Homemade Crescent Rolls
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Light, flaky, and soft homemade crescent rolls! Made with just a few simple ingredients. These will take your dinner to the next level!
Who doesn’t love crescent rolls?? Am I right?
There is just something so irresistible about those light, fluffy, flaky dinner rolls. They have a little hint of yeasty sweetness, and they’re so buttery and delicious.
Having any kind of homemade bread to pass around the dinner table truly makes any meal so much more special. My family always enjoys my homemade wheat bread, challah, and these beautiful stenciled bread rolls. But they really go crazy for homemade crescents!
I don’t blame them for a second! But have you ever thought about making them homemade?
I’m here to tell you that it’s so worth it! Everything tastes better when it’s made from scratch, and dinner rolls are no exception!
This recipe bakes up soft, puffy, and so incredibly delicious! And it’s actually pretty easy to make, with just a few simple basics.
There’s a little bit of downtime for chilling the dough, but other than that you’re looking at only around 45 minutes of active time ’til crescent roll heaven!
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE CRESCENT ROLLS FROM SCRATCH
This dough is really easy to make. You don’t even need a mixer! And it only has a few basic ingredients.
Start by placing the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Whisk all those dry ingredients together, just to get them combined.
Next, add your cold butter. Cut the cold butter in until only pea-sized pieces of butter remain. I like to do this with a pastry blender, but if you don’t have one, you can do it the old-fashioned way with 2 knives. Or you could use a food processor.
Whichever method you use, just be sure that the butter stays nice and cold! This is really a really important detail. Cold butter will allow your crescent roll dough to form all those flaky layers!
Once the butter is all worked in, add the liquid ingredients. Milk, water, and egg get whisked together and added to the dry mix.
Stir everything until the dough comes together into a ball, then wrap it in plastic and let it chill in the fridge.
WHAT IS THE SECRET TO FLAKY CRESCENT ROLLS?
This is the best part of this whole recipe. I absolutely love the results you get with this special technique!
It’s a little extra, but I promise you it is SO worth the effort!
Once your dough is made and nicely chilled, just roll it into a long rectangle shape, and fold it into thirds, like a letter. Turn it 90 degrees, and repeat a few more times. You can do this step maybe 3 to 5 times.
Every time you do, you’re creating hundreds of layers of dough and butter. When this gets baked, you’ll have the flakiest homemade dinner rolls ever!
This step is called lamination, and it’s a pastry chef’s secret weapon for recipes like this one. I do this with my pie crust, Danish, and homemade puff pastry, and the results are amazing. Take a look at the video below (within the recipe card) to see just what this looks like.
You don’t have to do it, if you’re short on time. You can just make the dough, roll it, cut it, and shape it into crescent rolls and they will still come out fantastic. But if you can spare a few minutes for that extra step, you will be rewarded with the most incredible flaky layers.
HOW TO SHAPE CRESCENT ROLLS
Once your crescent roll dough is made, laminated, and chilled, it’s time for the fun part: shaping the bread rolls!
Start by dividing the dough into 3 equal portions. This will just make things a little easier to manage.
Roll out a portion of dough into a long rectangle shape. You want to get it pretty thin! The thinner you roll your dough, the more flaky layers your crescent rolls will have.
Once your rectangle of dough is about 1/8-inch thick, trim away the rough edges, and cut it into long, kinda skinny triangles. (Ideally, you want the triangles to be about 2 inches at the wide end, and about 4 inches long. But please don’t get too hung up on these dimensions!)
To shape the crescents, start at the wide end of a triangle and roll your way along, all the way to the point. Make sure the point is tucked under the roll, and then just bend the roll into a curved crescent shape. I have a little video within the recipe card, so you can see just what I mean!
Pop these onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, let them proof, and bake!
CAN HOMEMADE CRESCENT ROLLS BE MADE AHEAD?
One of the reasons I love this recipe so much is because it can easily be made ahead.
Follow all the steps of the recipe, right through to the one where the dough is cut and shaped into crescents. When you’ve got all your little crescents shaped and laid out on the baking sheet, cover them loosely with plastic wrap and pop the whole tray into the fridge.
The unbaked crescent rolls can be kept in the fridge like this overnight, or up to 24 hours.
A few hours before you’re ready to serve them, take the trays out of the fridge and let them come to room temperature. Then just continue on with the proofing and baking steps of the recipe.
HOW LONG WILL HOMEMADE CRESCENT ROLLS KEEP?
Once baked and cooled, just slip any leftover crescent rolls into a zip-top bag to keep them fresh. They will keep at room temperature for a few days, or in the fridge for around a week.
You could also freeze them. They’ll last in the freezer for several weeks to a month. When you’re ready to have some, just warm them gently in the oven (on the lowest setting) for about 10 or 15 minutes.
Your friends and family are going to love these homemade crescent rolls! They truly make the whole meal- so soft and light! And everyone will be so impressed that you made them from scratch.
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Homemade Crescent Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups (343.75 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons (36 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons (6.22 g) dry active yeast*
- 1 1/4 teaspoons (7.5 g) kosher salt
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter,, cold
- 1/2 cup (122 g) milk
- 1/4 cup (59.15 g) water
- 1 (44 g) egg, (large)
Instructions
- Place the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
- Cut in the butter with a pastry blender (or two knives), until only pea-sized pieces remain.
- Whisk the milk, water, and egg together in a small bowl, and add to the flour/butter mixture.
- Stir together until the dough gathers itself into a ball.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Dust the work surface with flour, and roll the dough out to a rough rectangle shape, about 1/2-inch thick.
- Fold the dough into thirds, like a letter.
- Turn 90 degrees, roll, and fold again.
- Repeat about 3 to 5 times, wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 3 equal portions.
- Roll each portion out into a long rectangle, about 1/8-inch thick, 16-inches long, and 5 inches wide.
- Cut the dough into skinny triangles, and roll each triangle, starting at the wide end and tucking the pointy end under the roll.
- Place the crescents on parchment lined baking sheets, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for 1 hour or until puffy and nearly doubled in size.**
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, then bake the crescent rolls for 10 minutes or until puffed and golden.
Notes
I’m pretty sure I reviewed this dough years ago when I started making it, but I just made it again last night for a quick cream cheese danish braid for today’s breakfast. As I was touching the lovely soft puffiness of the finished product, I knew I had to thank you again for such an easy recipe that produces such perfect results. If anyone is interested in using it for braids or something similar where you might use a canned crescent sheet, this recipe makes the equivalent of two cans (that you will never buy again). I roll each half into a roughly 9×14″ rectangle. I always make the full recipe even if I only need one because it freezes so perfectly that next time you need one you just have to thaw it in the fridge & then bring to room temp, prepare & let rise the hour. I don’t notice a difference between fresh & previously frozen. [I also love your danish dough recipe & use that all the time too for the same purpose and freeze half of that as well.] I’ve made crescents with this too & they are amazing!!! A tip to avoid burnt bottoms – it’s a common problem with all doughs like this & my best solution is to bake one rack position higher than middle and use double cookie sheets (a smaller one on top of a larger one). It works great & gives a perfectly golden bottom (still use parchment). Thank you so much for this recipe!
Your recipe is amazing! Thank you for sharing
My pleasure! I’m so happy you like it Diane!
Is the milk and water supposed to be warm? Usually for yeast recipes the liquid is warm so I wasn’t sure if this is supposed to be warm or cold. Thank you!
It doesn’t really matter on this one! Warm will work faster but cool will allow the flavors to develop a little more. Hope that answers your question!
I almost had to make another batch because I couldn’t quit eating these amazing delicious rolls! SOOOO GOOD! Thank you
My pleasure Donna! I’m so happy you liked them. Thanks for reading and for the positive feedback!
These crescent rolls are absolutely beautiful and far easier to make than you’d think. I love that there’s so little clean up! This recipe makes plenty to eat for dinner tonight and freeze for another day. I won’t be buying the canned stuff again!
So happy you like them Jenny!
These are amazing!! I have lived in Norway for 25 years, where my favorite Pilsbury product does not exist. I was so happy to have these on my Thanksgiving table this year! I’ve tried a few other recipes over the years, but none compare.
That is wonderful to hear! So glad this recipe can enhance your family get-togethers!
I made the recipe exactly as is, they turned out perfectly, tastes just like the Pillsbury crescent rolls I used to eat as a kid.
Yay!!
hey, is the batter supposed to be so liquidy? or did i just do something wrong
It should not be liquidy! Please check the photos and video to see how it is meant to look. Thanks!
Thank you for this recipe! I’ve tried many crescent roll recipes and they were all fails. But this one is SO GOOD and it’s easy! My husband requested them again three days after I made them the first time. The only thing I had to change about it was the baking instructions: the bottoms burned while the tops were barely cooked (might just be my old oven). The second time I turned the heat down to 375 and baked them for 12 minutes.
Great to know! Thanks so much for the feedback Christy! The overbaked bottoms sometimes can have to do with the type of sheet pan you’re using as well. Good you managed to pivot and adapt, whatever the cause!
These were irresistible !!! I couldn’t quit eating them, so buttery and soft! Making them again for group party.
Just what I was looking for!!!! I’m making maple bacon crack
Wow, sounds amazing!
I’ve not tried this yet but plan on giving it a go. My question is can I use this to make pig in a blanket? I don’t use the biscuits anymore and found that crescent rolls are better. Just wondering, because I love making thing’s from scratch.
Absolutely Jeannie! This dough should work really well for pigs in a blanket. Good luck; hope you love it!
Excellent recipe! After rolling, I stuffed some with pepperoni/mozzarella and some with spinach artichoke dip and some with buffalo chicken dip. I am amazed that the filling warmed up perfectly inside the rolls without oozing out during baking. I did have to lower the temp to 375 because the bottom was browning too quickly. But wow! Flaky, delicious, and look great! Thank you!
Amazing! I love how you chose to personalize this recipe. Sounds incredibly delicious! You’re making me hungry! Can’t thank you enough for the great feedback. <3
Extremely easy! I am not able to do much in the kitchen these days so finding this recipe was exactly what I was looking for. Everyone in my family loved these crescent rolls so much I put the recipe in my favorites. I’ve made them twice so far and thank you for sharing this🍀
My pleasure Lianne! I’m so happy you like it. Thanks for the great feedback!
Could you grate the cold butter? I did this for biscuits – froze the butter and then grated it into the flour mixture.
Also, they didn’t really rise until I put them in the oven…I’m new to this, so maybe I did something wrong?
No that sounds totally fine! Enriched doughs often behave like that. You can try the grated butter thing! That should work too!
This was a wonderful recipe. I did make some changes so that I could use these for sandwiches: (1) I added a teaspoon of vital wheat gluten to help boost gluten development and make the dough stronger. (2) I also didn’t cut in the cold butter. Instead, I grated it with with a cheese grater (using the same large holes that you would grate mozzarella for pizza) and just stirred it into the dry ingredients. (3) I repeated the laminating (folding) process no less than 5 times with at least a 30-min chilling time between each round. (4) I also made these rolls larger—12 rolls total from the recipe—because I wanted a bigger, sturdier roll that I could use for sandwiches. I pulled the pointy outer edges inward to make the finished rolls more rounded for that reason. (5) I found that my rolls needed closer to 2 hours and 15 min of final rising time to double in size, instead of just 1 hour of proofing. (I also buttered the sheet of plastic wrap that I covered them with as they rose.) (6) Just before going into the oven, I brushed on a thin layer of egg wash (1 whole egg at room temperature whisked with 1 tsp. of water). (7) Lastly, I baked a few minutes longer because they were larger.
Thank you so much for sharing all this Tracy! I’m sure it will be really helpful for other readers. I’m so happy the recipe worked well for you, and thank you for the 5-star review as well!
These are so yummy and the recipe was easy to follow! I had an issue with the rolls coming undone as they were baking so they don’t exactly look like crescent rolls, however still yummy! Any tips to keep them from unrolling? I pinched the small end into the rest of the roll to try to alleviate this issue but it didn’t work.
So happy you enjoyed Ashley! I usually try to tuck the point under the base of the roll. That seems to work well!