Thanksgiving is almost here and there’s nothing like a home made roll to pile on top of your plate at dinner. I’ve always been intimidated by bread because it seems like a very tricky concept. While admit it’s not the easiest thing to master, these yeast rolls are a great way to start. I like this recipe because the ingredients are minimal and it doesn’t require a lot of technical skill.
I start by combining the yeast and warm water in the bottom of my KitchenAid stand mixer and I stir it to dissolve the yeast, then leave it for about 10 minutes to foam. Then I put on the dough hook attachment and add the sugar, butter, salt, and hot milk to the bowl. Mix that for a couple minutes, then add the egg and mix another couple minutes.
Then I beat in 4 cups of flour with the mixer going. You want to see the dough separate from the sides of the mixer bowl, but still sticking to the bottom.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface, knead lightly for 5 minutes with your hands, then shape it into a ball.
Place the ball into a well greased bowl and cover it with a kitchen towel for it’s first rise, which should take between 60 and 90 minutes, until it’s doubled in size.
It’s done with the first rise when you can stick your finger in the dough and it does not bounce back at all. Once you’ve reached that rise, punch the dough to knock the air back out and empty the dough back down onto a lightly floured surface. Then you’ll separate the dough into 15 pieces. I use a pizza cutter for this but the proper tool would be a pastry bench scraper. Shape the dough into balls and place in a greased 9 X 13 dish.
Now you’ll let them go for a second rise for about 45 minutes. The edges are now touching and they’re puffed up.
Finally, they’re ready to bake! They will bake for about 18-20 minutes until golden brown or until they reach the brown-ness that you prefer. I usually take them out on the earlier side because I don’t like a super brown top.
The maple cinnamon butter doesn’t have any prep pictures because you literally just mix the ingredients together and it’s ready! Obviously you’ll need to start with softened butter. When I’m done mixing the butter, I just put plastic wrap over it and leave it on the counter so that it’s easily spreadable when I serve the rolls.
Dinner Rolls with Maple Cinnamon Butter
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 package active dry yeast (equals 2 1/4 tsp)
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup hot milk
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 egg
For the Maple Cinnamon Butter:
- 1 stick butter (1/2 cup), softened
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Sprinkle yeast over very warm water in the bottom of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Stir until yeast dissolves. Leave to foam about 10 minutes.
- Add sugar, the 1/4 cup butter, salt, and hot milk and stir until sugar dissolves and butter is melted. Add egg and start the mixer on medium. Beat in 4 cups of the flour, 1 cup at a time, to form a soft dough. Dough will be slightly sticky. Dough should pull away from the sides of the mixer but remain sticky on the bottom.
- Turn out dough onto floured surface and knead lightly with your hands for 5 minutes, then pat into ball shape.
- Cover with kitchen towel and let rise 60-90 minutes, until doubled in size. The dough is finished rising if you poke your finger in it and it does not bounce back.
- Turn onto floured surface and divide into 15-16 pieces. Shape into balls by tucking the edges underneath itself. Place in greased 9×13 pan and cover with towel, allow to rise 45 minutes, until puffed up and edges sticking to each other.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes, until tops are golden brown. While the bread is baking, mix together all of the maple cinnamon butter ingredients in a small bowl using a hand mixer. Serve softened in a small dish with the bread.
