 76°F, and let it rise. It won’t double but should bulk out by at least 50%. This will take about 4-6 hours, but the rise time will change depending on the temperature. You can create a warm and humid proofing spot by placing a large mug of boiled water in a turned-off oven and putting the dough in there. Replace the water with freshly boiled water if it cools down.
- Once risen, place the dough in the fridge until you’re ready to shape.
The blueberry filling
- Whisk the water and cornstarch in a small saucepan to create a slurry. Add the blueberries, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt and place it over low heat. Keep stirring until they begin to break down.
- Once they have broken down and released their juices, turn the stove to medium heat and let the mixture boil for around 4-5 minutes, stirring the whole time.
- As the mixture boils, it will thicken and become jelly-like. Make sure to keep stirring so it doesn't burn. Once thick, remove it from the heat, scrape it into a bowl, and let it cool to room temperature. Then cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator until needed.
Shaping
- Grease or line a 9x13-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Pull it from the bowl onto a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle of around 12x16 inches (30cmx40cm).
- Dollop the cold blueberry mixture over the dough, but keep aside two tablespoons for the frosting.
- Use an offset spatula to spread the blueberries out, leaving about 2 inches uncovered on the long bottom side.
- Carefully roll the dough up, starting from the longest side up the top, into a log.
- Cut the log into 12 equal pieces using unflavored dental floss or a sharp knife.
- Place the rolls into the prepared pan. Cover them with some plastic wrap or beeswax wrap to stop the top of the dough from drying out.
- Let them have their final rise until they double in size, around 5-8 hours, depending on temperature.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 375°F /190°C.
- Bake the rolls in the oven for around 28-30 minutes until golden brown. If they are browning too fast, you can cover the top of the rolls loosely with aluminum foil.
Frosting
- In a large bowl, using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, reserved blueberry filling, and salt. Beat on low speed to incorporate the sugar, then switch to high and beat until creamy.
- Let the rolls cool for 15 minutes, then spread on the frosting.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 402Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 333mgCarbohydrates: 63gFiber: 2gSugar: 27gProtein: 7g
The directions for the blueberry filling say to “whisk the water and cornstarch…”, but there’s no water in the list of ingredients for the bluberry filling.
How much water should be used?
Do you think an equivalent amount of strained raspberries, with appropriate adjustment for the sugar to taste, could be substituted for the blueberries?
Thanks for the information! I can’t wait to try these rolls!
Thank you for letting me know Christine! I have added the water. And yeah you can substitute with raspberries too! 🙂 Hope you enjoy them!
From ChristineK: I forgot, 1 more major difference between our dough recipes is mine uses 182g buttermilk instead of regular milk. I sometimes use whole milk yogurt or sour cream.
Question? does the dough have to be in the fridge for 4 hrs or more, or can I go straight to rolling after the 4-6 hours of bulk fermentation?
thanks in advance
You can skip the cold proof and go right to rolling 🙂
Amazing recipe! A new favorite! I use amazing sugar alternatives to make these sugar free and you’d never know it! My husband is diabetic and not missing anything with recipes like this! Thank you!