A traditional old fashioned yeast roll, made a bit easier by using the equally old fashioned pan roll method.

Old Fashioned Pan Rolls

I will be the first one to say to you, please make my homemade yeast roll for a holiday meal. They are fabulous and worth every ounce of energy you will put into them.

But I also know that the most intimidating part for many people in making those is probably shaping the rolls for the second rise. It's really not that difficult, but on the surface it appears a bit complicated, and it is another step in an already busy kitchen. This old fashioned pan roll solves all of that.

I love the tenderness of the shaped rolls myself, because you have a much smaller, nicely browned crusty surface area, but when you pop it open, it's light and fluffy and tender on the inside. You still get that here, only in a different presentation, and unless you cut them smaller, in a bigger bite. These rolls are good for anytime you want a special roll, like any normal Sunday supper, and they are also fantastic for day after the holiday ham sandwiches.

I've tried dozens of the quicker 30 minute roll recipes and I've yet to find one that makes me happy. Frankly while they are not bad, the ones I've tried are really much more like biscuits than rolls to me, and to me there is a distinct difference between the two. But... in all fairness I am a bit of a bread freak so I guess my threshold is high. I'm telling you, if you set a block of butter and a basket of hot yeast rolls in front of me on one side, and a big platter filled with assorted desserts next to them on the other side, I'd go for the hot rolls every single time.

This is my basic yeast roll recipe using the old-fashioned pan method of rolling the dough into an oblong shape, placing it all in one piece into a buttered 9 x 13-inch baking pan and then scoring the dough for the second rise. It's not anything unique to me at all - in fact, it's a very old method, that essentially gives you a pull apart type of roll. When they're done you just cut through the scoring and put them into the bread basket. I've also written this for hand mixing for those of you who do not have a stand mixer.

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By the way, do invest in an instant read thermometer (#ad) of some type for your kitchen. They are fairly inexpensive and a necessary kitchen tool in my opinion. Even though I consider myself to be a fairly seasoned cook, I still use mine all the time to check internal temperature in chicken, meat, pork, roasts, even breads, and like here, water temperature, because too hot water will kill yeast and too cold water is ineffective. An instant read thermometer makes it fool proof.

Here's how to make these delicious rolls.

First things first - while I know not everybody does, I always proof the yeast to make sure it's good. Proofing the yeast with a bit of sugar lets you know the yeast is alive. If it doesn't bubble up, it's not good. It sure is a lot better than throwing a whole recipe together only to end up with ineffective yeast and flat bread after all that work.

I usually buy the yeast that comes in a jar and store mine in the freezer. When I need it, I just measure it out and let it come to room temperature while I gather the rest of the ingredients.

So step one, check your water temperature. Then step two, place the yeast, along with a pinch of sugar and a small amount of water at about 110 degrees, in this case 1/4 cup, mix well, and let it proof for about 5 minutes or so. If it puffs up like this, it's good! If it doesn't, go buy new yeast before proceeding.

In a large bowl add 2 cups of the all purpose flour, 3/4 cup of warm milk, 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, 1/4 cup of butter and 1 large egg. Stir together.

Add the yeast.

Mixture will be gooey.

Add in 1/2 cup of flour.

Stir and add in another 1/2 cup.

Keep adding flour 1/2 cup at a time.

Until the dough pulls away from and cleans the sides of the bowl.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface, sprinkle with flour on top, and knead, using the heel of your hand to push on the dough, folding it and turning it a quarter turn.

Continue kneading, just until the dough is smooth and elastic, but don't overwork the dough.

Wipe out the mixing bowl and smear oil around on the inside. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it to coat all sides.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, place a clean towel on top, and place in a draft free place to rise, about 1 to 1-1/2 hours, or until doubled.

Pull the dough away from the sides of the bowl to deflate.

Then turn it out onto a floured surface.

Cover the dough with the inverted bowl and let it rest for 5 minutes.

Now this is where you would normally shape the rolls into rounds, and certainly if you want to you still can! But for pan rolls we'll be doing them a little bit different. Generously butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and set aside. Roll the dough into an oblong shape about the size of your baking dish.

Pick it up and transfer the entire block of dough to the baking dish.

Gently pat the edges of the dough out.

Use a sharp knife to score at least 15 squares about 1/4 inch deep into the dough, 5 across and 3 down. You can also score them out smaller for more rolls if you like.

Drizzle the 1/4 cup of cooled melted butter all over the top if desired, and cover loosely with plastic wrap.

Place into a draft free place to rise again, about 30 minutes, or until doubled.

Preheat oven to to 400 degrees F and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until nicely golden brown. Brush with additional melted butter if desired and cut through the scored cuts to separate the rolls. Transfer to a bread basket and serve immediately.

For more of my roll and bread recipes, visit my page on Pinterest!



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