Next Post
Butternut Squash and Sun-Dried Tomato White Lasagna.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
No Thanksgiving table would be complete without rolls, and these Easy Flaky Pull-Apart Dinner Rolls are my go-to this year.
If there’s one thing that absolutely has to be on every holiday table, it’s got to be rolls. Or at least that’s the case in my house (ok a few of the brothers would definitely say turkey over rolls). However, not one family member, not even the pickiest, would ever decline a roll. In fact, the rolls are probably the very first item to completely disappear.
Everyone loves them.
Over the years, I’ve made a few different varieties of dinner rolls. My favorites are these easier homemade crescent rolls, but I always love making those for Christmas dinner. For Thanksgiving, I love something a little more doughy. Enter these super easy, super flakey, extra buttery dinner rolls.
Oh man, does my family love these. Even after having been served these rolls about four times over the last month (they took a bit of testing to get just right). Each time they were gone in minutes…seriously my family loves rolls.
Here’s the thing, I know bread baking intimidates a lot of people, and I get it. When you read a recipe that requires kneading the dough for ten minutes, has a rising time of four hours, and a crazy complicated rolling/shaping process, that’s not only scary, but daunting too.
Whenever I set out to bake bread, I always try to find the easiest and simplest way. Bread does not have to be hard to be delicious, and this recipe is an example of that.
The dough is made up of a few simple ingredients that you probably have in your kitchen right now. Mix up the ingredients in one bowl, let the dough rise, roll it out, spread on some butter, cut into squares, let it rise one more time and then bake. Nothing fancy or complicated, and the best part?
These rolls are delicious.
Again, soft, buttery, and extra flakey. Aka, what every dinner roll should aspire to be.
So what’s the secret that makes these rolls so good?
Umm? Can you guess?
A layer of butter…
Obviously.
When working on this recipe, I first baked up a roll that was more dense than I wanted. I’m not real big on dense rolls and what I really wanted with these rolls was more of that flakey layer, like what you get from the Pillsbury canned biscuits. Yes, I did just write Pillsbury canned biscuits. My mom used to buy them for family parties and even though I have not had them since I was probably ten or twelve, I remember them being delicious. Come on, you know you loved them too.
So, I did some thinking and ended up using my favorite technique from my crescent recipe and smeared a layer of butter (salted, because it’s my favorite) over the dough, then folded it up like a letter and cut into squares. The layer of butter ripples through the rolls creating three flakey, doughy layers. It’s what makes these pull-apart rolls better than any other.
Because let’s be real, who does not lover, buttery, doughy layers?!
They are the best.
And now you guys see why you need these rolls in your life. Especially come Thanksgiving Day.
They are the perfect rolls for soaking up all that gravy and then eating for breakfast the next morning. Trust me on this, you have to give these rolls a try. There’s nothing not to love.
And guys? Speaking of rolls, my mom and I are in NYC this week and I really want to take her to a great bakery for croissants and pastries since they are her all time favorite. From your guys recommendations so far, I need to go to Levin Bakery, any other hidden secrets I need to know about? Let us know!
In the meantime, start plotting out your Thanksgiving rolls and then give these a testing this week…
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
All good cooks test their recipes before Thanksgiving day. Just sayin’
These look like heaven! When rolling out the dough to 1/4″ thick, roughly how large is that rectangle?
It’s about 3 1/2 x 2 inch rectangle, but it does not need to be exact. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! ?
Love how easy these are to make! Question though, is there a way to make ahead of time and freeze them to bake at a later time? Also love your cook book as well!
Yes, you can keep them in the fridge for 2 days before baking, then remove them and let sit on the counter while the oven preheats or they can be frozen for 2 months and thawed overnight in the fridge before baking. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! ?
Are you able to freeze these after they are baked and warmed up before eating?
Sure! I like these best fresh baked, but you can freeze, then thaw on the counter for 4 hour or so. Warm, covered in a 350 degree oven for 10-20 minutes. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! ?
Would it be OK to use bread flour instead of all-purpose flour?
Your food always looks amazing.i have made quite a lot of your recipes and can’t wait to order your book for Christmas. Quick question….. cover the dough w what? I Hv problems w plastic wrap sticking even if I spray it, then u loss the poof of the risin (is that a word?)dough.. If you don’t cover it gets hard crust on top. Help
Thank you!!
I sometimes use a damp Towel. Just dampen a large kitchen towel and drape it over the rolls while they rise. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Hi! For your New York City trip, try to visit Mille-Feuille Bakery for their almond croissants. They are to die for!
Mille-Feuille Bakery
552 LaGuardia Pl, New York, NY 10012
+1 212-533-4698
https://goo.gl/maps/r2Cgn8fuZK82
I will totally go here when I go to NYC next time! Thank you!
Can you clarify the flour measurements? 3 or 4 cups?
Thanks!
HI! You need 2-4 cups flour. Start with 3 cups and add in the remaining 1 cup as needed until the dough comes together. Does that make sense? Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
I have a question regarding the butter please. I understand that the 4 tablespoons used to smear on the dough before folding is suggested to be salted. What should the 2 tablespoons of butter added to the dough mix be? Do you suggest unsalted here? Thank you.
HI! I like to used salted butter throughout the whole recipe. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! ?
OMG served these rolls today for Thanksgiving, made them yesterday and left them in the refrigerator overnight to rise, they were absolutely delicious!! Everyone LOVED them!! The whole house smelled like a bread bakery! I did have to add about 3/4 cup additional flour, no big deal. They were light as a feather, crusty and buttery on top, and best of all, it is a relatively simple recipe that will put fresh rolls on the table! I will be making these every Thanksgiving! Thank you once again for an incredible recipe! Happy Thanksgiving!
I am so happy to hear that these turned out well for you Donna! Thank you and I hope you had a great Thanksgiving!
These rolls turned out so BEAUTIFUL! I made a practice round today in preparation for Thanksgiving and the feedback I got was they could use a little salt. Maybe I should have used salted butter when making the dough? Do you have any recommendations for the remainder of the rolls (sprinkle on top after the melted butter)? Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
HI! So I do always use salted butter and then also sprinkle with flaky sea salt for a final touch. Please let me know if you have other questions. So glad you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Can these be made up beforehand? Maybe frozen or refrigerated a few days before Thanksgiving? I’m not sure how to go about that.
Yes, you can keep them in the fridge for 2 days before baking, then remove them and let sit on the counter while the oven preheats or they can be frozen for 2 months and thawed overnight in the fridge before baking. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Thanks for the info about freezing them I’d made them ahead of time today and freeze them after for Thanksgiving.?
Great! I hope you enjoy these!
Finally I had time to prepare this “easy flaky pull-apart dinner rolls” today.It tastes good.Most importantly the smell from this roll is making me more hunger to eat all at a time.
I am really glad you like these rolls! Thank you!
I hope you made it to Levain! I live 100 ft from their original store on 74th and it is the BEST! The owners Connie and Pam are absolutely wonderful. Everything is delicious but the cookies are to die for!!
Oh my sounds amazing! You’re so lucky to live by there haha! Thank you Linda!
I made a test batch of these over the weekend and they were delicious! I’m going to make them for Thanksgiving for sure but I wanted to know if there is any point they can be frozen? Maybe after the second rise and then bake frozen? I was trying to get ahead on Thanksgiving prep. Thanks!
I like to freeze after the second rising. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
These looks absolutely amazing!!! I have recently tried to teach myself to bake and I cannot wait to add these to the list for Thanksgiving. I recently bought a way too large box of dry active yeast instead and have been searching for ways to use it. Is it possible to use that type of yeast instead of the instant?? Like I said, I’m very new to baking so I don’t want to make a rookie mistake! Thank you 🙂
Sure! Just add the yeast, milk, and honey to your bowl, let sit 10 minutes or until foamy. Then add your remaining ingredients. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! ?
I just pulled these out of the oven. I am trying them out for Thanksgiving and I know already they will be a hit, I’ll just have to double up on them. They were soft and buttery and oh so delicious. My layers aren’t as defined, I believe because my dough was a little wet. I would add a little more flour next time. They are a hit with my husband and boys, and my house smells wonderful. Thanks Tieghan!
That is so great! Thank you Julie!