These crescent rolls were present, thanks to my Aunt Connie, at just about every family holiday get-together and dinner we had when I was growing up. I have continued to make these rolls for every holiday for the last 20 years. You’d think I’d have the recipe memorized at this point, but I still have to pull out the worn and tattered recipe card every time.
And every time I make these rolls, year after year, I kick myself for not taking pictures and posting the recipe to my site so I could have the recipe online. The problem? I’m always so busy making a huge family meal and sticking on task that I rarely ever pull out my camera to get shots of the process or even the final product. Luckily, I grabbed a few pictures of the crescent rolls last time I made them….just in time to make a couple new batches of rolls for Easter dinner.
I always make at least 2 recipes of crescent rolls per meal so that we have plenty to eat at dinner and then the next day (or two) with leftovers. They are wonderful with some leftover ham or turkey in mini sandwiches!
- 2 tablespoons yeast
- 2 cups warm water
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup shortening
- 2 teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup dry milk
- 1 egg
- 5 to 6 cups flour
- Mix yeast and warm water in a small bowl and let stand 5 minutes in a warm place.
- Add sugar, shortening, salt, dry milk, egg, and 2 cups flour to large mixing bowl. Stir, then add yeast/water. Beat together until smooth.
- Gradually add an additional 3-4 cups flour til soft dough is formed. Knead for a few minutes in mixer or by hand.
- Place dough in large bowl that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and a clean towel let rise in a warm place for about an hour.
- Punch down: divide dough into thirds. Roll out a third of dough into a circle on a floured surface, about 10-12 inches wide; cut into 12 pie-shaped pieces (I use a pizza cutter).
- Starting at wide end, roll up each triangular piece into a crescent. Place on greased baking sheet, tucking end point in at the bottom. Repeat with remainder of dough. Let rise til doubled, about 30 minutes or more.
- Bake at 400° F for 8-10 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for a few minutes and then remove to a cooling rack.
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I didn’t realize that making my own would be fairly simple. I’ll give this recipe a try the next time I inevitably forget the crescents on my list. :)
Homemade breads are seriously the best! These look delicious and perfect for Easter dinner! Thanks for sharing your recipe with us at Merry Monday this week. I can’t wait to try them!
I would probably just skip the main dish and sides and just have these amazing rolls! Thanks for linking up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
I’d love to try this. I bet they are SO much better than what I usually use. (And I actually like what I usually use!)
Thanks for sharing this family recipe with us at the Inspire Me Mondays Link-Up!
Thanks for the tips! Yeah, I usually use the cans for quick recipes too, but I’m thinking if I made this ahead and froze it, then I could just pull it out of the freezer to thaw the day of. Then while it rises I could work on other parts of the meal (or dishes, since there are always dishes). Still not as quick and convenient as cans, but it ends up being cheaper, and probably at least slightly healthier.
I’ve never frozen this dough specifically, because I always need two or three times MORE rolls than this recipe makes. ;) But I have certainly frozen other doughs before. I would recommend splitting the dough into thirds, wrapping each third tightly in plastic wrap and putting the wrapped dough into a freezer bag. Then, when ready to use, I’d thaw the frozen dough overnight in the fridge and then, once thawed completely, roll out and cut into the triangles and let rise. From my experience, you could skip the first rising “step” in this case.
As far as using the dough for a base for a casserole, I suppose you could use this dough for any recipe that called for the refrigerated dough. I just love these rolls enough that I just use them for the rolls. They aren’t exactly “quick” …and I think of things like crescent-wrapped chicken or hot dogs as a quick meal, so I just grab the canned stuff. :)
Does the dough freeze well? It doesn’t look like the recipe could be halved or thirded super easily, and I can’t imagine ever needing 3 dozen.
Have you ever used this dough for a base for a casserole or anything? A lot of recipes used store-bought crescent roll dough, and I’d love to use something like this instead.