I’ve been using this roll recipe for years, thanks to my sister-in-law who got the recipe from her sister (and hey! the great thing is they are both sisters from The Sisters Cafe). I alternate between this roll recipe and the Lion House Rolls. The last time I made these, I tried the cloverleaf variation and loved the change – and also how they pull apart into sections so easily. These rolls are delicious – light and tender and flavorful, thanks to the buttermilk. They take a bit of time because the dough sponges for a few hours before adding the rest of the ingredients – but the trade-off is you can leave the dough in the fridge for up to a week and pull off what you need each day to have hot and fresh rolls.
Note: as with all yeast doughs, I never use the flour amount called for in the recipe as a hard fast rule (unless a weight measure is given and then I pull out my kitchen scale). Because humidity, temperature, altitude and a multitude of other factors can impact how much flour you need in your yeast doughs, I always judge when to quit adding flour by the texture and look and feel of the dough rather than how much flour I’ve added compared to the recipe. This tutorial on yeast may help identify how a perfectly floured dough should be.
Ingredients
- 3 cups buttermilk at room temperature
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon yeast dissolved in ¼ cup warm water (let it proof for 2-3 minute)
- ½ cup sugar
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 5 cups flour, more or less
- ½ cup oil
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
- Mix the buttermilk, flour and yeast/water mixture together thoroughly in a large mixing bowl. Let stand at room temperature until double in size, about 2 hours. Add sugar, eggs, salt, flour, oil, and baking soda. Mix well and knead for 7-10 minutes. Roll out the amount of dough you want and place the rest in the refrigerator, covered. The next time you want fresh baked rolls, take from the bowl what you want and again put the rest back in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to seven days.
- Shape the dough into rolls. I either do crescent shapes (roll dough into a circle and cut into triangles) or cloverleaf (roll dough into small balls, about 3/4-inch in diameter and place three balls in each cup of a greased muffin tin).
- Let rolls rise until double in size, 1-2 hours. Dough taken from the refrigerator will take longer because the dough is cold. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes.
Recipe Source: from Erin and Melanie
Just found your blog and love it! I’m making your sloppy joes tomorrow. I’m putting your link on my blog, hope you don’t mind.
Very tasty — especially with the buttermilk, it’s perfect for rolls!
I saw your blog off a friend’s link and what a great find! Thanks for all these great ideas! I’m in a serious cooking rut and I need new ideas! I’ll be following closely.
Mmmm… sounds wonderful! Can’t wait to make these. It might have to happen today!
I don’t think I have ever tried yeast bread with buttermilk. I am very intrigued and can’t wait to give them a try. Every recipe I’ve made from here has been awesome, so I’m sure these will be too!
Just made these yummy rolls–they were a hit! I think I will make cinnamon rolls with caramel icing with the remaining dough. This recipe is a keeper!
I’ve made a much more complicated cloverleaf roll. I will give these a try next time
These are totally DELISH!!! They also taste great with homemade strawberry jam. YUMMY!
Well, if these are what you use next to the Lions House rolls, which are the best rolls in the world, then they must be fab. I love how pretty they are!
I can’t wait to try the cloverleaf next time I am making these rolls. Yum!
Jayme – I don’t mind at all. I just made the sloppy joes tonight – great timing! I hope you like them.
I know I will be making these soon. They look perfect!
Ohmigosh, those look fabulous. I think buttermilk makes everything taste better.
These rolls look fantastic! I love a nice tried and true recipe that always yields delicious desserts. What great looking rolls! I’m definitely going to try out this recipe soon.
Seriously? You can leave it in the fridge? I have never heard of such and it makes my heart sing to hear it now. Gotta try these.
I always make the Lion House I will have to give this recipe a try. Thanks for sharing.
Yes this is my all time favorite roll recipe! I like your cloverleafs–very nice! I almost always make the dough into the crescent shape. I should branch out!
Cindy – thanks for trying them so quickly! I’m so glad you liked them and your idea of caramel icing sounds divine. Let me know how it goes!
I absolutely love making rolls for dinner, I ‘ve never made the cloverleaf though. I ‘m bookmarking to try these they sound so good!!
These look soooo good. That picture makes me drool!
i do love the glistening, buttery sheen. soft rolls slathered in butter almost make me weep with joy.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm! When your blog opened and I saw that picture, I was seriously salivating. These look fabulous. I am such a sucker for carbs
. I’ll for sure be trying these!
Yum, those rolls are my favorite. I’ve been trying to figure out how to make them for years!
love your blog, just found it!!
I just tried these last night and loved them! This morning when I opened the fridge the dough was almost coming out of the bowl, it had risen so much (I just kept it in my kitchenaid bowl.) Is this normal? I just punched it down, but wasn’t sure if that was the right thing to do. I’m kind of a newbie when it comes to baking with yeast!
Jen – I’m glad you liked these rolls! Yes, sometimes when I make them, I open the fridge and the dough has expanded over the bowl. I’ve started using a really, really big bowl to prevent that, but either way, it’s fine to punch it down and cover it again.
Hi Mel,
So I’m going to attempt to use these for a wedding dinner (only 50 people, buffet style). I LOVE the fact that I can make the dough 2 or 3 days in advance. PERFECT. So the question is, when I go to shape and cook the rolls the day of the wedding, what is going to be my fastest method for shaping? The cloverleaf or the the crescents or can I do just a standard roll shape?
Thanks so much!!!
Anissa
Anissa – good luck with the wedding dinner! Sounds like a lot of work, but fun, too. As for these rolls, if it were me making that many, I would go with the crescent shape. More work than a standard roll but the presentation is much nicer, plus they are less work than the cloverleaf, in my opinion (and I think overall the crescent shape is the most beautiful for a wedding dinner). Just keep in mind that if you’ve had the dough in the fridge, it doesn’t roll out very well cold, so I like to let it sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes, if I have the time, to take the chill off and make it easier to roll out. Good luck!
Thank you so much for the great tips Mel. You’re awesome!
These are awesome. I have a similar recipe…but in mine I have to scald the buttermilk so it’s nice to skip that step! Yeah that I can have fresh rolls again this week!
How many rolls does this make? I want to make them for 11 people.
Cori – this recipe makes a lot of rolls – easily 2-3 dozen (depending on how big you make them).
Thank you!
These do look sooooo divine! I’m making them tonight with my other favorite of yours- the basil stuffed chicken. Anyways I REALLY loved your tutorial on the 2 types of yeast, especially because I tried your divine breadsticks before and they didn’t turn out and after I found out I was using the wrong yeast they were perfect! So my question is- which type of yeast am I suppose to use for this one since you didn’t specify?
Nicole – you can use either active dry or instant yeast in this recipe since it is dissolved and proofed in water before proceeding with the recipe (I always use instant but that’s because I have it on hand).
Hi there! I am excited to try these tomorrow, but I have one question- how long would I knead it in the stand alone mixer? Thank you in advance.
Maria
Hi Maria – I make these in my electric stand mixer and knead for about 5-6 minutes. Good luck!
Hi Mel, what kind of oil do you use? Could you use all or part butter?
I hope all is well in your new home.
Karen – I use canola oil. I’ve never used butter but it’s probably worth a try!
Thank you so much, Melanie! I made these rolls the other day and love that the dough can stay in the fridge for up to a week! We had fresh baked rolls several times this week because of this wonderful recipe! Pure Genius, thanks for sharing!
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