These soft, buttery, bread rolls are what I like to call “special occasion” dinner rolls. I have been making this recipe for several years now: They are perfect for Christmas, Thanksgiving Day, Easter, or any special gathering! But, if you have some extra time this weekend, why not try this recipe? All it just needs is some extra time for the rich dough to rise and at the end you will be rewarded with the most delicious homemade rolls!
The dough comes together very easily, especially if you are using a stand mixer. Milk, an egg and some melted butter make for a rich and elastic dough. What makes these rolls even more special though, is a secret ingredient that is added to the flour: instant mashed potatoes. Since this is not an ingredient most of us keep as a staple in the pantry, I can tell you that it is worth a trip to the supermarket to get it, as it ensures their softness and fluffiness.
Buttery Bread Rolls Ready for the Oven
Bread Rolls Baked and Just out of the Oven!
Even if the recipe makes a lot of rolls, unless you are feeding an army, you don’t have to bake them all at once. Divide the dough in half and store the unused portion in the refrigerator for the next day. Bring it to room temperature before rolling and shaping. In fact, making the dough the day before the holiday or the special dinner party, then baking them on the day, will save you time while you are preparing your other dishes. Be warned: these delicious rolls disappear very quickly!
- 3 cups AP flour
- 1¼ tsp. salt
- ¾ cups instant mashed potato flakes
- 1 cup lukewarm milk
- 2¼ tsp. instant yeast (1 envelope)
- 3 TBSP. sugar
- 3 TBSP. butter
- 1 lrg. egg, lightly beaten
- 3-4 TBSP. butter, melted (for brushing on the rolls)
- In a large mixing bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer equipped with a hook), combine the flour, salt and instant mashed potato flakes. In a small bowl, add the lukewarm milk and sprinkle the yeast and the sugar into the bowl. Mix well and leave for 5 minutes until it lightly froths. Add to the bowl of the stand mixer along with the egg and the melted butter. Mix again until it forms a “shaggy” dough. Continue kneading until the dough is nice and smooth.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Allow it to rise for 2 hours in a warm, draft-free place. At the end of that time, the dough will rise though it probably won't double in bulk. (This dough takes quite a while to get going; after 1 hour, it may seem like it's barely expanded at all. But during the last half hour, it rises more quickly.)
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface. Divide it in half. Working with one half at a time, roll or pat the dough into an 8"x12" rectangle.
- Brush the dough all over with a light coating of the melted butter. (You'll have melted butter left over - save it to brush on top of the baked rolls). Working with one rectangle at a time, fold it lengthwise to form a log. Slice each log into 8 or 12 pieces. Take each piece of dough, and form a tight and smooth ball. Continue with the rest of dough and place all rolls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gently flatten the rolls and let them rise for 45 minutes to an hour. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Brush the rolls with some of the melted butter and bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush some of the left over melted butter on the top, while they are still warm.
- If you don't want to use all the dough, place the second half in a well-sealed bag and place it in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before rolling and shaping. Place in the baking sheet and allow to rise again.
This recipe is adapted from King's Arthur Flour!
Thank you for following along and for reading this blog post!
If you are not already following this blog, please subscribe to Marilena’s Kitchen to have all new posts delivered straight to your e-mail box!
If you make one of my recipes, please leave a comment to let me know how it turns out! Take a photo and share it on Instagram, by tagging me @marilenaleavitt so I can see what you made!
I’ll like to try these but I have a question: Do you mean “lightly floured” surface?
Instruction #3: Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface.
Yes, Linda. The surface should be lightly greased and the top brushed with melted butter!