Rosemary Sea Salt Dinner Rolls

I've always been intimidated to try and make bread. I don't know why because it's actually a lot easier than I imagined. I've just been putting it off. But over this last thanksgiving, my Sister-in-law made some super delicious rolls and she promised me they were easy to make. So, naturally, I demanded she give me the recipe. Turns out she got it from Pinterest, the original recipe is found here. But I modified it a little bit and am really happy with how these rolls turned out!! I shared a photo of them on FB and Instagram and some people asked me to share my version -- so here we go :)

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon Sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 Tablespoon salt
• 2 Tablespoons yeast
• 2 cups of warm water
• 9 cups of bread flour
• 1 cup of butter
• Rosemary (to taste, but around 8-12 pinches)
• Sea Salt (to taste, but around 8-12 pinches)

*Something to note. I used bread flour for these rolls but all purpose flour should work fine as well.
Also, you can add the rosemary and sea salt to the dough as you're mixing it if you'd prefer (in step 5). But I choose to add it at the end before we roll them. It's up to you :)

Directions: 

1. In a glass (or microwave safe) mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups of milk, 3/4 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup of butter (cur butter into smaller chunks so it will melt easier). Pop in the microwave for 2 minutes or so to scald mixture. Set aside for a minute.

2. Next we're going to activate the yeast. Fill a separate mixing cup with 2 cups of warm water. Make sure it's not too hot, or it will kill the yeast. Check temperature, and then add 2 Tablespoons of yeast and 1 Tablespoon of suger. Let it sit for a few minutes until it gets bubbly.

3. Meanwhile, grab your butter/milk/sugar mixture and add 2 cups of flour, then 1 egg, and 1 Tablespoot of salt. Mix well.

4. Once your yeast is bubbly, pour it into your mixing bowl.

5. Using a fork or wooden spoon, gradually continue adding the last 7 cups of flour. At this point, it gets tough to stir in so I usually end up just using my hands to mix and knead the dough. By the end, your dough should be thick and sticky. Smooth the dough and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Leave it in a warm spot to let it rise.

6. While your dough is rising, use a stick of butter and swipe over all your cookie sheets and set them to the side.

7. When your dough doubles in size (in a warm place, it usually takes 45 minutes or so), it will be ready to roll out. Spread some flour all over your working space so your dough doesn't stick to the counter. Divide your dough into 4 even balls.

8. At this point, take another few Tablespoons of butter, and melt in a small bowl.

9. Using one ball at a time, use a rolling pin to flatten into a circle. Once it's spread out, grab your melted butter and brush it over the flattened dough. Then, add your rosemary & sea salt. You can add as much or as little as you want! I used about 3 pinches of rosemary and sea salt per dough ball.

10. Next, take a pizza cutter, and cut into quarters, and then each quarter into 3 pieces. You should end up with 12 triangles like this:

11. Roll each triangle starting with the wide end, going toward the point. Then place on the buttered cookie sheet. You should get roughly 24 rolls per pan.

12. Once your rolls are lined up on the pan, brush melted butter over the top and sprinkle some more rosemary & sea salt on the tops of your rolls. 

13. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place your cookie sheets with you rolls on top of the oven while it's preheating to let them rise. Once they have risen a little bit (maybe 15 minutes), cook them one pan at a time, using the top rack. Bake for about 12-17 minutes or until they are golden brown on top. Definitely check frequently to keep an eye on them as they're cooking.

And that's it!!! If you're anything like me, you'll eat about 2 rolls right when they come out of the oven and are warm and soft. Then after they cool a little, you'll eat another 2-3. They make a good dinner, right?? ;-)