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Chive and Thyme Pull Apart Rolls

Sibby Barrett

There's nothing more comforting than hot, home made rolls from the oven. But do you have time to make them? This recipe does have the typical bowl rise and shape rise time but you can make the dough ahead and bake the next day or make ahead, bake "blond" and then finish baking just before serving. It's a perfect holiday or special occasion show stopper. Change up the herbs to suit your tastes, but the chives are so aromatic! I don't recall where I first saw this recipe but I have tweaked it a bit over the years.

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Bowl Rise Time/Shape Rise Time-Each 1 15

Course Bread

Cuisine American

Servings 20

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups warm milk 100-110º
2 1/4 teaspoons dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons fresh chives snipped or chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves chopped or crushed
2 eggs whisked, room temp
5 1/3 tablespoons butter melted and cooled, ⅓ cup
5 1/4 cup flour you'll use 5 to start, then add more if needed
1 egg whisked for roll wash, just before baking
melted butter for coating baking pan and brushing baked rolls
coarse salt for finishing, optional

Instructions

In a large mixer bowl, combine milk, yeast and sugar.  Let stand until yeast softened, about 5-7 minutes.  Add salt, chives, thyme, 2 eggs and 1/3 cup butter (about 5 1/3 tablespoons) and mix on low with dough hook until blended.

Blend in 5 cups of flour.  Mix on medium until dough is smooth and stretchy and pulling away from the inside of the bowl, about 10 minutes.  Add just enough flour so dough is only slightly tacky. (this is the remaining ¼ cup flour) Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Butter 20 muffin cups.  Punch dough down.  On a large, lightly floured surface, roll out dough to an even 30” x 9” rectangle.  Brush with melted butter.  For Pull Apart style, cut dough into 6 long strips, each 1 1/2” wide.  Stack the strips, then cut each stack in half crosswise. With a serrated knife, gently cut each stack into 10 portions.  Arrange each with a set of edges up in a muffin cup so you see all layers. (You may loosely wrap at this stage and refrigerate to bake later.  See adjusted roll rise time below.)
For "cinnamon roll" style, see below.

Let rise at room temp, loosely covered, until puffy, about 45 minutes. (If chilled in refrigerator, rise for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.) Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°.  Beat remaining egg, then gently brush over tops and sides of rolls.

Bake rolls until golden brown, 20-25 minutes, rotating pans halfway through cooking time.  Let cool in pans for 5 minutes, then gently lift out to racks.  Brush with additional butter and sprinkle with salt, if desired.

Notes

Alternately, for a different look and a bit simpler roll out step, make these “cinnamon roll” style. Roll dough out into the 30 “x 9” rectangle. Brush the entire surface with melted butter. Starting at the long end, roll up tightly into a long log type roll. Cut the roll into 20 slices and place, cut side down, into a buttered, shallow baking dish. I often use a 12” round cake pan. You can brush these with the egg wash, as with the pull apart style. Bake at the same temp for the same time. I like to brush on more melted butter and a sprinkle of coarse salt as they come out of the oven.

Keyword cooking with herbs, holiday, rolls, special dinner, yeast