How to Make Light Fluffy Dinner Rolls

Rolls and bread were a staple in our farmhouse growing up. Not a meal went by when there wasn’t bread on the table. Holidays always called for ready to bake dinner rolls. My favorite part of any dinner was the rolls smothered in gravy!

Yeast rolls are so easy to make at home given a little time to mix up dough and more time to let the rise happen. I pull out my cast iron skillet for mine, but a pie plate or other round low sided baking dish will work. These have milk for a soft crumb, and plenty of butter to make them not only taste good, but keep them moist.

Yeast breads do need a warm place to rise, and there are a number of ways to encourage this. My brothers favorite way was to set the bowl of dough on a heating pad on low. I often turn on my oven for a couple minutes then turn it off to make the oven warm. If I am already baking something, the drawer beneath the oven gets quite warm, another perfect place to let dough rise. Failing all this, with enough time dough will rise even in a cool environment, and this can actually add flavor tot he final product. Just make sure your yeast is fresh; in this recipe you will “proof” it in the first step to make sure it is active.

This is a great beginner recipe if you’ve not made bread from scratch before. As long as the yeast is good, they will rise and come out great. It does help to have the eggs at room temperature. If you’ve not taken them out in advance, and I seldom remember either, put them in some warm water for 5 minutes. then break open and whisk up to scramble them a bit – this makes sure they mix in well.

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Buttery Dinner Rolls

Light fluffy and buttery dinner rolls are easy to pull together, and are a classic dinner side.

Course Bread
Cuisine American
Keyword buttery rolls, classic rolls, dinner rolls
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Raising time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes
Servings 12 rolls

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cup milk warmed to 110 F
  • 3 tbs[ sugar
  • 1 tbsp dry yeast
  • 8 tbsp (one stick) butter
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 eggs room temperature, lightly whisked
  • 3 1/2 cups bread flour

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl combine about half the warm milk and the sugar, stirring to dissolve. Sprinkle the yeast over it and stir to combine. Let sit for aobut 10 minutes until the yeast bubbles up.

  2. While the yeast is activating, melt the butter in a 12-13" skillet and then remove from the heat.

  3. Once the yeast and milk get frothy, mix 3 tbsp of the melted & cooled butter into it, and add the rest of the milk, the salt, and the eggs.

  4. Add all the flour, mixing to combine into a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured board and knead for 10 minutes until soft and springy.

  5. Oil or butter a large bowl and put the dough in, turning to grease the top. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour or until doubled.

  6. Punch down the dough, and return to a floured surface. Remelt the butter left in the skillet over low heat.

  7. Break off pieces of dough to form rolls, shaping into a 2" ball. Rolls the balls in the butter in the skillet and place in concentrict circles.

  8. Cover with a clean towel. Let rise again, about 30 minutes until doubled. Preheat the oven during this time (unless the rolls are rising in the oven!) to 350F.

  9. Remove the towel and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes until lightly browned. A thermometer should read 195-200F when bread is cooked through. Serve warm.

And what’s better than beautiful autumn weather, and a house that smells like baking bread??