One of my signature items for my family every holiday season is my dinner rolls. Here’s my recipe and tips. These are fattening! But we only eat them once a year and oh are they worth that extra pound (or two!).
Karla’s Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
2 packages active dry yeast
2 cups milk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup lard
5 cups all-purpose flour (or more depending on humidity)
Real butter to coat rolls
Karla’s tips:
1. Use eggs that are room temperature. Cold eggs often deactivate the yeast.
2. Use lard, not butter or shortening. Lard makes the best rolls, and it’s only ¼ cup, so there’s very little in each roll. If you’re going to eat a roll, eat a good one, right?
3. Some people like their rolls a little sweeter. This recipe makes great cinnamon rolls, too, so you can add up to another ¼ cup of sugar. More than that may deactivate the yeast.
4. You’ll need super strong arms if you’re going to mix by hand. I use my Kitchenaid mixer. It’s almost like cheating!
Instructions:
Heat milk just up to 180 degrees. Set aside and cool to between 110 and 115 degrees. (I cool mine to 110.)
· After the milk is cool, dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup milk.
· Stir in remaining milk, the sugar, salt, eggs, shortening and 5 cups flour.
· Beat until smooth, adding more flour as needed to make the dough easy to handle. (This is where practice comes in. You’ll know after you’ve done it a few times whether you need more flour or not.)
· Without a Kitchenaid mixer: turn dough onto lightly floured board and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. (With Kitchenaid mixer: you can use the dough hook.)
· Place in buttered bowl and turn greased side up. Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled.
· Shape into rolls.
· Brush each roll with softened butter. Place 3 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Let rise again, then bake at 325 degrees F for 20-30 minutes.
· Brush again with butter.
These rolls take about 2-4 hours to make, raise twice and bake (depending on how many batches you are making at one time). They are beautiful reheated and freeze well.
©Karla Akins, 2013