Butterflake Rolls start with a dough that is cut into layers and baked in a muffin tin for a fluffy, flaky, pull-apart dinner roll. Try my Easy Dinner Rolls recipe for another delicious homemade roll.
Butterflake Rolls
You can never have too many dinner roll recipes. A basket of rolls is a wonderful and tasty addition to any meal! And these rolls are not only soft and buttery but fun, too! You can pull them apart, layer by layer, to enjoy the roll even longer! I added melted butter and a little bit of salt on top of the baked rolls for even more flavor. And, feel free to add even more butter to each layer!
Rolls Ingredients
There are two parts to the recipe–the dough and the topping.
Flour: All-purpose flour is what we used in this recipe. We have not tested the rolls with other kinds of flour, so I can’t speak to their effectiveness.
Yeast: Use instant yeast, which is also called quick rise or fast-rising yeast.
Egg: Make sure the egg is at room temperature for best results.
Milk: I tested this recipe using whole milk. You could use 2% milk if that is what you have on hand.
Butter: I used salted butter to brush on the dough. Then, I added unsalted butter on top of the baked rolls.
How to Make the Dough
To get the dough made, start by adding 3 cups of flour, yeast, sugar, egg, and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Next, heat up the milk to a temperature of 110°F-120°F. Add the warm milk to the flour mixture, kneading for a couple of minutes, stopping to scrape down the bowl, adding another 1/2 cup of flour, and kneading for a couple of additional minutes.
Finally, add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour, kneading just until fully incorporated. The dough should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl at this point. If not, add another 1/4 cup of flour. You may have to add another 1/4 cup of flour if the dough is still not pulling away from the bowl. The dough should not look wet.
Once the dough is ready, place the ball of dough into a bowl that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for 30 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.
How to Make Butterflake Rolls
After the dough has risen, roll the dough out into a square or rectangle that is about 1/2-inch thick. Brush the melted butter on top of the dough and sprinkle the salt over the butter. Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into 12 equal-sized strips. Next, create two stacks of the strips with six strips in each stack. Then, cut each of the stacks into 6 separate pieces. So, you will now have a total of twelve stacks of dough. These will be the rolls.
Place each stack of dough strips on their side into the cups of a greased muffin tin. Think about an accordion…as the rolls bake, they will fan out. After you have placed the stacks of rolls in their sides in the muffin tin, cover the tin with a piece of greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 30-40 minutes, or until the dough is about an inch higher than the muffin tin. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven.
Bake the rolls for 12-17 minutes, or until golden brown. After removing the rolls from the oven, brush with some melted butter and sprinkle a little salt on top, if desired. Serve warm.
How to Freeze Baked Dinner Rolls
Bake the rolls according to the recipe below. Let them cool completely in the pan, then wrap them tightly in aluminum foil. (Do not use plastic wrap here; it could trap in condensation and make the rolls soggy.) Place the rolls in a freezer bag or storage container and freeze for 2-3 weeks. Be sure to label and date the packaging.
Looking for More Rolls Recipes?
Butterflake Rolls
Ingredients
Dough
- 4 cups (512g) all-purpose flour, or more if needed, divided
- 2 envelopes (about 4½ teaspoons) instant yeast
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1½ cups (367g) whole milk
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Topping
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, optional
Instructions
Dough
- Combine 3 cups flour, undissolved yeast, sugar, egg, and salt in a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with dough hook.
- Heat milk until very warm (110°F to 120°F).
- Add warm milk to the flour mixture. Knead 2 minutes at medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally if needed. Add ½ cup flour; knead for 2 more minutes.
- Add remaining ½ cup flour. The dough should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl and very soft. (If the dough seems too wet you may need more flour. If needed, add additional flour in ¼ cup increments until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl while kneading.)
- Spray a bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Place the dough into the bowl and cover with a clean towel. Let it rest 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Assembly
- Spray a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and set it aside.
- Roll dough into a square that is about ½-inch thick. Brush the dough with melted butter and salt.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 12 strips of equal size, approximately 1½ inches wide.
- Group and stack the strips into 2 separate sections (6 strips each stack). Cut each stack into 6 pieces for a total of 12 stacks of dough. Each stack will be a roll.
- Place each stack into the prepared muffin tin on their sides, cut-side up.
- Cover with greased plastic wrap and let rest 30-40 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (Each roll should be about 1 inch higher than the muffin tin.)
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Bake for 12-17 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter while warm.
- Sprinkle kosher salt on top if desired.