Plush, buttery, and perfect for stuffing with eggs or serving alongside soup — these old-school dinner rolls will upend your weekend breakfast game
I have a serious soft spot for dinner rolls: small, buttery, plush rounds that I have, to this day, never actually eaten with dinner warmed in a basket. At the bakery where I worked in high school, they’d come out of the oven in a big pan, fully kissing‑crusted — that part where you pull two rolls apart and a few feathery filaments of bread cling between them is absolutely my favorite. A warm roll, split and spread with salted butter or jam (or both), was my breakfast so many mornings. These days I use them for small egg sandwiches, slider rolls for pulled pork, or alongside a bowl of soup on a chilly day.
This recipe is my airtight version adapted from Vallery Lomas’s Life Is What You Bake It. I’ve made a few tweaks: hand‑shaping the rolls rather than using a cookie cutter, and starting the dough with cold butter. The result is stretchy, rich, and basically adorable — perfect for Sunday mornings and holiday spreads.
Makes: 12 large or 20 small rolls Time: 2 1/2 hours Source: Adapted Vallery Lomas
• 1 cup (235 grams) warm water
• 2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter, cold and diced, plus 3 tablespoons (45 grams) melted
• 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (use Diamond brand or halve amount for other salts)
• 1 1/4-ounce (2 1/4 teaspoons or 7 grams) instant yeast
• 3 1/2 cups (455 grams) all‑purpose flour
• Oil, for the bowl
• Flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk warm water, diced cold butter, granulated sugar, egg, kosher salt, and yeast.
Attach the dough hook and add the flour. Knead on low until ingredients come together, about 2 minutes.
Increase to medium and knead until the dough pulls away from the bowl sides, about 8 minutes. The dough will be soft and sticky — that’s okay.
Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 to 2 hours (1 1/2 hours typical).
[Make ahead option] At this point cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours to slow the rise and deepen flavor. When ready to bake, proceed from shaping.
Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter and set aside.
Turn dough onto a well-floured counter and pat into a 12×9‑inch rectangle. Cut into 24 (6×4), 20 (5×4) or 12 (4×3) pieces depending on desired size.
Shape each square into a round and lightly dip both sides in melted butter (a thin coat, not a dunk).
Arrange rounds on a 9×13‑inch (quarter‑sheet) baking sheet with space between to expand.
Let rise again until puffed and springy, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake until tops are golden, 10 to 14 minutes.
Brush rolls immediately with remaining melted butter. If using unsalted butter, sprinkle flaky sea salt now.
Serve warm, or rewarm before serving. Rolls freeze well for future use.
• This is a half‑batch of Lomas’s original; the full recipe doubles and bakes roughly 35 rolls on a half‑sheet pan.
• Hand‑shaping yields a rustic, tender crumb. If you prefer uniform rounds, use a 2.5‑inch cutter and re‑roll scraps.
• Salt recommendation: Diamond Crystal kosher salt measures differently than other brands — use half the volume if substituting.
• These rolls are best eaten warm. For make‑ahead, freeze baked rolls and reheat to refresh.
• If you prefer savory tops, brush with melted butter and sprinkle flaky salt before serving.
