heat the milk until warm but not hot. microwave will do. stir in the honey and yeast and let sit for 5 min until bubbling and frothy.
add the salt, oil, and flour. stir until a soft dough forms. kneed lightly for a few min until it’s smooth and elastic. lightly oil the bowl and put it back. cover with a towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 20 min.
while it’s rising stir the cream cheese with 3 Tbs icing sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla until you get a stiff sort of icing.
once your dough has risen, divide it into 16 pieces. flatten each out to about a 3 inch round. doesn’t need to be perfect. no need for a rolling pin or anything. stick a little dab of the cream cheese filling into the middle. somewhere between 1/2 and 1 tsp each. fold up the edges and squeeze them together to seal so you have a little smooth ball encasing the filling. place seal-side down into a 9 inch square pan that is well greased.
your little dough balls should be close but not super squished. let rise until doubled again. a slightly warm oven works well. once risen your balls should be a little crowded and certainly touching.
bake at 350f for about 20 min or until golden brown. in the meantime mix your remaining 2 Tbs icing sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla with your lemon juice and butter. warm a bit to melt your butter and smooth out the lumps. set aside.
when your buns are done let them cool for about 10-15 minute pull out of the pan to a plate or serving dish and pour your glaze over them while they’re now warm but not hot.
if you serve immediately they are tasty but letting them totally cool and set for a few hours improves the texture and flavour.
