Authentic Italian Easter Bread is another recipe you'll want to try for Easter Brunch.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- So cute for Easter brunch!
- Older kids can help make the bunny shape!
- Delicious orange flavor.
This cute Easter brunch recipe is from a 1959 vintage holiday cookbook put out by Better Homes and Gardens. Using these old recipes not only brings back memories (for some of us) but it keeps them from being lost forever.
Plus, there's not a kiddo in the universe that wouldn't just love to wake up to the smell of these homemade orange buns wafting through the house on Easter morning!
🧾 Ingredients
- yeast
- milk
- butter
- sugar
- salt
- eggs
- all-purpose flour
- orange juice
- orange peel
- Confectioner's sugar
🔪 Instructions
Note: This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the green recipe card below.
- Dissolve yeast in water.
- Blend milk, butter, sugar, and salt.
- Stir in the flour.
- Add eggs.
- Stir in yeast, orange juice, and peel.
- Add enough of the remaining flour to make a dough.
- Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Knead dough 10 minutes.
- Place in a greased bowl and allow to rise about 2 hours.
- Punch down, cover, and allow to rest 10 minutes.
- Roll dough into a ½ inch thick rectangle.
- Cut dough in strips about ½ inch wide and roll between hands to smooth. You can make these into two different shapes of bunnies.
- Allow to double.The second rise will take from 45-60 minutes.
- Bake at 375 for 12 -15 minutes.
- Frost while warm with sugar glaze.
🥫 Storage
Store the baked Easter bunny rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.
You can also freeze them - just make sure not to glaze them first.
💭 Things to know
Expert Tip: Make sure all of the ingredients are at warm room temperature and liquids are around 110F for best results.
- You can use frozen bread dough and make these Easter bunny rolls even easier. Just shape and bake then glaze with the orange glaze. They're not as good but definitely quicker.
- Be sure to let the dough rise in a warm place.
- Make these cinnamon by rolling the "ropes" in cinnamon and sugar.
- It will probably take a little practice to form the bunnies. Be patient and remember that they don't have to be perfect!
- Make these Easter bunny rolls savory by using this buttermilk bread recipe and omitting the glaze. Shape as directed in this recipe - and use a sprinkle of coarse salt on the tail. Perfect accompaniment to Easter dinner!
👩🏻🍳 Frequently asked questions
Here are the questions I am most frequently asked about this recipe.
You sure can! You can shape them and freeze them before the second rising time - then just thaw overnight in the fridge and bake. OR you can freeze them after baking - but don't glaze them until you're ready to serve. To serve them you'll thaw overnight, then heat in a 325F oven for 10 minutes or so - and then glaze as directed.
You can also make these orange sweet rolls the night before, shape them, and cover with plastic wrap. Put them in the fridge overnight and then bake them in the morning. They will have risen while you slept! Sometimes you need to give them 15 - 30 minutes on the counter to finish rising before baking if they don't look risen.
📚 Related recipes
I love to serve sweet rolls, warm from the oven with the glaze still gooey, at just about any brunch but even more so on holidays like Christmas and Easter. Here are some of my favorites.
- Cinnamon Rolls huge, dinner plate sized classic sweet rolls that are literally the best ever.
- Peanut Butter Sweet Rolls Tender sweet roll is swirled with a peanut butter filling.
- Fruit Kolache are a copycat of some of my favorite kolache from West, Texas (not to be confused with west Texas).
- Cream Cheese Kolache just like you get in Texas!
- Cream Cheese Crowns are a unique sweet roll filled with cream cheese and topped with streusel.
- Lemon Danish is made with a laminated dough so it has millions of buttery layers.
🍽️ Serve with...
These adorable Easter bunny rolls are perfect as part of a special Easter breakfast. It's one tradition the kids will never forget.
- Bacon chipotle deviled eggs aren't exactly kid friendly but they are absolutely delish! Instructions for smoking included.
- Copycat Starbucks Caramel Brulee Latte is one of my favorite coffees.
- A watermelon basket filled with fruit is always a good idea!
🥄 Restless Chipotle recommends
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You'll need the following items to make this recipe successfully.
📞 The last word
These are a fun alternative to the traditional Hot Cross Buns.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need. Don't forget that you can click on "add to collection" to save it to your own, private recipe box!
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Easter Bunny Rolls
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Ingredients
Sweet Rolls
- 1 tablespoon yeast, I used active dry yeast but you can also use rapid rise.
- ¼ cup water, lukewarm (110F)
- 1 cup milk, scalded and cooled to lukewarm
- ½ cup butter, melted in the hot milk
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 cups flour, may need a little more or less
- 2 eggs, room temperature - beaten
- ¼ cup orange juice, lukewarm
- 2 tablespoons orange zest, grated
Sugar Glaze
- 2 ½ cups Confectioner's Sugar
- ⅓ cup butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla , or 1 tablespoon lemon juice
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Instructions
Sweet Rolls
- Dissolve yeast in water. Set aside to proof.
- Blend milk, butter, sugar, and salt.
- Make sure that the mixture is lukewarm.
- Stir in 2 cups of the flour.
- Add eggs, beat well.
- Stir in yeast, orange juice, and peel.
- Add enough of the remaining flour to make a dough.
- Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Knead dough 10 minutes, or until elastic, on a floured surface.
- Place in a greased bowl, turn to grease top, cover with a clean tea towel and allow to rise until double. About 2 hours.
- Punch down, cover, and allow to rest 10 minutes.
- Divide dough in 24 equal pieces.
- On a lightly floured surface roll dough into a ½ inch thick rectangle.
- Cut dough in strips about ½ inch wide with a sharp knife and roll between your hands to smooth.You can make these into two kinds of bunnies.
Twist Bunnies
- For each bunny you will need a 14 inch strip of dough.
- On a lightly greased cookie sheet lap one end of the strip over the other to form a loop.
- Now, bring the end that is underneath up over the top end, letting each end extend to the sides to form ears.
- Pat tips of ears to make a point.
- Roll a small piece of dough into a ball and put it on the bottom loop for a tail.
- Let rise until double.
Grazing Bunnies
- For each bunny you will need a 10 inch piece of dough for the body and a 5 inch strip for the head.
- On a lightly greased cookie sheet make a loose swirl for the body with the longer strip, and one for the head with the smaller strip.
- Place the head close to the body.
- To add the ears pinch off 1 ½ inch strips of dough and roll to form ears.
- Place next to the head.
- Use a little bit of dough to make a small ball for the tail.
- Allow to double.The second rise will take from 45-60 minutes.
- Bake at 375 for 12 -15 minutes.
- Frost while warm with sugar glaze.
Sugar Glaze
- 21/2 cups Confectioner's Sugar
- ⅓ cup butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla or 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Stir until blended
- Brush over rolls while they are still hot.
Notes
- Make sure all of the ingredients are at warm room temperature and liquids are around 110F for best results.
- If you're using instant yeast (rapid rise) instead of active dry yeast skip the proofing step and add the yeast in with the flour.
- You can use frozen bread dough and make these Easter bunny rolls even easier. Just shape and bake then glaze with the orange glaze. They're not as good but definitely quicker.
- Make these cinnamon by rolling the "ropes" in cinnamon and sugar.
- It will probably take a little practice to form the bunnies. Be patient and remember that they don't have to be perfect!
- Make these Easter bunny rolls savory by using this buttermilk bread recipe and omitting the glaze. Shape as directed in this recipe - and use a sprinkle of coarse salt on the tail.
Nutrition Facts
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I know y'all don't always like the stories bloggers tell so when I have one I try to put it at the very bottom so you can read or skip as you like.
For many of us Easter is the first holiday of Spring and filled with memories of shiny new patent leather shoes, white gloves, and crispy brand new dresses. Perhaps a small, lacy purse and a hat with an elastic that made you feel like you were choking, as well.
The day was predictable. Pictures, followed by church, followed by an Easter egg hunt with boiled eggs - so God help you if you missed one. You'd be sure to find it a month or so later!
Baskets were filled with candy and placed with brunch at a table laden with things like Easter bunny sweet rolls, pineapple casseroles, and always a ham that smelled so good it made the neighbors drool.
I can't tell you how many times I got blistered fingers from the sticky, hot glaze as I tried to sneak a miniscule bite of sugary crust from the outside of that dang ham.
It seemed like most things were sweet, most things were fancy, and most things were memorable enough to make me smile half a century later.
First published March 13, 2008. Last updated March 2, 2023 for more information, better instructions, and faster page speed.
C Ellis
Thank You. I lost my old Better homes cook book,I found a newer edition but it did nor have this recipe.I've made these for over 35 years at Easter and my grown children still look foreward to these bunny breads every year.