My mom makes the best rolls in the world.
Seriously. Everyone is obsessed. Every thanksgiving, she has to make about a half dozen per person.
I’m not even joking. We pop them like candy! They are heaven straight out of the oven, but I also am obsessed with them the next day.
Every time one of us kids is visiting home, we beg her to make them. We happen to be visiting this week, and my mom made rolls. I quickly grabbed my camera to snag some pictures as she made them. She is a speed demon when it comes to rolling them up, so the pictures aren’t fantastic, but I couldn’t wait for better pictures before I shared these amazing rolls with you! She learned from my Grandma Nancy, and I learned from her, and now you can learn from both of us!
To start, get yourself a very cute assistant.
Now put that cute assistant down for a nap because he’s actually really terrible at baking.
The dough is super simple to mix up, and all of the kneading can happen in your mixer. You can also knead it by hand if you want to channel your inner pioneer. It’s also a very forgiving dough, and hard to mess up. Perfect for anyone a little afraid of yeast doughs. I’m just barely starting to be less afraid of them.
Add enough flour that the dough cleans the side of the bowl, and doesn’t stick to your finger.
After the dough is all mixed up and has doubled in size, punch it down and form into a ball. Divide that ball in half, and then divide each of those balls in half, giving you 4 roughly equal sized dough balls.
Flatten one dough ball into a circle about 12 inches in diameter, and brush with melted butter.
Using a pizza cutter, slice the circle in half, and then in quarters.
Slice each quarter into 3 slices, going straight across into the opposite quarter, making 12 triangles.
Starting from the fat end of the triangle, roll up each roll.
Place the rolls on an ungreased cookie sheet, and brush with more melted butter. Let rise on the baking sheets for another 45 minutes.
Bake for 10-15 minutes, until just barely beginning to brown. My family all has very different and strong opinions about whether they prefer the more golden brown rolls or the barely brown rolls. My mom likes them with barely any browning at all, and I am #teamgoldenbrown all of the way. I mean I’ll eat 700 of them regardless of their done-ness, but the golden ones are my very favorite.
One of my favorite meals growing up was roll sandwiches. My mom would make 8 extra large rolls instead of the usual 12 from each dough ball, and we’d make the most amazing sandwiches on these rolls. They are tender and fluffy and just perfect. There is room in my heart for all types of rolls, but these have a special place for both their sheer deliciousness and nostalgia. But nostalgia aside, these are unique and delicious and I’ve yet to meet anyone who can eat just one.
Robin's Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 c milk
- 1/2 c butter
- 2 Tbsp instant yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 c sugar
- 5 1/2- 7 c flour
- 1 egg
- 1/4 c butter melted.
Instructions
- Add milk and butter to microwave safe bowl. Heat 30 seconds at a time, stirring between each, until butter is melted and mixture is warm to the touch, but not scalding.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast, salt, sugar, and 4 cups of flour. Add in melted butter and milk mixture and mix until combined. Add 1 egg and mix well.
- Mix in 1.5- 2.5 cups of flour, until the dough cleans the bowl. Knead in the mixer for 5 minutes. Cover bowl with towel and let until dough has doubled; about 45 minutes- 1 hour.
- Punch down the dough and divide into 4 equal balls.
- Roll out each ball into a circle and brush with melted butter.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut each circle into 12 wedges. Roll up each triangle from the fat end to the point. Place on a cookie sheet, with the point on the bottom and brush with melted butter.
- Let rise for 30-45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes, until rolls are very lightly golden brown.
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