Soft & Fluffy Sweet Dinner Rolls — Lightly sweetened from the honey in the dough and brushed with honey-butter prior to baking!! These dinner rolls are made from scratch and are baked to golden brown perfection!
Sweet Dinner Rolls … From Scratch!
There’s something about soft, warm, fresh homemade dinner rolls that makes them nearly impossible to resist. They’re so irresistible that I could happily and easily make a dinner out of dinner rolls.
Until these sweet dinner rolls, I had never made dinner rolls, but they turned out to be the best dinner rolls I’ve ever had. They’re going to be a very tough act to beat and even though my search for the perfect end-all-be-all chocolate chip cookie recipe isn’t over, I think my dinner roll recipe search is.
Rarely does recipe karma strike so perfectly that the first attempt at a recipe is the one I want to live with forever, but in this case, I struck dinner roll gold.
Recipes for dinner rolls are like chocolate chip cookies. There are so many and they all promise to be the best. In chocolate chip cookies, among other variables, the ratios of brown and granulated sugars, butter, flour, baking soda or powder, dough chilling, baking times and temperatures all vary from recipe to recipe.
In dinner rolls, making the dough with water or milk, using butter or oil, including an egg or not, sweetening the dough and to what degree and with sugar or honey, kneading or no-knead recipes, are among the many wild cards.
Before making these, I read dinner roll, honey dinner roll, honey wheat dinner roll, and Parkerhouse dinner roll recipes like it was my job. Having a slightly sweet dinner roll was a priority, and one sweetened with honey was even better.
Honey is used twice in these golden puffballs, both in the dough and it’s brushed on top of the rolls just before baking them using a honey and melted butter mixture.
The resulting rolls are slightly sweet and the flavor of the honey is present and discernible. Sometimes when I bake with honey it gets lost, but not in these. The final sweeps of honey-butter brushed on the rolls before their stint in the oven goes a long way to enhance the overall honey-butter punch.
As a bonus, whatever mixture pools in the bottom of the pan creates a slightly caramelized and chewy honey-butter crust on the base of the rolls. If could pick off just those golden sticky bases from all the rolls in the pan, I would, just like I pick off muffin tops.
I used oil in the dough rather than butter. In my mind, butter-based doughs are reserved for pie crust, brioche, or decadent cinnamon rolls. Even though I wanted a buttery, soft, tender roll, butter wasn’t the way to that goal; oil was.
In doing research about bread-making, I’ve learned that oil keeps bread dough softer and more pliable than butter, much like using oil instead of butter in cakes keeps them moister and more tender, too.
The from scratch dinner rolls are soft, tender, supple, moist and the glorious honey-butter mixture brushed on the rolls before baking provides plenty of buttery flavor. The rolls are light, but not feather-light, and retain enough density for some hearty chewing.
Bread flour, rather than all-purpose flour, is used exclusively, and because of it’s higher gluten and protein content, it creates marvelous chewy texture. It’s always better to chew your food rather than just inhaling it, and these have just the right amount chew-factor; enough so that you don’t mindlessly inhale three in three minutes as is the case with feather light, flaky croissants.
It’s rare for me to say, but the rolls are fabulous plain and don’t actually need butter. But twist my arm, cinnamon sugar-butter or honey butter won’t hurt.
These dinner rolls are every single thing I could ever want in a white dinner roll recipe. Light and fluffy balanced with chewy and hearty. Moist, soft, and tender and the slightly caramelized crust that forms on the base from the honey-butter is dreamy.
They’re generously sized, too. One is probably all you need, but needs and wants can vary when the sweet smell of bread baking has been tantalizing you.
What’s in Sweet Dinner Rolls?
To make this sweet dinner rolls recipe, you’ll need:
- Water
- Instant dry yeast
- Honey
- Egg
- Canola oil
- Salt
- Bread flour
- Unsalted butter
How to Make Sweet Dinner Rolls From Scratch
If you’ve never made bread using yeast before, these are not hard at all. The rolls can be made, from start to finish, in about three hours. Making the dough is a snap and it comes together in just minutes, about the same time as it takes to make cookie dough. Using a stand mixer is easier, but making without is completely viable.
After making and kneading the dough, it’s placed in a bowl and allowed to rise for about 90 minutes. Because the dough is made exclusively with white bread flour, and because I used Red Star Platinum yeast, there is almost no way to screw up the rising with this recipe.
In fact, my dough rose so well it almost blew the plastic wrap off the top of my bowl. When canning, the sound of a sealing jar is music to my ears and in bread-making, a big bowl of high rising dough is one of the most beautiful sights ever. Not worrying that the dough didn’t want to rise is a moot point with this recipe.
After the first rise and the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and knead it gently for a minute or two. Then, allow it to rest for 10 minutes, which makes shaping the dough into rolls easier because it gives the gluten a chance to relax a bit.
Then, from the big wad of pillowy dough, form one dozen rolls and place them in a pan and allow them to rise for about 30 minutes. Immediately before baking, brush the rolls with honey-butter and bake for 15 minutes.
They bake up very fast and are baked in a very hot oven because that blast of really hot oven air helps contribute to them rising well, known as oven spring.
Can I Prepare the Rolls in Advance?
Yes, these soft and fluffy dinner rolls can be made in advance! As is the case with most any bread, you can make a batch of the rolls from start to finish, freeze them, and then on the big day or on any day for breakfast, a snack, or to eat with dinner, just pull out one or four or two dozen, and allow them to thaw.
Warming them gently in a low oven immediately prior to serving them gives them that just-baked quality, with zero work on the day-of, which is my kind of recipe for Thanksgiving or on a busy Monday night for dinner. Effortless and stress-free at crunch time keeps the cook, and everyone around her, much happier.
Although I haven’t tried it, I would also venture to guess that after the first rise of 90 minutes, and after the dough has been shaped into rolls and placed in the pan, you could cover the pan and refrigerate it overnight, and bake the rolls off the next morning; a loose interpretation of the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day principles.
Tips for Making the Best Dinner Rolls
For the dough to rise properly, it needs to be in a warm, draft-free environment. Preheating your oven for 1 minute to 400F, then shutting it off (make sure you shut it off!), and quickly sliding the bowl of dough in so the hot air doesn’t escape is one way to create a warm environment.
Because of the high oven temperature in conjunction with the honey and the butter brushed on top of the rolls, they can burn as the baking time draws to a close. I recommend hanging out in the kitchen while these bake because things can change quickly and you don’t want burnt buns.
I am unsure if this recipe can be made in a bread machine as I don’t have one. I suspect the dough could also be baked in loaf pans; I’d use two 9-by-5 inch loaf pans, but I have not tried it.
Pin This Recipe
The Best Soft and Fluffy Honey Dinner Rolls
Lightly sweetened from the honey in the dough and brushed with honey-butter prior to baking!! These dinner rolls are made from scratch and are baked to golden brown perfection!
Ingredients
- 1 cup water, warmed to 120 to 130F for Red Star Platinum yeast (or 105 to 115F for most other yeast, or according to package directions)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 3 3/4 cups bread flour King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons honey
Instructions
Make the dough:
- Add water to a glass measuring cup or microwave-safe bowl and heat on high power to warm it, about 30 seconds. Testing with a thermometer is highly recommended, but if testing with your finger, water should feel warm but not hot.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the water and sprinkle the yeast on top of it. Beat on low speed for about 10 seconds, just to combine; let mixture stand for 10 minutes.
- Add the egg, 1/4 cup honey, oil, salt, and mix until well-combined, about 2 minutes on low to medium-low speed.
- Add 3 cups flour and beat until a sloppy, wet, loose dough forms. Scrape off any dough bits stuck to the paddle, remove the paddle attachment, and put on the dough hook.
- With the dough hook attached, turn mixer on low speed, and slowly sprinkle in remaining 3/4 cup flour. If necessary to obtain soft, smooth, non-sticky dough, sprinkle in the full 1 cup flour that remains (for a total of 4 cups flour, rather than 3 3/4 cups, noting that the more flour used, the denser the finished rolls will be). Knead dough for about 8 minutes. It will be firm, smooth, not sticky, and elastic.
- Turn dough out onto a Silpat Non-Stick Baking Mat or floured work surface and knead dough by hand for 1 to 2 minutes, just to get into the nooks and crannies with your fingers the dough hook may have missed and make sure dough is very smooth and uniform in texture.
First Rise:
- Place mounded ball of dough in a cooking sprayed or lightly greased large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place bowl in a warm place until it has doubled in size, about 2 hours. Tip - Preheating your oven for 1 minute to 400F, then shutting it off (make sure you shut it off), and quickly sliding the bowl in so the hot air doesn't escape is one way to create a warm environment; think 85 or 90F summer day warm environment. A cooler environment simply means dough will take longer to rise.
Shape Into Rolls:
- After dough has risen and doubled, punch it down to release the air bubbles, and turn it out onto a Silpat or floured work surface. Knead for about 1 minute.
- Mound dough into a ball, place it back into the bowl, cover it, and allow it to rest and relax for about 10 minutes, making it easier to shape into rolls.
- Prepare a 9-by-13-inch baking pan by lining it with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- Place dough on Silpat or floured work surface, and using your hands, roll it into a long cylinder shape, about 12 to 15 inches in length, and it will about 3 to 4 inches in girth.
- Divide the log into 12 uniformly-sized pieces with a dough cutter or sharp knife.
- Roll each piece into a ball, creating surface tension on the top of the ball by stretching the dough over itself a bit and pinch off the bottom, tucking the dough into itself. Place each piece into the prepared pan, seam side down, uniformly spaced, four rows by three. (Dough may also be rolled into just a simple 'plain ball', without pulling on the top surface of dough to create tension and not bothering to pinch off the bottom a bit, but I find they rise better and are fluffier if they're pinched off rather than just round dough globes)
Second Rise:
- After all pieces are in the pan, cover it with plastic wrap and allow to dough to rise for about 30 minutes. While dough rises, preheat oven to 400F. A good place for this rise is placing baking pan on the stovetop while oven is preheating for the carryover warmth.
Bake the rolls:
- Prepare honey-butter mixture by melting butter in a microwave-safe bowl on high power, about 1 minute. To the melted butter, add 2 tablespoons honey and stir to combine; set aside.
- After the rolls have risen and before baking, brush tops and sides of dough with the honey-butter mixture, getting into the sides and crevices and with a pastry brush.
- Bake rolls for about 15 minutes or until golden; they bake up very fast and watch them closely so the honey-butter mixture doesn't burn in this very hot oven.
- Allow rolls to cool before serving. Serve with Honey Butter or Cinnamon-Sugar Butter
Notes
Yeast: I highly recommend Red Star Platinum Yeast and King Arthur Bread Flour because they gave great results.
Equipment note: The recipe can be made by hand and kneaded by hand, it will just take you a bit longer. I am unsure if this recipe can be made in a bread machine as I don't have one. I suspect the dough could also be baked in loaf pans; I'd use two 9-by-5 inch loaf pans, but I have not tried it.
Make ahead option: The rolls can be made ahead of time, making them from start to finish, freezing the finished rolls, and can be unthawed prior to needing them, and if preferred warming them gently and briefly in a low oven for that just-baked taste is nice. Although I haven't tried it, I would guess that after the first rise of ninety minutes, and after the dough has been shaped into rolls and placed in the pan, you could cover the pan and refrigerate it overnight, and bake the rolls off the next morning.
Storage: Rolls may be stored at room temperature in an airtight container or ziplock bag for up to 4 days. Rolls also freeze very well and can be made from start to finish, cooled, and placed in a freezer-safe airtight container or a ziplock for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, unthaw them and if desired, immediately prior to serving warm them in a low oven (~175 to 200F) for a few minutes and just until warmed.
Recipe adapted from here.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 243Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 97mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 6g
More Easy Yeast Bread Recipes:
ALL OF MY YEAST BREAD RECIPES!
No-Knead Rolls with Honey Butter — These soft, light, fluffy yeast dinner rolls are so easy to make! They’re practically work-free because there’s no-kneading involved.
Pumpkin Dinner Rolls — These rolls are soft, slightly chewy, and the pumpkin puree keeps them moist and adds just enough tooth-sinking density.
No-Knead Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls — These 100% whole wheat dinner rolls are soft, light, fluffy, and so easy. They’re practically work-free because there’s no kneading.
Copycat Outback Steakhouse Wheat Bread — If you’ve never made yeast-based bread, this is an easy one to tackle. A very short ingredient list, no mixer, and nothing fancy is required.
How to Make Sourdough Bread— This easy sourdough bread recipe uses yogurt and sour cream in place of a traditional sourdough starter, which makes it possible to prep a loaf in less than a day!
1 Hour Breadsticks — Warm and fresh from the oven, these vegan buttery breadsticks are ridiculously good. They’re soft, fluffy, tender, and make your house smell amazing while baking.
Can this recipe be made without an egg?
I have never tried so cannot say for sure.
These turned out really great for me!! Thank you!
I followed the recipe with the exception of only using 1 TBSP of honey in the butter glaze. I didn’t want the buns to be too sweet.
Mine turned out to be pretty large so I may roll them smaller next time making 16-18 rolls. The size was nice, but for Thanksgiving with so many other dishes they could be a tad smaller. :)
They really were excellent and simple! I will definitely make these again and again. Thanks so much for all your recipes, Averie! (I also made your Classic Traditional Thanksgiving Stuffing this year and regularly inhale your blondies! Both are FANTASTIC!)
I appreciate all you do! Thanks.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad they were a big hit!
Thanks for LMK the stuffing was a success and that you inhale the blondies! Love it that you’re making so many of my recipes – thanks for your support!
These rolls are AMAZING!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
I made these yesterday for Christmas eve and the dough was like a pillowy dream to work with! It was so soft and light! the rolls got rave reviews and I will definitely be making these again! So very easy to make! Thank you!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Glad they were easy and you’ll make again!
I’m sorry I don’t know why my post came out that way. That was not how I wrote it :) could I use all purpose flour instead of bread flour?
I think that for the best results, using bread flour is advised. You could try with AP and see what happens but I always make the recipe like it’s written.
Ok thank you Averie! I guess I will need to get some bread flour :) looking forward to trying these!
Hi! These sound wonderful! Quick question, I don’t normally buy bread flour, would would I would be would be able would be able to use all purpose flour or no?
Hi Averie! I am making the no knead make ahead dinner roll with honey butter. At what temperature should I bake them finally?
Thank you
Preeti
If that’s the recipe you’re making, then you’re leaving a question/comment on a different roll recipe…
I think you’re trying to make these https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html at which point if you read step 8 of the directions it’s listed. Enjoy!
Made these last night and these are the BEST rolls I have ever had. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Glad they’re the best you’ve ever had!
Averie – I found your blog while looking for good rolls to make with Thanksgiving dinner. We made them today with the intention of reheating them tomorrow – well, they’re all gone and I’ll need to make another batch tomorrow! This recipe is amazing – my whole family thanks you. We’ve been looking for a good bread/roll recipe for YEARS. Needless to say, you’ve got a new fan – I can’t wait to check out your other recipes!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! And that you’ve conquered your bread/roll quest!
Oh, and the first time I made them I didn’t have honey so I used Agave nectar. They were so good that’s how I make them now :)
Thanks for letting me know you tried them with agave and that it worked great! I have people ask every now and then if I’ve tried with agave and usually I just use honey!
I made these in the bread machine and they were A.MA.ZING. I’m making them again tonight for Easter dinner with the family. My contrubution to family dinners is always the rolls. They love my recipe. I cant wait to blow them away with this one!! Thanks!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! And that they worked in a bread machine AND that you’re making them again tonight! That’s so wonderful! Happy Easter!
Hi Averie! I just made these yesterday and they turned out AMAZING! One down side was it was practically tasteless. I’m going to make them again tmrw with the addition of sugar, will that kill the yeast?
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it worked amazingly well for you. To add more ‘taste’, you can add a bit more salt to the dough OR you could likely add more honey/butter afterward. Adding sugar to the yeast mixture can be iffy because too much could potential through the balance out of whack. Play around though and see what you think works best!
I make clover-leaf rolls in muffin tins with this recipe. It works so well!
this is my new favorite recipe for rolls! I made them the first time at Thanksgiving and have made them since a couple more time! I’ve started using white/wheat flour (Kinf Arthur) and it’s wonderful! I also use the dough to make cinnamon rolls. Best. Recipe. Ever!
Hello! I cook/bake quite frequently and (believe it or not) rolls have never been my favorite thing on the dinner table, thus the hunt for a recipe I liked ensued. I have a recipe of my grandmother’s that I love, but it’s not a yeast dough, and I want a yeast dough.
Currently I don’t have my stand mixer available to me, and I noticed someone else commented that they did the kneading by hand and all came out fine. Do you have any advice on the knead time, or would you just knead it comes together in that way yeast doughs do (nice and smooth)? I really doubt I would have an issue with them if I just did it, but I would like to hear the opinion of someone who works with yeast doughs on a regular basis. I also haven’t been able to spend as much time in the kitchen as I would like so that has been limiting what recipes I try.
Thanks!
just knead it comes together in that way yeast doughs do (nice and smooth) = YES just to that and I’m sure these will be fine
Or just make these…NO KNEADING! https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html
All of my 9×13 pans are preoccupied tomorrow – will these work on jus a cookie sheet or does it have to be a casserole type dish?
Something with a raised side works best because that way when the rolls rise, they’re contained by the perimeter of the dish, so if you have any casserole type dish, I’d go with that, but if all you have is a jelly-roll style baking sheet that’s better than a cookie sheet but I guess use what you have! Enjoy them!
I made these tonight for our Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. They looked so delish, and smelled soooo yummy, that there’s one less roll to be served tomorrow! This recipe is a keeper. I can’t wait for everyone else to enjoy them.
You’re awesome for making homemade rolls for the big day! You have lucky friends and family! Glad the recipe is a keeper!
These looks delicious! I am all about homemade rolls. I have a recipe on my blog for rolls but I am always looking for new recipes!
These are the BEST rolls I’ve ever made! Usually when I make yeast breads they’re not fluffy and they end up kind of hard but I made these for mother’s day and my family loved them. Just curious, did you use eggwash for yours?
I’m thrilled that they’re the best rolls you’ve ever made. This is my fave dinner roll recipe too out of all the ones I have. I typically don’t use an eggwash (tends to brown things and I prefer more pale rolls) so I just brush with butter/honey and bake and then brush with tons more of that after they come out of the oven and are still warm and they soak it all up!
I made these the night before, refrigerated them overnight and baked them the following day. It worked flawlessly! These were, by far, the most delicious rolls I’ve ever had. They will be my go-to rolls for the rest of my life!
I am so glad to hear they’re the most delicious rolls you’ve ever had & it will be your lifelong go-to! I feel the same about these rolls. They’re really just the best!
Did you allow them to fully rise before refrigeration?
This is what I wrote in the notes of the recipe:
Although I haven’t tried it, I would guess that after the first rise of ninety minutes, and after the dough has been shaped into rolls and placed in the pan, you could cover the pan and refrigerate it overnight, and bake the rolls off the next morning.
I’m super excited to try this recipe! I’m not a good baker but plan on changing that. I think this will be a great roll to start with. Can’t wait to try my hand at these, they look heavenly!
Amazing, just pulled them out of the oven. Just beautiful. Thank you!
Glad you love them as much as I do! Thanks for LMK they turned out beautifully!
I’m going to have to try these soon.
Not to be too picky but my mom drilled proper spelling into me. The opposite of thaw is freeze. To “unthaw” something is to freeze it. So when taking out the baked, frozen rolls, you’re going to just thaw them. Sorry, but this was a little confusing when I first read the recipe.
Also, bread making was done for hundreds of years by hand before the invention of mechanical bread makers and the fabulous electric mixer. The history of bread making is a fascinating subject. Every culture in the world has some type of bread.
I’ve bookmarked your site for a future visit.
I made the dough today with the bread machine and they turned out great! It’s so cold here and my apartment lacks counter space so I pretty much had to cheat. Thanks for the great recipe!
So glad to hear it worked with a bread machine! You’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do and just good for you for making bread from scratch :)
OMG these look divine!!! Do you think these would work with EVOO? I love the taste of olive oil, and its health benefits :)
Sure – give it a try!
I made these today and they are wonderful! I usually make my bread and roll doughs in a bread machine , but with the use of a stand mixer, these are not much more difficult. Can’t wait to try some of your other recipes – I have my eye on the Cinnamon Raisin English Muffin bread!
Thanks for trying them and glad you loved them and found them not to be any more of a big deal than using your bread machine. Great!
The Cinn Raisin Eng Muffin Bread is SO EASY. You don’t even have to knead it. You just plop it in a bowl and that’s it! :)
Any special notes on doubling the recipe? I am making these now! :O)
Not really! I’ve never doubled this one b/c it makes plenty of rolls for my small family but for the holiday, good call :) LMK how you like them! They’re my fave dinner roll on my site!
I am going to make these for Thanksgiving but bought King Arthur Unbleached Flour opposed to the bread flour, do you think that will be okay? I confused it with your Soft Buttery Breadsticks recipe.
You will be just fine with regular all-purpose (good job on getting K.A.). You may need closer to 4 cups rather than 3 1/2 since bread flour is more ‘absorbent’ than AP for lack of a better word. Then again, if you live in a dry climate you may only need 3 1/2. Dough should be easy to work with and not sticky – add flour til you get there. LMK how it goes!
Made these this evening- so good! Thanks for sharing the recipe. Sadly, I do not own a standing mixer and I was a little worried about the kneading times, but they came out wonderfully moist and fluffy and I got a good workout in. My closest store did not have the Red Star Platinum yeast, but the Red Star instant yeast seemed to do the job. I ate 2. By myself. For dessert. So good. I’m typing this in an effort to keep me from eating a third :)
So glad that hand-kneading and regular instant yeast did the trick. And hey, after all that workout you got in the kneading, you totally deserve a third! :) Thanks for trying these and coming back to LMK! And for not being scared off by hand-kneading!
Here are 2 awesome no-knead roll recipes!
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/07/100-whole-wheat-no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html
Wow, these are fantastic! I made them tonight and I will definitely be making them again soon. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe :)
Yay! I am so glad you tried them! I love these rolls so much, too! Glad they were a hit with you! Since I came out with this recipe, I have another dinner roll recipe that’s really good too and you can make ahead. I wouldn’t say ‘better than’ these rolls – just another option and version. Just in case you’re interested
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/07/100-whole-wheat-no-knead-make-ahead-dinner-rolls-with-honey-butter.html
I made these the other day…I was so shocked by how good they were!! I couldnt believe it!!! they tasted just like the ones you buy in a bakery (and it was my first time making bread as well!)!! I will definetely make them another time! The only problem I had was that they turned brown on top quite quckly, what can I do to prevent this? Also I baked them in the middle rack in the oven, should bake them at the lowest instead?
Glad to hear they were a big hit for you – and that it was your first time baking bread! If they’re browning too quickly, either turn your oven down by about 25F degrees OR place a sheet of foil over the top of the pan in the 2nd half of cooking. Should do the trick!
I made these last night and they turned out great. And I’m NOT an expert in any kind of baking, most of all not bread-making, so thank you for the great directions. I took the rolls out maybe 2 minutes too early, but otherwise, everything went perfect!
So glad to hear you made them and that even for a novice breadmaker as you describe yourself, that they turned out perfectly! Oven times/temps vary so yes, just watch your rolls not the clock, and you’ll be good to go next time! But sounds like they turned out amazing for you this time…thanks for making them and for LMK! I have a new dinner roll recipe coming this weekend – stay tuned! It’s even easier than these!
My question is in the ( )
“After the first rise and the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and knead it gently for a minute or two. Then, allow it to rest for ten minutes, which makes shaping the dough into rolls easier because it gives the gluten a chance to relax a bit. Then, from the big wad of pillowy dough, form one dozen rolls and place them in a pan … (at this point can I freeze them like they have frozen rolls in the grocery store?)
and allow them to rise for about thirty minutes. Immediately before baking, brush the rolls with honey-butter and bake for fifteen minutes.”
I don’t know about freezing them at that point because I never have. I do know that you can make the rolls from start to finish, freeze extra, and they thaw beautifully. Put them in a low oven for a couple minutes immediately prior to serving and you’re all set.
I have never done what you’re suggesting; and I worry about killing the yeast by freezing it, and you still need some rising to happen during baking. The premade dough at the store is no doubt doctored up with so many chemicals to enable this; not sure about homemade and how it will work. If you try it, please LMK!
Just discovered your web site..LOVE the details you provide to help ensure success as I’ve always steered away from anything with yeast. Going to give my new stand mixer a workout today! Thanks so much.
Enjoy the rolls, Connie. Glad my thorough details help (I try!) and please report back and LMK how it goes!
Hey Averie!
Thought you’d like to know I made the dough in my breadmaker and then baked them in the oven! They turned out beautifully! I make country white rolls the same way and those rolls are very good as well…. I think if you added a bit of sugar to the dough they’d make the rolls incredible!!!! The best of both worlds with the two recipes
Good to know the breadmaker worked for these and then oven-baked. I have actually thought of adding some sugar to this dough and keeping it just slightly more tacky/less flour (and maybe using just AP & no bread flour) and turning them into a cinnamon roll base. Or as you said, just add some sugar for the country white rolls idea!
I think they’re lovely and the way they are now is great for dinner rolls…. I just like mine a little sweeter after tasting the ones I told you about
The honey addition is beautiful and the rolls from your recipe looked fantastic… Thanks for the shaping tip … Never knew that!
I love your blog… I admit I miss your raw/vegan abundance of posts but you are so inspiring with food either way :)
Some of my favorites: your acv,sugar,veganaise dressing…. Wow!
And your raw desserts… Yum!!!
Thanks for being such a longtime reader! I wish I could post more raw/vegan recipes but the public votes with their clicks and people want the more traditional (fatty, sugary) desserts :)
Here’s a recent raw/vegan-ish one you may like if you missed it
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2013/02/peanut-butter-and-jelly-coconut-cashew-sandwich-cookies.html
Your rolls sounds so good and glad my shaping tip & recipe worked out for you!
And oh, I could live off that Veganaise/ACV dressing…lol Or at the very least, never need another salad dressing as long as I live!
I made these today for a family dinner. I made a trip to the store to buy bread flour, then completely forgot to use it and used AP flour instead. They were still delicious! Very light and airy, and slightly sweet. This will be my go-to yeast roll recipe.
Thanks for trying them, Marissa, and glad they’ll be come your go-to yeast roll recipe! Going to the store for a special ingredient, then forgetting to actually use it…oh boy, that’s something I do, like…all the time :)
Can’t wait to make this so yummy looking rolls! Thanks so much for the post!! I’m positive that I’ll love them! Thanks again!
They’re my FAVE dinner roll! Please LMK if you end up trying them!
Love these rolls! Thanks for the detailed instructions!! Glad to know the “refridgerator overnight” tip…I’m ‘carb cycle-ing” & wonder if you have a nutrition analysis on this recipe? Tomorrow’s my “free” day & I’m going to bake these rolls!! Thanks for the info!
There are online calculators you can plug data into and it does that for you. Enjoy the rolls! I would just enjoy them and not worry about it :)
Hi Averie!
I’m debating between buying bread flour just to try this recipe, or using AP flour with a different recipe that promises soft rolls too. Obviously it’d be much simpler for me to use the other recipe, but I am so seduced by that plush texture that your rolls seem to have. Would you attribute that to the bread flour?
“but I am so seduced by that plush texture that your rolls seem to have. Would you attribute that to the bread flour?” — yes. That’s what bread flour does for things. It’s 4.99 for a bag. Same price as other king arthur flour. I highly recommend it. The recipe will still ‘work’ without it, but that reallllllly plushness, that’s bread flour. And this is my fave dinner roll recipe of all time and next week I have another killer recipe coming that you can use bread flour with.
Or in these cookies
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/11/chocolate-chip-and-chunk-cookies.html
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2013/01/brown-sugar-maple-cookies.html
Thanks! I think I will invest in bread flour after all. I had those brown sugar maple cookies bookmarked on foodgawker so I guess there’s no harm in buying a bag; it can serve as an excuse to bake more (:
I just made these, and they are incredible! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
I am so glad you made them and are loving them – they’re my favorite go-to dinner roll of all time!
Great recipe!! Made these for trial run for my Sunday School Christmas party! They are so yummy….I do believe the best rolls I’ve made yet!!! Thank you for sharing your recipe!! May God Bless you today and always!!!!
Nikki – what a sweet comment, thank you! Thanks for making the rolls and you are so smart to trial run things – wish more people did that! :) But this is a recipe that I know *works* and it’s my fave dinner roll recipe, too! Have an amazing holiday season!
Those rolls look so moist and happy – thanks for the recipe!
Just popped these in the oven. Cannot wait to try them. I made the dough yesterday and refrigerated it after it was kneaded and had risen at least once. You can refrigerate the dough for a few days before baking – either as formed rolls or in a ball (I prefer the ball because it is still oiled from the bowl and comes out of the bag easier). Just let it rest after you pull it out.
I am so happy to hear that you made them, and that you refrigerated it after the first rise – and your logic regarding rolling into balls/rolls either before or after the refrigeration and the big ball/not as sticky – and now you’re ready to bake!
That’s what the Artisian Method in 5 Minutes a day for bread-baking is in a nutshell…you let the dough keep in the fridge after the first rise til you’re ready to shape it, then you shape it, and depending on the dough, give or take, it needs 75 to 90 mins to rise at room temp before baking it off.
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/11/challah.html
Thanks for the feedback and LMK how you like them!
Averie,
Thank you very much for this recipe. I used it in my Thanksgiving dinner and they were absolutely delicious!! I must confess, I didn’t follow it to the letter, however. First, I made the dough the night before and placed it in the refrigerator to rise and covered it with plastic wrap until the following morning. It was one less thing to worry about the day of. Secondly, I doubled the recipe and I used coconut oil instead of butter. I have food that coconut oil not only has a world if health benefits, it is a miracle ingredient for dough, especially a sweet dough (honey + coconut = heaven!). The coconut flavor is so mild that it’s hardly noticeable and it’s consistency is very close to that if butter. All and all, these came out wonderfully. My only bit for next time is that they could have used a pinch more salt to bring out their flavor a bit more.
Thanks again, and Cheers!
Ryan
Glad you made these, Ryan, and thanks for the feedback about “First, I made the dough the night before and placed it in the refrigerator to rise and covered it with plastic wrap until the following morning” — I had suspected that this would be okay but because I hadn’t personally tried it, now I know!
And also that doubling the recipe AND using coconut oil instead of butter works. I had suspected, again, that both of those things would work but hadn’t tried them personally and good to know! Salt is so personal that I hate to over-recommend it, and always tend to say, ‘to taste’ since it’s such an individual thing.
Thanks for the great feedback and glad they were a hit!
Can this recipe be doubled? Thinking about making for Thanksgiving as they look fabulous!!
I am inclined to say yes but haven’t try it that way so can’t give you a personal testimonial. It does make a hearty-sized pan-full but if you’re feeding a large crowd, I can understand why you’d want to double it. LMK if you try them – they are hands down, my fave dinner roll, ever.
Sorry I didn’t realize that it stated that in the recipe. These were my first homemade rolls I was going to try because I haven’t been very successful with bread so far. I ended up finding the Red Star Platinum yeast so I wouldn’t have to worry about it and my family absolutely loved these. They did not last very long at all. Thank you so much for the easy to follow recipe, I had not trouble at all. Now I know you stated that you haven’t tried refrigerating them overnight and then baking but I was wondering if you have heard from anyone who has tried yet. I am planning on making 3 batches today, some to freeze and some for Thanksgiving and didn’t want to bake them until tomorrow. Please let me know if you have, if not then I guess I will just have to bake them today and warm them tomorrow. Thanks again for the wonderful recipe.
Glad they were a big hit with your family and you had great success!
” Now I know you stated that you haven’t tried refrigerating them overnight and then baking but I was wondering if you have heard from anyone who has tried yet.” — no, I haven’t
“3 batches today, some to freeze and some for Thanksgiving and didn’t want to bake them until tomorrow” – LMK what you end up doing, whether you make the dough from start to finish and bake them fully; and then just reheat/rewarm them. Or if you shape the dough into rolls and then refrigerate the pan and then bake them off in the a.m. tomorrow – or how you work it. Will be curious to know what happens!
Super excited that they came out perfect after being in the fridge overnight. I just made them all the way through to the rolls and put them in the refrigerator. I took them out and let them sit on top of the stove for about 30-45 minutes while I it preheated. They were awesome and now my family said that I can’t show up for any holiday without these rolls. Thank you so much for making the instructions so easy to understand or else I would have never attempted. Thanks
That is awesome that they came out perfect after a night in the fridge. I am glad to know that making them into rolls, putting them in the pan, then refrigerating, then a nice 45 min room-temperature warmup while oven preheats worked like a champ for you.
And now you are ‘stuck’ with making them forever for family gatherings :)
And I am SO GLAD that I made the instructions do-able and understandable – that was my #1 goal b/c they are SO GOOD I want people to actually make them! Like you did!
What if my stores don’t sell the Red Star Platinum yeast?? Do I use the quick rise or active dry?? Please let me know because these rolls look amazing and I am dying to try them. Thanks
If you read the recipe section of the post, I had written “2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum) ” – so although I use the Platinum you can use instant dry.
your bread always looks so amazing and so good – i could just eat these rolls for dinner and that is it nothing else.
And we sort of did for a couple nights :)
A dinner out of dinner rolls sounds amazing to me. Am I sensing a new recipe from you? Please, say yes :D
These look incredible and perfect timing with Thanksgiving right around the corner.
I could totally make a meal out of dinner rolls too! You know me and my carbs. It gets priority over the main meal. And I really need to add this to my thanksgiving menu. I haven’t picked out a bread roll recipe and this here is perfect!
If you are still looking for one, I cannot say enough good things about this recipe!
Bravo! Isn’t it wonderful when first times the charm?! :D These rolls are beautiful! The fact that you use honey inside and out makes them all the more irresistible. (I could eat dinner rolls for dinner too.)
The recipe karma gods were smiling down – every once in awhile they do that and yes, so nice!
They look incredible with just the right amount of denseness. I don’t really like fluffy rolls, so this is a good thing…
I love a good dinner roll. Brushing honey on top is such a good idea. I think good bread doesn’t need anything on it including butter and these definitely look tasty sans additions.
I think that a good dough/bread should be able to stand on it’s own, too!
Hey Averie. Happy Monday! These dinner rolls look AMAZING and so soft yet browned perfectly on the outside. I still have yet to work with yeast ever since my pizza dough failure. Zoe and I decided we will conquer our yeast fear over winter break. I am going to pick up a pack of that red star yeast per your recommendation.
It’s not hard at all! You make cakes that are harder. Seriously, you’re so fine. I say you start sooner rather than later in time for TG! :)
Wow, Averie. Just wow. I love the way the honey glaze on top of the rolls just shines. You nailed this one! We are totally dinner roll peeps over here when it comes Thanksgiving time. I love how the dough looks so warm and gooey and fluffy and COMFORTING! Like if you were to pinch the inside dough between your fingers it would be almost sticky and chewy. Perfect. I cannot wait to try these babies. And my family thanks you in advance! :-)
The honey glaze is just the icing on the cake. Pun intended :) It’s so good and I know your boys will love these! I can’t wait to hear about how it goes if you decide to make them!
“pinch the inside dough between your fingers it would be almost sticky and chewy.” — and yes, it is! That really doughy, soft, can make a ball out of a little piece of bread quality :)
What a wonderful idea to make some dinner rolls. Why do I always focus on making read and forget about the rolls? As we “speak”, I have another loaf baking in the oven for dinner. Well, I am making a note to myself to make a batch of this. For the Thanksgiving dinner it could win a crowd easy. Thanks Averie! :) Love your photos, and the background table (?).
If you’re already a bread maker, these will be a snap for you and I bet you’d love them. The background is a table with a wood board on top, and then the plates are layered, too. Lots of props in this shoot :)
Mmm! These look awesome, Averie! I just rediscovered the fun of bread baking over the weekend. Every year I say I’m going to make homemade rolls for Thanksgiving dinner — I think this might be the year!
I like your comparison of dinner roll recipes to chocolate chip cookie recipes — so true! The best thing is to find what works for you and stick with it… and experiment occasionally, of course. :) Honey in the recipe sounds ideal though!
Glad you got your bread-baking on this weekend. I hope you try these rolls (or any) – I bet you’d love them!
I agree there is nothing like a perfect dinner roll. These definitely look like a winning recipe. Going to pin and try the recipe soon -can’t wait. Thanks for sharing & love your photos:)
Thanks for the nice words, Nancy!
Oh em gee, Averie. I could live on carbs alone, but rolls happen to be one of my favorites. Especially buttery, warm, and plush dinner rolls like these! They look positively melt-in-your-mouth HEAVENLY. And I want them on my Thanksgiving table. Scratch that–my table 24/7.
I want them on my table every day, too. I have to *try* to use some restraint but it hasnt been happening :)
Perfect timing! I was just thinking that I needed to start looking for recipes for Thanksgiving rolls-I always try something new every year and I think these are it for this year!
If you try them, please LMK!
I’m just plain jealous of these. You have such a way with bread, I wish you could come here and give me lessons. I will try these, they look just perfect.
Thanks, Sue :) As long as you promise to make those latest chocolate cookies of yours or there’s a flourless chocolate lava cake you have or that almond cake with the doilly pattern sugar – there’s about 10 things of yours I want!
Averie, I love these! And we totally need to make bread together someday :)
How fun would that be! YES! And these were the ones that I made a couple weeks ago per our emails when you had made yours!
You know, fresh, yeasted dinner rolls don’t get the attention they deserve, in my honest opinion, especially because they can also be used for tasty breakfast treats and even mini lunch sandwiches! These are absolutely lovely, A. – beautiful rolls and a wonderful recipe!!
Yeasted dinner rolls are so versatile, yes! My parents would take leftover rolls like this from Thanksgiving, or just any time, and make little sandwiches with them from cold cuts from the deli. Blast.from.the.past. i.e. 2 decades ago++ :)
I feel the same about my recipe for dinner rolls – found the one and only, to be shared on Friday on my blog. The look of your rolls make this bread-fanatic really happy! :) I will have to give your recipe a try!
Oh I am so excited to hear that you found ‘your recipe’, too! I love it when that happens and can’t wait to see what it looks like now!
Please pass the bowl – I could inhale these in one sitting!
And we kind of did :) Thanks for the Pin!
Oh my these look like honey butter roll heaven! I’d like to make them for thanksgiving, then save them for our turkey leftovers, but let’s get real–my fam would clean the entire pan in one sitting!
They are perfect family-day Thanksgiving rolls. Seriously probably won’t have any leftovers :)
and this is the reason I avoid making breads!
for fear of eating way too much.
croissants, sourdoughs, and soft rolls are my downfall!!!
for real.
these look insanely good!
Girl they are insanely good. Like, you should make these when you have company to help share them – b/c they are just soooo good :)
Looooooooovaaaaa theeeeese! Dude, so gorgeous.
I think I can almost smell these just looking at your photos. What a perfect pan of puffy dinner rolls! Today is a good “stay inside and bake bread” sort of day–it’s cool, windy and rainy. Bummer I have to go to work. I’ve never made dinner rolls with honey brushed on…I can see that nice glaze on the bottom. I love that part too! My husband loved the parsnip fries –no leftovers in sight! He thought they tasted so much like regular french fries and bet most people wouldn’t know the difference.
Paula you HAVE to make these! Knowing that you already make bread, and that you liked the English muffin bread, you will love-love-love these! The honey glaze is just to-die-for crazy good, too! It just adds that touch of something extra. If you try them, keep me posted!
And glad your hubs loved the parsnip fries and there were no leftovers in sight! He and mine would get along well, they aren’t overly discerning about their ‘potatoes’ :)
Yes, I have a favourite dinner roll recipe. It is from the old Red Betty Crocker cookbook that my mom had, and probably your mom had, because everyone’s mom had it!
I know that book oh so well! Now I have to go scrounge up a copy and see their recipe!
I LOVE the look of these. I would eat just dinner rolls for dinner, forget the other stuff! (Especially when they are covered in butter and honey!)
And if I can get a vegan to want to eat honey-butter rolls, I have done my job with the photos :)
I’ve never made a dinner roll – YET! This look incredibly soft and delicious. I only wish I had bread flour in my apartment. I guess that means I’ll be making them at home during Thanksgiving!
I’m sure you ‘could’ make them with all-purpose but the bread flour was so perfect I don’t plan to tinker with the recipe!
Those look perfect. I think that says volumes when a roll can go plain
Yes, the dough was so good on it’s own that it really could!
I’ve made lots of dinner rolls, but never with honey. Yum. These look so amazing; the photos make me want to dive in to my screen. With a knifeful of butter.
If you have a fave dinner roll recipe, would love to hear about it. Or if you do try this one – the honey just adds such a great touch!
They look puffy and perfect for the thanksgiving table! I agree- there is nothing like a good roll or bread
They were so puffy that it was amazing! I mean they ROSE up like champs!
these sounds look incredible. dinner rolls are to me the ultimate indulgence at holidays – i truly let myself run wild and have however many i want. and although it’s worrisome when i am nearing the double-digit range in one holiday weekend, i just let it happen. you only live once.
And if you are a ‘dinner roll person’, I have a feeling you’d love these! I use your mentality with Christmas cookies :)
Mmmm homemade rolls are delicious. These honey rolls sound incredible too Averie! I love how you always give us a cooking lesson….so helpful!!!
Sometimes I feel like I’m too wordy but with something like bread, I’d rather be too wordy and avoid someone having a mistake than not wordy enough! You know those recipes you read where they’re so vague and I’m always like well how does that work exactly…. :)
I loooooove sweet, doughy dinner rolls! As far as I’m concerned they’re the most important part of a holiday dinner. I strategically place the bread by me. :)
I think the bread strategically placed by you is a good call :) I am loving those rolls you made. Psyllium husk is truly a new one for me. Fiber much? :) I would love to try them and am so impressed that you’re taking the bull by the horns on this new path of yours and just diving in! Necessity is the mother of invention!
Wow, Averie.. wow! These look like they came from a bakery and considering this was your first go at making a dinner roll, I give you major props! “Rarely does recipe karma strike so perfectly that the first attempt at a recipe” – ain’t that the truth?! I had a nightmare of a recipe flop this weekend. Don’t even want to talk about it. These look particularly beautiful, SO fluffy, and soft. And you make them look very approachable to the yeast novice. Eating them plain – something I don’t think I could ever do with bread, but the way you describe them makes me believe I could change that. I love your double plate presentation – the pretty pink and pattern plate. I get so much inspiration from your food styling!
And I love the “oven spring” method you used too – I didn’t know that was the term! It is how I bake my muffins, but then I lower the temps down after the initial blow of hot air around 425. This recipe is wonderful, I’m pinning. Saving for the rainy day I make my first yeasted bread!!
I knew you’d appreciate that recipe karma line. There are some recipes, i.e. the pumpkin-choc chip cookies I made this fall – I will NEVER forget those :) that just do.not.come.easily, or really ever. So sorry about your flop. Usually I can salvage things, to either eat here even if I dont post about it, but after all that time/investment and the content you plan for, to have a flop is devastating on about 4 levels all in one fell swoop! Not like you can go ‘create’ 6 more hours in your day now, either.
They are truly good enough to eat plain – seriously! And you know I love my butter, frosting, sauces, dips and I can go plain with these and so can Scott!
The food styling came about b/c I had found that little plate at the thrift store the day before I shot these and was determined to use it :)
And oven spring. I learned that term by watching bread-baking videos…after bread rises, it will get a final boost of spring/rise when you hit it with the oven air. And yes, same principle with muffins! Thanks for the Pin, too!
These remind me of the dinner rolls we’d have at family get togethers and holidays growing up. I wonder why we don’t have them anymore?!? It’s too bad!
They’re so good and perfect for holiday get-togethers with the family!
I’ll take 10 of these, please. Seriously — they look soooo yummy, Averie!