With the holidays in full swing I wanted to share the dinner rolls that I have been making for family events lately. They are an amalgamation of my grandma’s classic yeast spoon roll and the Southern Living dinner rolls I found online. I also add some whole wheat flour to give them an earthier flavor that I love. The reason I began tweaking my Grandma’s recipe is that I frankly don’t think the one she left us is right. The recipe I inherited from her cookbook for spoon rolls is not right, she was doing more than what is on the paper, and it’s my bad luck she never wrote down what that was.
I started by faithfully following the printed recipe that was taped into the cover of her old composition book and year after year the family would tell me that that it was close but not quite right. Then I opted for the Southern Living recipe, good rolls but not like hers. So I mixed and matched the two…it was close. 
So this year I went off on my own direction and added the whole wheat flour, I loved it and the family loved it! This twisted up recipe was the perfect blend of Grandma and me, the old fashion disregard for cholesterol and the modern obsession with substituting healthy whole wheat flour. Share them with your family this year!
Read more about my Grandma Swan’s cookbook conservation project here.
Holiday Spoon Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 1/4-ounce envelope active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 cups lukewarm water 100° to 110°
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 5 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup butter melted and cooled
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- baking spray
Instructions
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Combine the warm water, teaspoon of sugar and the yeast in a large bowl; let mixture stand 5 minutes. Stir in flour and all the rest of the ingredients mix until an elastic dough forms. Allow to rest in refrigerator until needed, or at least 30 minutes. I think they come out the best if you let them rest overnight and punch them down at least once.
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Spoon into muffin pans coated with baking spray. I use a teaspoon to make three small balls or lumps in each muffin cup. This is how my grandma did it so this is what my mom taught me to do. Ok let’s be honest grandma would butter her hands and roll each lump in to a perfect ball, but I really don’t have time for that, so my mom’s lump method it is. Do not fill cups more than two-thirds full.
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Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until rolls are golden brown. Makes about 24 rolls.
Recipe Notes
Allow dough to rest in the fridge for up to a week, and just pull them out when you need them. No need to bring the dough to room temp just pop them in the oven. Best result from a convection oven.
