It’s hard to resist these pillow-soft and buttery Cloverleaf Rolls. These are made with milk dough which has an unbelievably soft and cloud-like texture. You’ll love the delicious layers when you pull the 3 clover leaves apart.
Homemade Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls is the perfect side for your holiday table and they always get compliments even when they’re competing with the Christmas Prime Rib or Thanksgiving Roast Turkey. After all, you definitely need a roll to soak up the Turkey Gravy.
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There’s something so comforting about home-baked bread from Focaccia Bread to Banana Bread and even Pita Bread. If you love a warm and ultra-soft dinner roll, this recipe is a must-try!
Watch the video tutorial and see how easy it is to make these clover rolls.
Cloverleaf Rolls Video Tutorial
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What is Milk Bread?
Milk bread is white bread that is made with milk, egg, and butter to form a tender crumb with a rich buttery flavor. Milk bread has the most satisfying texture and it’s easy to make, which is why it’s our preferred dough for making cloverleaf rolls.
Ingredients for Cloverleaf Rolls
- Water – start with warm filtered water (110-115˚F) to activate your yeast
- Active dry yeast – you’ll need 1 packet or 2 1/4 tsp of yeast
- Milk – use warm low fat milk (whole milk will also work)
- Butter – either melted and cooled or very soft butter
- Granulated sugar – feeds the yeast to make the rolls rise beautifully
- Egg – use a large, room temperature egg
- Salt – we use fine sea salt
- Bread Flour – has a higher protein content to produce a softer bread. Also, make sure to measure flour correctly.
Common Questions
This recipe works best with active dry yeast and that is the yeast we recommend. Instant yeast will work, but it will speed up the rising process and the texture won’t be quite the same.
Yes, dinner rolls are freezer friendly and if you freeze them the day they are baked, they will taste fresher when they are thawed. See instructions for freezing in the “make-ahead” section below.
It’s best to use bread flour because of its higher protein content which helps to develop the gluten in the dough, resulting in a softer dinner roll.
Make-Ahead
- Overnight rolls – Once you have placed the oiled plastic wrap over the pan of dinner rolls, set the pan in the refrigerator overnight. A couple of hours before baking, remove the rolls from the refrigerator, let them come to room temperature and rise until visibly puffed, then butter and bake as directed.
- Freezing – Baked dinner rolls freeze really well. Let them cool to room temperature then transfer to a freezer safe zip bag, remove any excess air, and freeze for up to 2 months. If you freeze them the same day they are baked, they will taste fresh when thawed.
Tips for Making the Best Dinner Rolls
- Check the yeast – the reason for initially mixing the yeast with 3 Tbsp of warm water is to activate the yeast as well as to make sure it is still working. If you don’t see a foamy layer on your mixture after 7 minutes or so, you should buy new yeast and start over.
- Ingredient temperatures – make sure your liquid ingredients are warm when added (between 110-115˚F) for the dough to rise properly. Colder ingredients will take longer to get the yeast working.
- Proofing – proof dough in a warm place that is at least 75˚F but not more than 110˚F (high heat will kill your yeast). Putting it in the oven with the light on works well. Also, you can microwave a damp kitchen towel for a minute then turn it off and place the bowl of dough inside the warm microwave. The warm steamy environment is ideal for dough proofing.
Serve with
Sometimes all you need is to spread on Cranberry Sauce or whipped Honey Butter, but if you’re looking to pair this with a meal, here are our favorite recipes to serve with dinner rolls:
- Sweet Potato Soup
- Cabbage Soup
- Vegetable Soup
- Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
- Creamy Tomato Soup
- Chicken Pot Pie Soup
Golden, puffed, buttery, and super soft – these Cloverleaf Rolls will be the talk of your holiday table.
Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls Recipe
Ingredients
Cloverleaf Rolls:
- 3 Tbsp warm water, (115˚F)
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast, (1 packet yeast)
- 1 cup low-fat milk, warm (105-110˚F)
- 5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted or very soft, plus more for the pan
- 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 3 1/2 cups bread flour, divided (add an extra 1/4 cup if needed)
For the Topping:
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided, melted
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add 3 Tbsp very warm water (115˚F). Sprinkle the top with 1 packet of yeast, whisk to combine, and let rest uncovered for 7 minutes until foamy on top.
- Add warm milk, melted butter, sugar, egg, and salt. Whisk until blended, then gradually whisk in 2 cups of flour then switch to the dough hook attachment and add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour in thirds, letting it incorporate with each addition. Add more flour a little bit at a time until the dough feels moist to the touch, but it shouldn’t stick to clean/dry fingertips.
- Knead 10 minutes on speed 2 of a stand mixer, or knead by hand. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl as it kneads and will be smooth and elastic.
- Transfer dough to a large oiled bowl, turning the dough to coat in oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (90-100˚F) for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in volume.
- Transfer dough to a smooth, clean work surface. You should not need any additional flour at this point. Divide the dough into 12 even pieces then divide each piece of dough into 3 small pieces. Cup your hand over each of the small pieces and roll over work surface to form a ball. Butter a 12-count muffin pan and place 3 little balls of dough into each muffin cup.
- Oil a sheet of plastic wrap and place the oiled side loosely over the rolls. Let rest in a warm place for 30-45 minutes until visibly puffed. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425˚F with a rack in the center.
- Once rolls have risen, brush the tops with 2 Tbsp melted butter and bake in a preheated oven at 425˚F for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. As soon as they are out of the oven, brush with more melted butter and sprinkle with kosher salt. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes and serve warm.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hello!! I made your cloverleaf dinner rolls today! I am new to making yeast breads, your recipe is easy to follow and my rolls turned out beautiful – the dough turned out right and was easy to work with. I am going to make them again tomorrow to send my son. Thank you for this great recipe!!
That’s great to hear, Lila. Thank you for sharing that with us and for giving this recipe 5 stars!
Thank you very much for all your recipes and video’s love watching them and your recipes .
You’re so welcome! Thanks for always watching and I hope you’ll love all the recipes that you will try.
I made these today & they are by far the BEST rolls I’ve made. I spent the pandemic practicing bread making & this recipe moved into my #1 spot! Amazing!
Natasha I have made many of your recipes & they are all winners! Thank you!
Thank you for the awesome feedback, Joanna. I’m happy to know that you’re enjoying the recipes!
omg! i make a ton of rolls and have tons of favorite roll recipes, i am trying these cloverleaf rolls and i love the dough, so easy to work with! second rising now so i am anxious to see final product
if they pass muster these will be my go to roll this thanksgiving and i have to make at least 5 doz! 😩
I hope you love them, Kathy!
i loved these! i have been making rolls/bread for years but this recipe is at the top of the list! dough is so easy to work with!
I’m happy to hear that, Kathy! Thank you for sharing.
can i do this by hand? and these are the cutest things i’ve ever seen, and look good too!
Hi Amy, absolutely, you can mix and knead the dough by hand, but it will take at least 10 minutes to knead if you’re really working at it. It just takes a little more elbow grease but you can do this dough without a stand mixer.
Hi! I love your recipes and I want to know if the cloverleaf recipe can be doubled. Thank you!
Hi Laura, that will work. If you go to the recipe card, you can click on the number of servings to adjust the ingredients.
I did notice that when you change the amount to double the recipe, it does change the amounts in the recipe, but when you go to print it, it prints the original amounts, not the adjusted! FYI!
Hi Caryn, it will print in the list of ingredients but not throughout the instructions since our system is not sophisticated enough to change those yet.
I don’t own a stand mixer – just have a basic hand mixer or can mix by hand. Will that work???
Hi Jane, by hand will also work. I hope it turns out great!
Thank you so much for all your tutorial, one of my fav is the pie dough!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed the tutorial, Wilma! I hope you try more of my recipes soon!
I see the instructions to freeze but not how to reheat the frozen rolls. Do you thaw first? How do you then reheat without making the rolls too dry or tough?
Thanks for your help🙂
Hi Pat, you can reheat the dinner rolls straight from the freezer to the oven.
What temperature should the oven be when reheating frozen rolls and how long do you leave in the oven ?
Thanks, Pat
Hi Pat, you can either thaw first overnight then bake for about 10 minutes in a 300°F oven or until warmed through. You can also heat rolls from frozen (loosely wrapped in foil) and bake at 300°F for 20 to 25 minutes or rolls are warm all the way through.
Thanks a bunch, going to give this a try for Thanksgiving 🙂
This recipe was awesome! I do have one question though. I know this is a “milk bread” recipe but could I substitute the milk for water? Thank you so much, Natasha.
Hi Greta, I have tried it with whole milk and low-fat milk, but I can’t advise it will work with water without trying that substitution myself.
Hi Natasha,
Love all your videos and recipes and can’t wait to try this one! Can I use whole milk instead of low fat?
Hi Karen, we have this note in the recipe: “Milk – use warm low-fat milk (whole milk will also work)” I hope that helps.
Hi Natasha
Sorry I didn’t notice and missed it in the notes. Next time I will try not to rush through. Appreciate your reply,Thank you!
Karen
Natasha, I always make homemade rolls for Thanksgiving, namely your soft dinner roll recipe. So when I saw these I knew I had to give them a trial run. You have absolutely outdone yourself. This is bread therapy at it’s finest! These are definitely my new go to roll. No one even waited until they were cool. Do you have any suggestions for making them ahead of time? Love all your recipes…have 7 of them on deck for Thanksgiving right now!
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your excellent review, Dawn! Please see the instructions in the “make-ahead” section in the recipe.
Hey Natasha,
Do you have to use bread flour? we don’t have any and wanted if we could use all-purpose flour.
Hi Zellie, bread flour has a higher protein content to produce a softer bread, it works best for this recipe.
I’m thinking about these for thanksgiving. Do they freeze well?
Hi Susan! You can freeze them! See this section in my recipe notes: “Can I freeze dinner rolls?”. I hope this helps!
Can this be made in my bread machine and taken out before it starts to bake and shape it into the rolls?
Hi Barbara, I haven’t tried it in a bread machine myself, but that may work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
I’m wondering Natasha if I can make these rolls ahead of Thanksgiving and put them in the freezer after baking. How do I reheat them?
Hi Peggy, please see my “Make-Ahead” section in the recipe.
My kids really loved it! So soft and delish! Thanks for the recipe!
That is the best when kids love what we parents make. That’s so great!
These are SO FLUFFY. Also, super pretty at the dinner table!
I love how cute and fluffy they look too!
These homemade cloverleaf rolls are so soft, fluffy, and delicious! I will for sure be adding these to our Thanksgiving dinner menu!
They indeed are the best! Thank you for your lovely review, Valentina!
Hi Natasha, Can I use non-dairy milk like Almond, Oat or Macadamia?
Hi Tammy, I haven’t tried either of those substitutions to advise on the outcome; if you happen to test that, I’d love to know how you like it!
Another home run from Natasha’s kitchen. Thanks for another great recipe.
You’re welcome, Barry! I’m so happy you loved it!