Buttery Dinner Rolls ⋆ That Which Nourishes

There’s nothing like sinking your teeth into a soft, buttery roll. Especially when it’s warm from the oven. I know it seems easier to thaw some frozen dough and pop ’em in a dish and thaw and bake, but in just as much time, you can easily make your own.

And when you use a great flour like this one, you can be assured that you are making the best to nourish those you feed.

When I needed a meal delivered to my family, a dear friend of mine brought me lovely food — one of my favorite parts was the dinner rolls sprinkled with rosemary. I fell in love with this little addition to a perfect roll. So, to my stand-by recipe, I added garlic butter studded with fresh rosemary. Definitely an option worth considering, I assure you.

In 2 cups of warm water (just on the verge of hot), gently stir in 4 1/2 tsp. instant yeast. Let that sit for 5-10 minutes until it turns foamy.

In your mixer bowl, add the following:

1/2 c. sugar

2 tsp. salt

1 egg

3 c. flour

1/4 c. melted butter

Let the mixer do its work and pull the ingredients together.

Add in the foamy yeast mixture. If you have it, switch to your dough hook. Then add in about 3 1/2 c. more of flour and let it turn into a smooth and barely sticky dough. It should feel sticky to the touch, but be able to form a ball.

Coat the ball with softened butter and put it in a large bowl covered with a clean kitchen towel in a warm place to let it rise until doubled — at least an hour.

Or you can put the dough in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap overnight and continue the next day from this point.

Butter two 9x 13″ pans. Squish the poofy ball o’ dough down and begin to form the rolls by breaking off chunks and forming them into balls. I grab about 1/4 c. worth of dough and knead it a bit and then tuck the ends under to the bottom and make sure the top is smooth. Set the bowls o’ dough in the buttered dish leaving some space between each since they will rise one more time and need more space.

To make the clover-leaf shape as seen in my photos, divide each regular 1/4 c. sized portion into three equal pieces. Set all three little dough-balls into buttered muffin pan cups.

Set the dishes full of rolls in a warm place covered with clean kitchen towels and let them rise one more time until doubled in size. About a half an hour.

While the dough is rising, if desired, melt 1/4 c. of butter and to it add 1/4 tsp. garlic powder or 1 clove of fresh garlic finely grated on a microplane. Here’s where you add the rosemary if you’d like. I pulled the sprigs off the stalk and gave them a bit of a chop and threw them into the garlic butter. Then just brush the butter over the tops of the rolls.

Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 12-15 minutes. Watch them closely and take them out when they are just barely golden on the top.

Buttery Dinner Rolls

Prep time

2 hours

Cook time

12 mins

Total time

2 hours 12 mins

Perfect, soft white dinner rolls made almost as quickly as the pre-made variety, but full of homemade goodness.

Alison: That Which Nourishes

Serves: 2 dozen rolls

Grocery List

2 c. water
4½ tsp. yeast
½ c. sugar
2 tsp. salt
1 egg
6½ c. flour
¼ c. butter
Optional ingredients:
additional ¼ c. butter
¼ tsp. garlic powder or 1 clove fresh garlic
fresh rosemary

Here's how...

In 2 cups of warm water, gently stir in yeast. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until foamy.
In mixer bowl, add the sugar, salt, egg, melted butter, and 3 cups of the flour.
Let the mixer pull the ingredients together.
Add in the yeast mixture, switching to dough hook. Add in the remaining flour and let it turn into a smooth and barely sticky dough. It should feel sticky to the touch, but be able to form a ball.
Coat the ball with softened butter and put it in a large bowl covered with a clean kitchen towel in a warm place to let it rise until doubled -- at least an hour. Or you can put the dough in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap overnight and continue the next day from this point.
Butter two 9 x 13" pans. Squish the dough down and begin to form the rolls by breaking off chunks and forming them into balls, about ¼ c. worth of dough at a time, and knead it a bit and then tuck the ends under to the bottom and make sure the top is smooth. Set the bowls of dough in the buttered dish leaving some space between each.
To make the clover-leaf shape, divide each regular ¼ c. sized portion into three equal pieces. Set all three little dough-balls into buttered muffin pan cups.
Set the dishes full of rolls in a warm place covered with clean kitchen towels and let them rise one more time until doubled in size. About a half an hour.
Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 12-15 minutes or until just golden brown.