Home » Southern Comfort Food » Honey Yeast Rolls

Honey Yeast Rolls

This post brought to you by White Lily Flour

This homemade Honey Yeast Rolls recipe will make a heavenly addition to any meal. Made-from-scratch yeast dough is formed into rolls then allowed to rise until tender and doubled in size. After baking, they’re brushed liberally with honey butter making them impossible to resist.

baked Honey Yeast Rolls

Easy Honey Yeast Rolls Recipe

There’s nothing quite like the smell of fresh bread baking, is there? It’s heavenly.The recipe for these incredible honey yeast rolls is simple to make.

  • Bloom the yeast with honey in warm water until it becomes frothy this will take 5-8 minutes.
  • Scald the milk in a small saucepan on the stovetop. Don’t let the milk boil watch for steam rising from the milk.
  • Using the paddle attachment in the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the warmed milk with eggs, melted butter, 1/2 cup honey and salt. Add the frothy yeast mixture to the bowl, mixing just until combined.
  • Switch to the dough hook. Lower the speed of the mixer. Gradually add 8 cups of flour to the liquid mixture 1 cup at a time. The dough will be sticky.
  • After all of the flour has been added increase mixer speed to medium. Knead on medium speed for 6 minutes. You can knead the dough by hand also but it will take 8-10 minutes.
  • Form into a ball, cover and let rise. This is when the yeast does it’s work.
  • Gently punch down the dough to release air. Form into rounds and place into the baking dish or pan.
  • Cover again and let rise for around 1 hour.
  • Bake at 400°F then brush with more honey butter after removing from the oven.
Step-by-step images of preparation of Honey Yeast Rolls

How to Make the Best Honey Yeast Rolls Recipe

  • Ingredients you’ll need to make homemade honey yeast rolls: For this recipe you’ll need all purpose flour, sugar, salt, rapid rise yeast, whole milk, eggs, butter and honey. You may also opt to use buttermilk in place of whole milk.
  • Kitchen tools you’ll need: A stand mixer or hand mixer, measuring cups and spoons, large bowl, kitchen towel and 13 x 9 inch baking pan.
  • While you don’t have to use a stand mixer to make homemade honey yeast rolls, it sure does help with the kneading of the dough. You can also knead the rolls dough by hand on a lightly floured surface.
  • Why Use Rapid Rise Yeast?  When using rapid rise yeast this allows you to deviate from the bread making technique that requires 3 rises. By changing the rise times to 2 instead of 3 to make the process more fast. It doesn’t effect the taste or texture of the rolls at all, and shortens the preparation time. Winning!
  • When measuring all purpose flour, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level, don’t scoop. Scooping the measuring cup into the flour causes it to become compacted and therefore adds unwanted volume of the rolls. It can make any baked goods from cookies to cakes and bread, dry.
  • Rapid Rise yeast, instant yeast and long-acting yeast are all designed to react differently. Always follow the recipe with no substitutions for the best result.
  • You can fully assemble these dinner rolls in advance and place them into a buttered baking dish, then chill in the refrigerator overnight. The dough will continual to slowly rise even when chilled.
  • These rolls can be frozen for future use after forming them into rolls for the final rise. Place them onto a baking pan lined with parchment paper without touching and freeze solid. Package in a freezer safe Ziploc bag or airtight container then bake them when you’re ready.
  • To bake frozen rolls, arrange rolls side by side in a buttered baking dish then cover and allow to rise until doubled. Uncover, brush with honey butter and bake per the recipe.
  • Store baked Honey Yeast Rolls wrapped in heavy duty foil or in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in single servings in the microwave.
Unbaked Honey Yeast Rolls in a pan

More Southern Homemade Rolls and Bread Recipes to Make

I’m an avid and skilled baker after years and years of practice. Other rolls and bread recipes you may like to try from the recipe index:

honey-bread-recipe

Thanks for visiting come back soon!

Disclosure ~ If a purchase is made using one of the affiliate links on this website we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

Helpful Kitchen Items:

Disclosure: The J.M. Smucker Company has compensated me for this post as  one of their 2015 Brand Ambassadors representing White Lily  flour. The opinions and text are all mine. Thank you for being supportive and allowing me to share trusted brands with you that I enjoy. ~ Melissa

Honey Yeast Rolls

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Rise Time2 hours
Total Time2 hours 36 minutes
Course: Bread
Cuisine: American
Keyword: honey-yeast-rolls
Servings: 36 rolls
Calories: 181kcal
Author: Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup warm water 100°-110°F
  • 2 (1/4 oz each) packets Rapid Rise active dry yeast
  • 2 tsp honey
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 2 large eggs room temperature
  • 1/2 cup butter melted and cooled
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1 Tbsp salt
  • 8 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 1/4 cup honey

Instructions

  • Mix together 1/2 cup warm water, both yeast packets and 2 tsp honey in a mixing cup or bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes or until it becomes frothy and bubbles form on top.
  • In a small saucepan heat 2 cups of whole milk over medium heat until warmed to 100°-110°F. Do not boil.
  • Using the paddle attachment in the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the warmed milk with eggs, melted butter, 1/2 cup honey and salt. Add the yeast mixture into the bowl, mixing just until combined.
  • Switch to the dough hook. Lower the speed of the mixer. Gradually add 8 cups of flour to the liquid 1 cup at a time. The dough will be sticky.
  • After all of the flour has been added increase mixer speed to medium. Knead on medium speed for 6 minutes.
  • Remove dough from hook, form into a ball and place into a lightly greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a dish towel.  Let rise in a warm draft free place for 1 hour or until doubled.
  • After rise, punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface or silpat. Divide the dough into roughly 1/4 cup portions and roll into balls.
  • Place side by side in a buttered 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm draft free place for 1 hour.
  • Bake at 400°F for 20- 25 minutes or until the tops are golden. (Bake time may vary slightly depending on size of rolls)
  • In a small bowl mix together softened butter and honey. Brush the tops liberally with honey butter after baking. Serve any remaining honey butter on the side.

Notes

  • When using regular or long-acting active dry yeast the dough will need to rise twice before forming into rolls. After kneading the dough for 6 minutes, cover and let rise for 1 hour. After 1 hour punch down the dough then re-cover and let rise another hour. Follow the recipe instructions from the step of forming into rolls allowing an additional hour after formed into rounds for the rolls to rise.
  • To bake frozen rolls, arrange rolls side by side in a buttered baking dish then cover and allow to rise until doubled. Uncover, brush with honey butter and bake per the recipe.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 181kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 249mg | Potassium: 57mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 195IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @melissassk or tag #melissassk!

 

23 Comments

  1. Hi! If I’d like to bake the frozen rolls, what’s the time/temperature combination I should use? Thanks!

    1. To bake frozen rolls, arrange rolls side by side in a buttered baking dish then cover and allow to rise until doubled. Uncover, brush with honey butter and bake per the recipe.

  2. 5 stars
    Hi Melissa! I’ve used this recipe several times and it’s such a winner! A huge hit with everyone! My family requested them this year for Thanksgiving, but we’re traveling the day before, so I was hoping to make these on Tuesday evening then bake on Thursday. Can you refrigerate two nights in a row? Thanks!

    1. Hi Allie, I’m so happy you’re enjoying these. While I have done it making them the night before, I haven’t tested multiple days in advance. If you try it, let us know how it goes.

  3. The recipe says it yields 36 rolls – I’m assuming they have to be baked in (2) 9×13 inch pans so they all fit? Thank you very much – I can’t wait to try these!

  4. 5 stars
    Found this on Pinterest and made them the day before Thanksgiving. Holy smokes these are amazing. I got 24 rolls out of it. I did the taste test and these are light and airy with the perfect mix of salt and Athena sweetness of honey. Very time consuming but I’ll definitely be making these again!

  5. Is this recipe easy to half? They look great for thanksgiving, but we only have 4 people. Probably only need about half the recipe

    1. You can halve this, if you like. Alternatively, make a full batch, form into rolls, and freeze half on a sheet pan before rising. After fully frozen store in an airtight freezer safe bag until you need them.

  6. I made these rolls for Easter dinner today. I have a surplus of honey and I was looking for good recipes using honey. I am an experienced baker. These rolls are some of the best I have ever baked. The light and airy texture is a delight, the honey butter brushed on top is delicious. Follow the instructions exactly as written. Thanks for this recipe.

      1. Are these rolls soft, airy and fluffy like the rolls found at Sizzler? Have not been able to locate any recipes like the Sizzler Honey Yeast Dinner Rolls.

  7. Hi…if I want to make these for Easter Sunday…can I make them on Saturday and bake them off on Sunday morning?

    1. I can tell you for sure that these rolls can be made the evening before and baked the next morning. Just roll them and place in prepared baking pans, then refrigerate. The next morning, let rise an hour or so then bake! A huge hit in my house & my church!

    1. Hi,
      Can you tell me if I can substitute Almond milk instead of real milk? I am allergic to milk but want to make sure that these will still bake properly .
      Thanks

      1. It’s a great question. I haven’t tested almond milk in this recipe. If you try it let us know how it goes!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating