Dinner Rolls

 

Y'all.  These are melt-in-your-mouth AMAZING and a bread machine makes them so super easy.  The bread machine does all the work of mixing, kneading, and rising.  All you have left to do is a short knead when the dough cycle is done, portion them out, let them have a second rise, and bake.  

1 cup warm/hot milk

1 tsp. salt

1 egg, room temp is best

3 tablespoons sugar

3 cups flour

2 tsp. yeast

1/4 cup butter, softened but not melted

Place all of the ingredients into the bread machine in the order listed, except for the butter.  Select the Dough cycle and press start.

After a minute or two, open the lid and begin adding the butter 1 tablespoon at a time.  

After another 10-15 minutes, lift the lid again and check your dough.  It shouldn't be wet, but it also shouldn't be dry.  You want a dough that is a smooth ball and just barely sticks to the sides as it kneads.  If it's too wet, add additional flour 1 Tablespoon at a time.  If it's too dry, add additional milk or water 1 Tablespoon at a time.  

When the Dough cycle is finished, the dough should be doubled in size.  Remove the dough from the machine and place onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead the dough for 1-2 minutes and form into a ball.

Divide the ball in half.  Then take each of those halves and divide them into 8 equal pieces each (you should have 16 rolls total).  To make them round and uniform, pull the dough toward the bottom while turning the dough.  

Place the rolls into two greased 8 or 9 inch baking pans, 8 rolls in each pan.  You can use cake pans, pie plates, cast iron...whatever you have.  I place 7 rolls around the perimeter and 1 roll in the center.  Cover with a tea towel and place them in a warm, draft free place until they've doubled in size.  (I preheat my oven to 350 and put the pans on the back of my cooktop.  It gets very warm and allows the rolls to rise nicely.)

Once they've doubled in size, bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.  Serve warm with nice salty butter.

*Note: if you're not going to serve all of them at once, remove the rolls from the baking pan onto a wire rack.  The steam they produce can make them soggy if you leave them in the baking pan too long.