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Looking for a quick and easy yeast roll recipe for your holiday table? These Cheddar Dinner Rolls are soft, fluffy, packed with cheese, and as easy as can be!

Hand grabbing a cheddar dinner roll off a plate of rolls

This post is sponsored by Fleischmann’s® Yeast. Thank you for continuing to support the brands that make My Baking Addiction possible.

What are your holiday dinner musts? 

In our family, we can’t have a holiday meal without Homemade Cranberry Sauce, Cranberry Fluff, and Sweet Potato Casserole or mashed potatoes. And don’t forget the Pumpkin Cheesecake or Pumpkin Roll.

But the real star of the show? The dinner rolls.

There’s just something about coming around the holiday table with your loved ones, passing the basket of dinner rolls from person to person. 

(Not to mention that we always fight over the leftover rolls. They make the best little sandwiches with the leftover turkey or ham!)

Some years I get really fancy and make super buttery Parker House Rolls. Some years I go a little non-traditional with Pretzel Rolls.

But this year I am getting cheesy with these super easy Cheddar Dinner Rolls.  

Cheddar dinner rolls piled on a white plate, set on a dinner table

EASY, CHEESY HOMEMADE DINNER ROLLS

Even though the dinner rolls are one of my favorite parts of any holiday dinner, by the time I get to making them, sometimes I am kind of tired and not really interested in a super time-intensive recipe.

After all, if you’re hosting a holiday meal, you’ve probably already spent hours in the kitchen roasting a turkey or ham, prepping your side dishes, and making sure the house is clean.

So I decided that this year, I was going to go with a quick and easy yeast roll recipe. 

Ingredients for cheddar dinner rolls on a marble countertop

To get started, I reached for this Homemade Dinner Roll recipe using my favorite Fleischmann’s® RapidRise® Instant Yeast

I love using Fleischmann’s® RapidRise® Instant Yeast all year round, but especially at the holidays because it really simplifies the baking process for me:

  • NO need to rehydrate the yeast in water before adding it to the recipe
  • The dough only needs ONE quick 10-minute rest and one rise before it’s ready to bake!
Hand portioning dough to shape cheddar dinner rolls

That means that instead of spending 2+ hours waiting for dough and shaped rolls to rise before even going in the oven, these Cheddar Dinner Rolls get a 10-minute rest, a 30-minute rise, and a 20-minute bake.

You read that right. You only need just over an hour to make these homemade dinner rolls! 

Did I mention that they are packed with sharp cheddar cheese and topped with melted butter and flakey salt as soon as they come out of the oven? 

Honestly, they’re a recipe I’ll be making long after the holidays are over. They’re that good and that easy.

Dough for cheddar dinner rolls risen in a metal pan, ready to bake

HOW TO MAKE THESE CHEDDAR ROLLS

This recipe is so easy that I don’t even reach for my electric mixer to make the dough. I stir it all together by hand!

In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, 1 packet of Fleischmann’s® RapidRise® Instant Yeast, fine sea salt, and garlic powder. Add together milk, water, and butter that has been heated in the microwave until warm, but not hot.

Overhead view of freshly baked cheddar dinner rolls set on a metal cooling rack

You don’t want the liquid to be too hot, or else it will kill the yeast!

Stir everything together for about 2 minutes, then add in a cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese and another ¼ cup of flour.

I love to use sharp cheddar cheese for these rolls, but you could use any cheese you like best. Smoked gouda would be amazing or pepper jack would make for a spicy twist!

Dinner table featuring a plate full of cheddar dinner rolls

Continue stirring for another 2 minutes before adding an additional ¾ to 1 cup of flour.

Knead the dough on a floured surface for 6-8 minutes, then cover with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

Baked cheddar dinner rolls removed from the pan and set on a cooling rack

After 10 minutes, cut the dough into 12 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball and place into a greased 8×8-inch baking pan. Let the rolls rise for 30 minutes.

Once the rolls have risen, bake for 20-25 minutes. Brush the hot rolls with melted butter and sprinkle them with flakey salt before serving.

Two cheddar dinner rolls on a white plate. One of them is sliced open to show the fluffy texture inside

HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER YEAST ROLLS

This recipe makes 12 small-to-medium rolls, which is perfect for a small family without having a ton of rolls left over. 

If you have any leftover rolls, store them in a zip-top bag with the extra air removed. If you have a bread box, pop the bag in there to keep them extra fresh.

Even though these Cheddar Dinner Rolls are best the day they’re made, they will make for great leftovers for 1-2 days.

Plate filled with cheddar dinner rolls set on a dinner table
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Cheddar Dinner Rolls

By: Jamie Lothridge
4.54 from 73 ratings
Prep: 25 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 12 Rolls
Looking for a quick and easy yeast roll recipe for your holiday table? These Cheddar Dinner Rolls are soft, fluffy, packed with cheese, and as easy as can be!

Ingredients

  • 2 to 2-¼ cups all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons Fleischmann’s® RapidRise® Instant Yeast (1 packet)
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ cup whole milk
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 cup finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions 

  • Combine 1 cup flour, sugar, Fleischmann’s® RapidRise® Instant Yeast, salt and garlic powder in a large bowl; whisk until well combined.
  • Combine milk, water and butter in a small microwave-safe bowl.
  • Microwave on HIGH in 15 second increments. If you are using a thermometer, the temperature should be at 120° to 130°F. If you don’t have a thermometer, it should be very warm but not hot to the touch. 
  • Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes to combine.
  • Add 1/4 cup flour and the cheese; stir for 2 minutes. Stir in just enough of the remaining flour (3/4 to 1 cup) so that the dough will form into a ball. Knead on lightly floured surface until the dough is elastic and springs back when lightly pressed with 2 fingers, about 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Cover with a towel; let rest for 10 minutes.
  • Cut dough into 12 equal pieces; shape into balls using your hands. Do this by bringing the edges of each dough piece underneath to create a taut bubble on top. Place in a greased 8-inch pan.
  • Cover with a towel; let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
  • Bake in a preheated 375ºF oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan by running a knife around the edges and invert onto a wire rack; brush with additional melted butter and sprinkle with flakey salt.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1roll, Calories: 130kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 25mg, Sodium: 215mg, Sugar: 3g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.