No Cinnamon-Cinnamon Rolls (Dinner Rolls)
The perfect fluffy texture of cinnamon rolls, but without the cinnamon for the best, buttery dinner rolls ever!
Servings: 16 rolls
Ingredients
For the dough:
- ½ cup warm milk (110ºF)
- 2 ¼ teaspoons quick rise or active yeast ¼ oz package
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature
- ¼ cup melted unsalted butter
- ½ cup pumpkin puree or sub milk
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour or sub all purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
For the plain filling:
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the garlic filling (optional):
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 clove roasted garlic room temperature (see instructions in notes)
- 1/4 cup butter softened
For the honey butter (optional):
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 tablespoon honey
Instructions
- Microwave milk to around 110ºF. It should feel warm when you stick your finger in it but not hot. Pour the warm milk into a medium mixing bowl. Sprinkle the yeast on top. Let the yeast rest for 3-5 minutes or until it is foamy. Then add the sugar, egg, egg yolk, melted butter, and pumpkin puree. Mix until combined. Then add the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, and salt. Using a wooden spoon or dough whisk, mix until the mixture begins to pull together and form a dough.
- Dump the dough onto a well floured work surface or use a stand mixer and knead the dough for 8 minutes. The dough will feel a little bit sticky but it shouldn’t stick to your hands. If the dough is too wet, add all purpose flour 1 tablespoon at a time until the desired texture is reached.
- After kneading, transfer the dough ball to a large bowl that is oiled. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours in a warm spot or until doubled in size.
- In a small bowl, make the butter filling: for the plain filling, simply mix together the softened butter and salt. For the garlic filling: in a small bowl, use a fork to mash the salt and roasted garlic into a puree. Then add the softened butter and mix until combined.
- Once doubled in size, dump the dough onto a well floured work surface and roll it out into a 18×8 inch rectangle. Spread the softened butter filling over the dough, leaving a ¼ inch border around the edge.
- Roll the dough tightly into a long log starting from the 18 inch side. Make sure the seam side is down. Using floss or a very sharp knife, cut the dough into 14-16 equal pieces. Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper for easier clean up or grease well. Place the rolls into the baking dish cut side down.
- Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and let proof in a warm area for 30 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Once the oven is ready, remove the plastic wrap and bake the cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes. They should be lightly golden when done. Once done baking, remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
- For the honey butter: Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and stir in a tablespoon of honey. While the rolls are cooling, brush on the mixture. Optionally finish the rolls with flaky salt and enjoy the rolls warm!
Notes
I find it helpful to set a timer for 8 minutes so I know exactly how long to knead. When I started baking, I often under kneaded resulting in less gluten development. It’s easy to underestimate how long you have to knead for!
To make the roasted garlic: peel one clove of garlic and drizzle with oil. Then wrap in aluminum foil and roast at 400º for 15-20 minutes.