These Fluffy Dinner Rolls Really Rise to the Occasion

It’s easy to make fluffy dinner rolls yourself for the holidays—or any day! Elle Simone

The fancy French word for dough shaped in a ball is boule. Bread makers use the same technique to form a tight ball of dough for a large loaf of bread and for small individual dough balls such as these fluffy dinner rolls. While it takes two hands to form a large loaf into a boule, you can make a small one with just one cupped hand. If you get really good at it, you can even do two balls at once—one in each hand!

Fluffy Dinner Rolls

Makes 9 rolls

• 2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (6 ounces) whole milk
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 large egg yolk
• Vegetable oil spray
• 1 large egg, cracked into bowl and lightly beaten with fork

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together flour, yeast, and salt. Lock the bowl in place and attach the dough hook to the stand mixer. In a 4-cup liquid measuring cup, whisk milk, melted butter, honey, and egg yolk until honey has dissolved, about 20 seconds.

Start the mixer on low speed and slowly pour in the milk mixture. Mix until no dry flour is visible, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and knead dough for 8 minutes.