Homemade Crescent Rolls…a holiday tradition!

 

Homemade Crescent Rolls are one of my favorite things to make for the holidays - Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. This recipe makes 48 rolls which can probably be halved, but I always make the full recipe which is worth the effort. I usually make them for Thanksgiving and freeze half for Christmas! At Easter time, I give half of them away to friends or neighbors.  

This recipe is from How Does She and I've been making it for over 10 years.

Homemade Crescent Rolls

Recipe from How Does She

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of milk

3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon sugar

1 egg

1/2 Tablespoon salt

2 Tablespoons yeast (or two packets); I use instant yeast

2 cups of warm water

about 9-10 cups of all-purpose flour

1 cup of unsalted butter (2 sticks), plus a little more for the tops of the rolls after they are done baking

Directions:

In a measuring cup, dissolve the yeast in 2 cups of warm water (around 105-110 degrees) with 1 Tablespoon of sugar. Let it sit for a couple minutes until the mixture is bubbly.

You know the yeast mixture is activated when you see those bubbles!

Scald 1 1/2 cups of milk, 3/4 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of butter in a microwave safe bowl for about 2 minutes. You can cut up the butter in pieces to help it melt faster.

In a mixer (or you can do this by hand in a large bowl), add the warm milk mixture and stir in 1 to 2 cups of flour, then add 1 egg and 1/2 Tablespoon salt and let it cool down for a minute or two. 

Then add the bubbly yeast mixture and the remaining flour to the mixing bowl, one cup at a time. You may not need the full 10 cups of flour so add the last cup slowly, stopping when you see the dough coming together and not sticking to the bottom of the bowl.

Lightly grease a large bowl with cooking spray or a little oil, and add your dough.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled. This will take 90 minutes or so (a warm spot helps it rise faster.)

Once the dough has risen, divide it evenly into four pieces. I use a kitchen scale to make sure it is equally quartered, but if you do not have OCD like me you can just eye ball it.

Roll each quarter of dough into a circle and spread a couple tablespoons of softened butter over the circle.

Using a pizza cutter, slice your dough into 12 triangles. Roll each piece up making the perfect crescent shape!

Grease two large baking sheets with butter (I use the paper from the butter!). 

Place your crescent rolls on the sheet in rows of 3 by 8, giving you 24 rolls per sheet.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let the rolls rise for about 30 minutes, until they are puffy and touching. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bake for about 15 minutes - one sheet at a time - until the rolls are lightly browned. Do not overcook! While they are piping hot out of the oven, run a stick of butter over the tops.

Eat and enjoy while warm, or let them cool completely and then package in ziplock bags and freeze or eat within 2 days.

If freezing, let thaw and then reheat in the oven for about 5 minutes to warm through before serving.

These are always a huge hit and we all look forward to them around the holidays.  They are not even close to the Pillsbury crescent rolls you buy in the tube...these are crescent rolls on steroids.  

I hope you enjoy making these as much as I do!