In my opinion, there is just nothing better than homemade bread. And I don’t care whether the bread comes in the form of loaves or rolls. I’m easy in that regard. So, when I was planning the menu for our last JazzVox home concert meal, I decided to make 2 kinds of bread. Why? Because bread is easy and inexpensive to make, and people love it. So, in combination with Light Rye Bread (recipe on site already), our guests gobbled up all but 1 of these rolls and a few slices of rye bread. Thank goodness there was at least a bit of bread left for us. Because dang, there is no such thing as left over bread at this household.

What wasn’t left was any of the double batch of Kräuterbutter (German Herb Butter) I had made to slather on the rye bread. Well, that didn’t go as planned. People frosted both kinds of bread with this amazing, flavored butter. (Find the recipe for Kräuterbutter below.) And frankly, given the opportunity I would have done the same thing.

Anyway, the main thing you should know about these rolls is that they are really quick and easy to build, and absolutely delicious. And you don’t even need bread flour for this recipe. Just plain old all-purpose flour. And as you can see from the picture, they are beautiful to boot.

And remember, Thanksgiving will be fast upon us. And these rolls would be perfect on your table. And because I am the kind of person I am, I’ve included directions so that you can make the dough and form the rolls one day and bake them off the next day. So, no excuses about dinner rolls being too hard to make, too time-consuming, or being too last minute. Nonsense! There is nothing easier than this recipe to build delicious dinner rolls to serve your family and friends. And boy will you be the hero of the day!

Well, it’s sunny outside. A bit of scattered cloud cover here and there. But although the sun is shining, it’s cold. So, I’ve built some soup that is happily burbling away on the stove. Along with a couple slices of leftover rye bread, we will be dining in style at the dinner table tonight.

May you too find happiness at your dinner table sharing the wonderful world of fine cuisine with your family and friends. For me, there just isn’t anything more rewarding than seeing someone smile when they bite into something I have served them. As you may gather from this comment, I live for those smiles.

As always, peace and love to all.

¾ c. whole milk, slightly warm   

2 tsp. instant dry yeast

¼ c. granulated sugar    

1 tsp. kosher salt

4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

4 lg eggs, divided

½ c. unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into chunks

veggie oil

In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix the warm milk, yeast, and sugar together. Let sit for about 10 minutes or until it becomes frothy. Add salt, flour, and 3 eggs to the bowl. Using your dough hook, mix the dough until all the flour is absorbed. Then add the butter cubes. Knead the dough until it is smooth, elastic, and only a smidge sticks to the bottom of the bowl. If needed, add a bit more flour.  

Pour a small amount of oil into the bowl, and using your hands and a stiff spatula, shape the dough into a round, lightly greased ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 75-90 minutes or until doubled in size. Meanwhile, make an egg wash by whisking the remaining egg with 1 teaspoon of water.

Shape the dough into 15 rolls and place in a lightly greased 9×13-inch pan. Let rise again for about an hour, then brush with egg wash. (For building the rolls on day 1 and baking them off on day 2, see directions below.)

Bake in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 23-25 minutes. The internal temperature should reach at least 190-degrees.

Remove from oven and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

For making the dough ahead and baking it the next day, once the rolls are formed, cover and refrigerate them overnight. They will rise while in the fridge and be ready to bake in the morning. Make sure to let them sit out for about 20 minutes to come to room temperature before brushing with the egg wash and baking them in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 23-25 minutes. The internal temperature should reach at least 190-degrees when they are done.

Remove from oven and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

KRÄUTERBUTTER (GERMAN HERB BUTTER)

½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1 T. finely chopped fresh chives

2 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

2 tsp. finely chopped fresh basil

¼ tsp. dried dill weed

¼ tsp. dried marjoram

¼ tsp. granulated garlic

¼ tsp. kosher salt

¼ tsp. finely chopped fresh or scant 1/8 tsp. dried rosemary

freshly ground black pepper

Mush all the ingredients together with a table fork and refrigerate covered until ready to serve at room temperature. (Best made the day ahead so the flavors have time to get to know each other.) This butter is a great spread for rye bread. (Or any other kind of bread for that matter!)