I love the name Granny buns because these truly are my Granny's buns. These dinner buns are the ones she made all the time when I was growing up. They would be at every family holiday dinner or gathering and they were highly coveted.
These Granny buns are popular during holiday dinners such as Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas brunch or Easter brunch , but are great for anytime of the year.
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Recently, my Grandma and I were talking about great recipes and she told me I just had to make these dinner buns! I didn't even realize they were the buns she was talking about. Once in a while she tells me I just have to make a recipe and the last time my Grandma told me that, it was our family's Old Fashioned Date Nut Loaf she was referring to. And I was completely and unexpectedly blown away by how good it was! Was she ever right about that. So of course I couldn't resist making these grandma buns.
Aside from quick breads, I make most of my breads, buns and dough in my bread machine. Since I got a bread maker 25 ish years ago as a gift, I've naturally taken the path of least resistance. If you're interested, you can check out my Bread Machine Recipes HERE! Plus, I don't have a lot of time on my hands for making bread.
🥘 Ingredients
However, these Homemade Rolls are soo worth the time AND effort of making them by hand! And as far as I'm concerned, there is nothing in this world as divine as the smell of yeast and fresh buns baking in the oven. For me, it brings back some of the most wonderful baking (and eating) memories from my childhood. Yeast is the key ingredients but these dinner rolls have all the other usual suspects like water, oil, flour and eggs. but it's the additional sugar that makes them special. They are a little sweeter than your typical homemade roll.
For this bun recipe, you'll need:
- warm water
- white sugar
- instant yeast
- eggs
- cooking oil
- all- purpose flour
When I told my daughter I could officially be a granny now because I made these Granny buns, she laughed and said I didn't have to worry about that. Apparently I already make so much old fashioned foods I'm well on my way... haha! And when I think about it, I guess she's right. My Strawberry Jello Angel Food Cake, Pistachio Fluff and my Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake are all pretty retro. And I'm sure there are many more that I just can't recall right now.
🍽Equipment
I make these dinner buns in two 9X13 baking dishes (affiliate link).
🔪Instructions
Dissolve 1 teaspoon sugar in water, add yeast and stir well. Let stand for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat together: eggs, oil, 1 cup sugar, then add yeast mixture.
Add 4.5 cups warm water and 4 cups flour. Beat well with an electric mixer for about 2 minutes.
Add 6 more cups flour; mix well.
Then add more flour (1 cup at a time) until dough is soft and spongy **I added about 1.5 cups flour in addition
Grease the inside of a large bowl and place dough inside.
Allow dough to rise for 30 minutes, then punch down (See VIDEO for how to punch down dough)
Let rise again until double in size.
Spray two to three 9X13 pans with non-stick cooking spray and make buns: Take the amount of a tennis ball and make it into a round (ish) shape and place in greased pan.
Set to rise for about 1 more hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Bake at 350 degrees F/175 degrees C for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
🌡️Storage
Store these granny buns in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
🌡️ Can they be frozen?
I do NOT recommend freezing these buns. I found that the texture changed- they got a little gooey. If this recipe is too much, split it in half. Just adjust the amounts by clicking on the servings in the recipe card and selecting the number you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
👪 Servings Size
This recipe for granny rolls makes 30. However, you can half, double or triple the recipe by clicking on the blue serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
🎥 Video
VIDEO: How to punch down dough
When you are preparing these buns, have a look at the video, as it shows you how much you should "punch down" the dough. I'm not sure about you, but I have a tendency to 'overpunch'; it's a good way to release tension 🙂 Punching down is actually an antiquated term, as artisan bakers prefer to treat dough more gently, pressing and gently deflating it rather than punching it.
To punch down dough, transfer it to a lightly floured surface, then use your fingertips to gently press and stretch it. Again, see video. This “punching” helps remove some of the bubbles of gas that have formed thanks to the yeast during the rising period. Gently deflating them gives the bread a finer texture. It also redistributes the cells of yeast and moisture so that they can ferment and rise during the next rising period.
🥗 Side dishes
These granny rolls go well with:
- soup, stew or chili (Loaded perogy soup shown below)
- as a sandwich buns
- or on their own (slathered with butter.)
However, they are simply amazing as a side with holiday dinners. I'll be having them with my Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter dinners this year and I would encourage you to do the same!
Although these soft dinner rolls may be old-fashioned, they are truly timeless... They have a fluffy cloud-like texture that a store-bought bun can't come close to!
⭐ Reviews
Did you make these dinner buns ? Please RATE THE RECIPE below
📋 Granny Buns Recipe (Dinner Buns)
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 teaspoon sugar ( to mix with yeast)
- 1.5 tablespoon instant yeast
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 4.5 cups warm water
- 10 cups all- purpose flour, sifted + more as needed (I used 11. 5 )
Instructions
- Dissolve 1 teaspoon sugar in water, add yeast and stir well. Let stand for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat together: eggs, oil, 1 cup sugar, then add yeast mixture.
- Add 4.5 cups warm water and 4 cups flour. Beat well with an electric mixer for about 2 minutes.
- Add 6 more cups flour; mix well.
- Then add more flour (1 cup at a time) until dough is soft and spongy **I added about 1.5 cups flour in addition
- Grease the inside of a large bowl and place dough inside.
- Allow dough to rise for 30 minutes, then punch down (See VIDEO in NOTES for how to punch down dough)
- Let rise again until double in size.
- Spray two to three 9X13 pans with non-stick cooking spray and make buns: Take the amount of a tennis ball and make it into a round(ish) shape and place in greased pan.
- Set to rise for about 1 more hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Sue
It’s one thing to have a good recipe but quite another to have one passed down through the generations. Such a recipe is a treasured keepsake.