Why this recipe works Butter fan rolls are fancy enough for a dinner party, but they’re also great pulled apart and slathered with sweet jam for breakfast. The success of these rolls lies in the layers. But getting striking, fanned-out minibreads requires some serious countertop construction work. We kept the process easy with a roll, cut, butter, and stack technique. Once we’d built the stacks of dough, we placed them in a muffin tin, cut side up. In order to keep the tips of the fans from becoming crunchy, we baked the rolls on the upper-middle rack in the oven, which distanced them from the heat source. We used whole milk along with sugar and a liberal amount of butter to give these rolls plenty of richness.
MAKES: 12 rolls
RISING TIME: 3 to 4 hours
BAKING TIME: 20 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 4½ to 5½ hours
KEY EQUIPMENT: 12-cup muffin tin, rolling pin, pastry brush
INGREDIENTS:
- 3½ cups (17½ ounces) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¾ cup (6 ounces) whole milk, room temperature
- 12 tablespoons (6 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup (1¾ ounces) sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 large yolk, room temperature
INSTRUCTIONS:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together flour, yeast, and salt. In a 4-cup liquid measuring cup, whisk together milk, 8 tablespoons melted butter, sugar, and egg and yolk until the sugar has dissolved. Using the dough hook attachment on low speed, slowly add the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Mix until a cohesive dough starts to form and no dry flour remains, about 2 minutes. Increase the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and clears the sides of the bowl, about 6 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter and knead by hand to form a smooth, round ball, about 30 seconds. Place the dough seam side down in a lightly greased large bowl or container. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled in size, approximately 1½ to 2 hours.
- Grease a 12-cup muffin tin. Press down on the dough to deflate it. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter, divide it in half, and cover loosely with greased plastic. Press and roll one piece of dough into a 15 by 12-inch rectangle, with the long side parallel to the counter edge.
- Using a pizza cutter or chef’s knife, square off the edges of the rectangle, then cut the dough vertically into 6 strips measuring 2½ by 12 inches. Brush the tops of 5 strips evenly with 1 tablespoon of melted butter, leaving 1 strip unbuttered. Stack the strips on top of each other, buttered side to unbuttered side, finishing with the unbuttered strip on top. Cut the stacked strips into 6 stacks.
- Place the stacks cut side up in the muffin cups. Repeat the process with the remaining dough and 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Cover the muffin tin loosely with greased plastic and let the dough rise until nearly doubled in size, approximately 1½ to 2 hours. (If desired, the unrisen rolls can be refrigerated for at least 8 hours or up to 16 hours. Let the rolls sit at room temperature for 1 hour before baking.)
- Adjust the oven rack to the upper-middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake the rolls until golden brown, typically 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the muffin tin halfway through baking. Let the rolls cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, then brush them with the remaining melted butter. Serve the rolls warm.
