Anytime Dinner Rolls Food Processor Method
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 3, 2009
Yield
Makes 24 rolls
Ingredients
Before You Begin
It’s important to keep the pieces of dough covered while rounding them into rolls or else they will quickly dry out and develop a tough “skin.” Surprisingly, the baking times for frozen, refrigerated, or fresh rolls are about the same (give or take a few minutes). You will need about 2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing the tops of the rolls prior to baking. We prefer the soft texture of rolls that meld together during baking, which is what will happen when they are spaced ½ inch apart on the baking sheet.
Instructions
- Whisk the milk, butter, yolks, and egg together in a large liquid measuring cup. Pulse 4 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a food processor (fitted with a dough blade if possible) to combine. with the processor running, pour the milk mixture through the feed tube and process until a rough dough ball forms, 30 to 40 seconds. Let the dough rest in the bowl for 2 minutes, then process for 30 seconds longer.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean counter and knead by hand to form a smooth, round ball, about 5 minutes, adding the remaining 1/4 cup flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the counter. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover loosely with greased plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Following the illustrations below, divide the dough into 24 even pieces and cover with greased plastic wrap. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time (keeping the other pieces covered), round the dough into a small roll. Lay the rolls on the prepared baking sheet, spaced about 1/2 inch apart. Cover the rolls loosely with greased plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the rolls have doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Without pressing on the rolls, wrap the tray tightly with greased plastic wrap. Freeze the rolls until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer the frozen rolls to a large zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. (Do not thaw before baking.)
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the rolls on the sheet, about 1/2 inch apart. Brush the rolls with melted butter and bake until golden, 15 to 25 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
to store
to serve
Yield
Makes 24 rollsIngredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
For a durable, butter-rich yeasted roll recipe that could go from freezer to oven, we used all-purpose flour, whole milk, a lot of butter, and egg yolks (whites toughened the dough), along with a couple of tablespoons of sugar to speed up proofing and enhance the rolls’ wheaty flavor. With a soft, billowy, tender crumb as our goal, we knew a reasonably short knead was in order for our anytime dinner rolls recipe, but how short was short? The food processor did most of the work of kneading in seconds, followed by five minutes of hand-kneading to finish up. We baked some buns after they had risen overnight in the refrigerator and others that had been frozen after rising and in both cases the buns baked up beautifully, especially after being brushed with a bit of butter before being slid into the oven.
Before You Begin
It’s important to keep the pieces of dough covered while rounding them into rolls or else they will quickly dry out and develop a tough “skin.” Surprisingly, the baking times for frozen, refrigerated, or fresh rolls are about the same (give or take a few minutes). You will need about 2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing the tops of the rolls prior to baking. We prefer the soft texture of rolls that meld together during baking, which is what will happen when they are spaced ½ inch apart on the baking sheet.
Instructions
- Whisk the milk, butter, yolks, and egg together in a large liquid measuring cup. Pulse 4 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a food processor (fitted with a dough blade if possible) to combine. with the processor running, pour the milk mixture through the feed tube and process until a rough dough ball forms, 30 to 40 seconds. Let the dough rest in the bowl for 2 minutes, then process for 30 seconds longer.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean counter and knead by hand to form a smooth, round ball, about 5 minutes, adding the remaining 1/4 cup flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the counter. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover loosely with greased plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Following the illustrations below, divide the dough into 24 even pieces and cover with greased plastic wrap. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time (keeping the other pieces covered), round the dough into a small roll. Lay the rolls on the prepared baking sheet, spaced about 1/2 inch apart. Cover the rolls loosely with greased plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the rolls have doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Without pressing on the rolls, wrap the tray tightly with greased plastic wrap. Freeze the rolls until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer the frozen rolls to a large zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. (Do not thaw before baking.)
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the rolls on the sheet, about 1/2 inch apart. Brush the rolls with melted butter and bake until golden, 15 to 25 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
to store
to serve
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