Homemade dinner rolls don’t get easier than these! Ready in an hour, they are light, fluffy, and the perfect accompaniment to soups, stews, and chilies.

Disclosure: As a Become a Better Baker Blog Ambassador, this post was sponsored by ACH Foods. As always, my thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you so much for supporting the brands that keep me inspired in the kitchen!
easy cloverfield dinner rolls

When I grow up, I would like to be a dinner party pro.

Mostly I’m the kind of hostess who is still in her pajamas, hasn’t showered, and has to have her fiancé distract her guests while she disappears into the bedroom to get herself together.

It’s quite a “situation” and pretty much unpleasant for everyone involved.

I think we’re all really hopeful that it’s just a phase and one day I’ll wake up with all of the grace and finesse of Martha Stewart, but until then, if you come over for dinner, I pre-apologize for the flour I’ll probably have in my hair.

Really, sorry.

IMG_2082

From what I can tell, successful hosting involves a lot of trial and error, and practice makes perfect-ing.

And trying to accumulate as many life hacks as you can so that you can at least appear to have it all together (even when you really, really, REALLY don’t).

PicMonkey Collage

Step one: get the dinner roll situation under control.

Because if you can somehow manage to time pulling warm rolls out of the oven with your guests’ arrival, then they’ll be too busy stuffing their faces to notice when you slink off to pull a comb through your hair.

#winning

IMG_2043

This might seem like a delusion of grandeur in and of itself, but that’s just because you haven’t tried this recipe for cloverleaf dinner rolls yet.

It comes together in just around an hour thanks to Fleischmann’s ® RapidRise Yeast, and requires just one kneading step; taking all the stress out of bread baking. I chose to shape the rolls into this cloverleaf pattern, but you can also shape them into knots, crescent rolls, or just plain old spheres – whatever is most fitting for the occasion.

IMG_2071

These rolls are fluffy in the best way, slightly sweet, and just perfect with a pat of melty butter straight from the oven.

Just make sure to put a few aside before you set them out for your guests…otherwise you run the risk of having none left for yourself. Then, you’ll be the hangry hostess, and trust me, no one wants to see that.

Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls
 
Homemade dinner rolls don't get easier than these! Ready in an hour, they are light, fluffy, and the perfect accompaniment to soups, stews, and chilis.
Yield: 12 rolls
Ingredients
  • 2-2¼ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 envelope Fleischmann's RapidRise Yeast
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ cup milk
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2 tbsp butter
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together ¾ cup flour, undissolved yeast, sugar, and salt. In a medium pan over medium-high heat, warm the milk, water, and butter until they reach 120-130F. Pour the warm liquids into the flour mixture and beat for 2 minutes at medium speed with an electric mixer. Add in ¼ cup of flour and beat for 2 minutes at high speed. Stir in enough of the remaining flour so that a soft dough forms. Knead lightly on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes.
  2. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Divide each of these into 3 equal pieces.
  3. Grease a muffin tin and place 3 pieces of dough in each of the cups. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
  4. Heat oven to 375. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove from the pan and serve warm.
Notes
Barely adapted from Bread World
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1 roll

 

IMG_2077

blog_share_subscribe
Share →

45 Responses to Easy Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls

  1. Joanne, ha! I am the same way when I have good friends or family coming over . . I just focus on the food and I am always a mess, haven’t showered yet, hair un-done. . but yeah if entertaining anyone else, I try to keep it simple, which for me means more make-ahead stuff or buying more stuff from the store . . and I gotta say that all those perfect and put together Martha Stewart-esque hosts must have people cooking for them! 😛 love these dinner rolls!! Winning, indeed!

  2. I like to think I’m a good hostess! I always have snacks, and I’m pretty certain that’s all anyone cares about 😀

  3. Sues says:

    I love the way these look! And I’d be more than happy to simply make dinner rolls my entire dinner 🙂

  4. I’m the worst when it comes to hosting lol! These rolls will probably be half gone before the guests arrive!

  5. I am really into making bread using rapid yeast at the moment, I mean best invention ever!

  6. did you say easy and rolls in one sentence! I am in! They look buttery and delicious- just what you want from a roll. LOVE IT

  7. I’m not the best host either—I literally have to stop myself from eating all the food before the guests even arrive! These rolls?! Forget about it. They would be gone practically as soon as they hit the cooling rack. 😉

  8. Sune Moolman says:

    I need these with lots of butter – NOW!

  9. Absolutely loooove homemade dinner rolls! These remind me of ones my grandmother makes. 🙂

  10. I wouldn’t care if you had flour in your hair and on your pj’s, if rolls like these were on the table! Dressing up and showering are so over-rated! 🙂

  11. You have me sitting at my computer giggling, which is great fun for my colleagues. 😉 Your rolls are gorgeous – love that they’re conveniently shaped to break off pieces to slather with butter. Bookmarked these for the holidays ahead…

  12. How about I come over with a bottle of wine and flour in my hair too and we can just laugh and point at all the other people who don’t?

  13. Well, I will never be a good hostess as I get panic if I need to prepare a dinner for more than 4…can’t even sleep well weeks before the planned event.
    These dinner rolls look beautiful!

  14. I was all confused by the name of the rolls and then I saw the shape! These look great!!

  15. Heather says:

    Love a good roll! As for being a good hostess… I’ll settle for good enough. Without fail I will always have something left unfinished when people arrive whether it be a few dishes or my hair/makeup. That’s what booze and apps are for, though, right? To distract! 😉

  16. Julia says:

    I always thought it would be fun to throw dinner parties on the reg, and now that I’ve reached the ripe age of 28, I reckon I should start putting that situation together. I’m far too scatter-brained to host such an event without help, but thankfully I’ve got the dinner rolls in the bag! Phew!

  17. SallyBR says:

    Love this type of rolls, haven’t made this shape in YEARS!

    Joanne, I must share with you some terrifying news – we’ve got another rodent. Only indirect proof of his existence, but a horrific one. My drawer that holds spatulas, large serving spoons, had one of those non-slip liners – the rodent chewed THROUGH that and chewed THE WOOD OF THE DRAWER

    I am contemplating a move to Hawaii, but the husband is trying to convince me to stay.

  18. I love working with rapidrise yeast too! I’ve been looking for a new roll recipe to try for Thanksgiving – I think this one is a winner! It’s going on the menu. 🙂

  19. Kate says:

    There are few things better in life than warm, fresh rolls straight from the oven.

  20. Pam says:

    I like to cook my tried & true recipes that I don’t have to even think about. I also prep a lot before people show up (and I am usually in my pj’s too).

    The rolls look AMAZING!

  21. Mmmmmmmmm – I can smell these rolls and a little flour in the hair – no worries:)

  22. OMG these are soooo totally cute. PS- how do you do all these posts AND work AND plans a wedding! You are the BEST time manager EVER! I need to learn your ways!

  23. Kelly says:

    Oh my goodness, I’m the same way. I always tell the hubs to stall while I run upstairs and change too haha. Love these rolls, I would definitely not notice any flour in the hair if these were in front of me 🙂

  24. i love making cloverleaf rolls. these look great!

  25. cheri says:

    Hi Joann, these cloverleaf rolls are adorable. I am never ready when we have people over and my hair is always in a ponytail, pretty embarrassing.

  26. Eileen says:

    Hey, none of us have things totally under control! That’s one of those myths of adulthood — you know, like “no one ever eats a bowl of ice cream for dinner.” 🙂 But I do think these rolls look fabulous, and so fun to tear apart! And then to BUTTER. Because butter. Yeah.

  27. Genie says:

    These rolls look so cute. They look you’re supposed to pick off a third, smear it in butter and pop it into your mouth. That is what I’d do anyway.

    I love cooking in my own time and experimenting in the kitchen but having people over for dinner stresses me out. That’s why I prefer make ahead recipes so that very little needs to be done right before dinner time and I can relax with a glass of wine. It doesn’t always happen that way, but a girl can dream.

  28. I purposefully put flour in my hair so guests think I worked harder than I did. I’m such an impostor Love the cloverleaf – how cute is that??

  29. grace says:

    this are so cute and festive! never realized they could be so easy to make. 🙂

  30. Reeni says:

    Such cute little rolls! Perfect for Thanksgiving! I am the same way! Pajamas all day and bed head in the kitchen. . .

  31. P says:

    I love how the rolls look like clovers themselves 😉

  32. Monica says:

    Every year around this time, I get to thinking I want to try making dinner rolls. I don’t know if I’ll manage it but I’m definitely inspired. I love how these look; and I love how do-able it sounds. I would just need a little butter and I’d be all set.

  33. I am in love with these rolls. I have never seen how they’re made before and am in awe of the little dough blobs coming together to perfect rolls!

  34. Hotly Spiced says:

    I’m okay entertaining as long as no one is so rude as to arrive early. That I can’t stand. You just need that extra five minutes after kick-off to throw everything together and be looking like a princess when the first guests arrive. Your rolls look very good xx

  35. Kinsey says:

    Those are so adorable! If I made a pan, I would definitely scarf down 5 of them with butter and honey. And I totally get you on the dinner party thing–at least I know that if I open the door with crazy hair and flour on my shirt, then the food is probably going to be good!

  36. CakeSpy says:

    YES!!!! One of my favorite types of rolls. Roll on!

  37. These rolls look like doughy perfection, perfect for all dinner parties 😀
    Yum!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

  38. Johanna GGG says:

    never seen rapid rise yeast – but it sounds useful – I agree if you have fresh bread people don’t care how long the rest of the meal takes – which is good for me as I am the type of hostess who opens the door with apron on and flour on my face.

  39. When I saw the photo on Facebook I thought they would be complicated to shape. I’m so impressed by how easy they are to make and how good they look 🙂

  40. Sarah says:

    They look like the perfect companion to a delicious dinner. So cute how these come together from three little balls. Is it weird the balls remind me of a zygote in the 4 cell stage that lost one of it’s little friends? <— too much dev bio for this one (oh college days).

  41. Lovely dinner rolls and they look so sweet! Need to write this recipe down, because I love having some bread when we´re having soups or a good stew. =)

  42. Love these dinner rolls! Love em!

    …and I have flour in my hair too 😛

  43. elly says:

    It is always my intention to make fresh bread on the weekends, but I always forget/suck at the timing. An hour, I can handle!

  44. […] with baskets filled with two or three different kinds of rolls and bread slices served warm. Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls, Spiced Sweet Potato Rolls, and Cheesy Potato Bread would make a scrumptious […]

Leave a Reply

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