These unique and delicious Flaky Dinner Rolls are so tender as you pull them apart, and they have a light buttery flavor. 

flaky dinner rolls in a basket

I love these flaky dinner rolls because they’re different. There’s a bit of a process involved in making them, similar to the process of making flaky buttermilk biscuits where you butter and fold the dough. The whole process is worth it though because they turn out to be pretty delicious. Serve these for a special holiday dinner with your Brown Sugar Glazed Ham, Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans with Caramelized Shallots. They’re nice rolls to serve at Easter or Thanksgiving, and I’m sure they’ll be appreciated for other occasions too.

ingredients displayed for making rolls

Ingredients needed:

  • milk
  • sugar
  • active dry yeast
  • flour
  • salt
  • butter
  • cooking spray

8 photos showing process of rolling out dough for flaky dinner rolls

How to make Flaky Dinner Rolls:

  1. Combine warm water with sugar and yeast. Let it stand for 5 minutes. Add flour and salt, and stir to combine. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.
  2. Roll the dough out on the back (floured) surface of a baking sheet. 
  3. Spread the dough with butter.
  4. Fold the buttered dough and then freeze for 10 minutes.
  5. Roll it out again, fold it again and freeze for another 10 minutes.
  6. Roll it out one last time, and roll it up jelly-roll style.

rolls in muffin tins ready for oven

Cut the roll of flaky dinner rolls dough with a serrated knife into 12 equal slices, and place them into a muffin tin. Cover the tin, and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes in a warm place.

How to create a warm place for rising dough:

*If you don’t have a warm place for rising, use your oven if it’s available. Give it a 60 second heat-up, and then turn the oven OFF. Turn on the oven light and use the inside of the warm oven for your rising.

flaky dinner rolls in muffin pan

Bake for 20 minute, until they’re beautiful and golden brown.

flaky dinner rolls in basket

Your Flaky Dinner Rolls are then ready to serve. They’re best when served warm. They’re perfectly fine to make ahead, and then warm-up in the oven when ready to serve. Just wrap them in foil and put them in a warm oven to heat up. Leftovers are good a day or two after baking as well. Enjoy!

If you happen to be following the Weight Watchers WW program, you’ll be happy to know that there is a link to WW Points in the recipe card below.

flaky dinner rolls in a basket
No ratings yet

Flaky Dinner Rolls

These unique and delicious dinner rolls are so tender and flaky as you pull them apart.
Prep: 45 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Freezing and Resting Times:: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total: 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 12 rolls
Save this recipe!
Get this sent to your inbox, plus get new recipes from us every week!
Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Ingredients

Instructions 

  • Place the milk in a large bowl, and dissolve the sugar and yeast in the milk; let stand for 5 minutes. Add 2¾ cups flour and the salt to the yeast mixture; stir until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth (about 5 min.); add enough of the remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands (the dough will feel slightly sticky). Cover the dough with plastic wrap, and let it rest for 10 minutes.
  • Roll the dough into a large rectangle (12x10-inch give or take) on the lightly floured back side of a baking sheet). Gently spread the butter over the dough. Working with a long side, fold up the bottom third of the dough. Fold the top third of the dough over the first fold to form a smaller rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap; place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
  • Remove the dough from the freezer; remove the plastic wrap. Roll the dough on the baking sheet again (sprinkle on a little more flour, if needed), into a 12 x 10-inch rectangle. Working with a long side, fold up the bottom third of the dough. Fold the top third of the dough over the first fold to form a smaller rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap; place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
  • Remove the dough from the freezer; remove the plastic wrap. Roll the dough, still on the baking sheet, into a 12x8-inch rectangle. Beginning with a long side, roll up dough jelly-roll fashion; pinch the seam to seal (do not seal the ends of the roll).  Using a serrated knife (a bread knife will do), cut the roll into 12 equal slices. Place the slices, cut sides up, in muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Lightly coat the tops of the dough slices with cooking spray. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
  • Preheat the oven to 375°.
  • Bake the dough at 375° for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the pan, and cool for 5 minutes on a wire rack. Serve rolls warm.

Notes

  • *Once you’ve cut your slices of dough and placed them into your muffin tin, you can cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to bake them (overnight is fine). When you’re ready to bake, cover lightly with a dish towel and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size.
  • *It’s best to bake these rolls in a muffin tin, which will help them keep their shape. They’ll flatten out more if baked on a baking sheet.
  • *If you don’t have a warm place for rising, use your oven if it’s available. Give it a 60 second heat-up, and then turn it OFF. Turn on the oven light and use the inside of the oven for your rising.
  • *These are easy to warm up, and they’re still great as leftovers a day or two after baking.

Nutrition

Serving: 1roll, Calories: 159kcal, Carbohydrates: 28g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 8mg, Sodium: 180mg, Potassium: 72mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 129IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 31mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this? Leave a comment below!

flaky dinner rolls in a serving container

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate This Recipe




4 Comments

  1. leslie says:

    Ohhh havens Lori. I will certainly be trying these out!

  2. Laureen says:

    These look so good, I will be trying this recipe soon! thanks Lori.

  3. Shobana says:

    These look awesome! And love the flaky looking part too! 🙂 Will def give this a try! Tks for sharing! 🙂
    Shobana

  4. Natalie @ Cooking for My Kids says:

    They are beautiful and look delicious, too!