Flaky, sweet, and buttery, these make-ahead Butterhorns will be the star of your Thanksgiving table.
Today I’m going to tell you to make homemade rolls for your Thanksgiving day feast. I know, I know. Like you need one more thing to do on Thanksgiving day. But these butterhorns. Oh friends, these butterhorns are WORTH IT!
This butterhorn recipe is an old family favorite. and I promise, they are the show stealers. They will be the dish everyone will ask to pass a second and third time.
That’s because Butterhorns are the ultimate vehicle for:
- butter
- jam
- cranberry sauce
- gravy
- and even turkey leftovers
Make Ahead Butterhorns
Now before you groan and tell me there’s no possible way you could make homemade bread while you’re elbow deep in turkey and taters, let me explain. These are entirely 100% make ahead. As in, you could make them today. Like, right now (and you should).
Right this very minute you could head to the kitchen, roll up your sleeves, and stir together this sweet, eggy butterhorn dough. It will only take you about 10 minutes, and then you can slip the dough in the fridge for the night, pull your sleeves back down, and curl up on the couch with a hot cocoa.
Tomorrow, it’ll be puffed and ready for kneading, rolling, and baking. This will take a little time and effort, but it’s a good way to get out any pre-holiday frustration. (Plus, it’s fun to pretend that you’re a contestant on the Great British Baking Show in the midst of a Bread-Week technical challenge.) After a little elbow grease, you’ll end up having rows of crescent roll shaped butterhorns nestled away in your freezer, ready to bust out and impress the pants off of all your Thanksgiving day guests.
Let’s Bake Butterhorns!
To prove this venture is totally doable, I took some photos of the process. Just pretend we’re in the kitchen together, cookies in our bellies, Michael Buble crooning in the background. You ready? Let’s do this.
Once the dough has had a nice long chill in the fridge, you take it out and divide it into four equal pieces. Then you grab the flour. Lots of flour. I flour my hands, the counter, the dough, and my rolling pin. Then I go to rolling. Each piece gets rolled into a 9 inch-ish circle.
See? So much flour. Then we slice it up pie style.
And roll baby roll.
After they’re rolled up and looking precious, you place the butterhorns on a baking sheet. Here’s the first point you can freeze. I usually let the rolls freeze on the pans, then just throw them into a ziplock together. On the big day, I take them out, let them rise while I’m mashing potatoes, and then just pop in the oven to bake.
Or you can go ahead and bake the rolls tomorrow, freeze them afterwards, and then that will make your Thanksgiving Day really easy. Just thaw and reheat! It’s like magic!
There’s something about homemade bread that does feel like magic, doesn’t it? That moment when you pull the towel off the top of the basket of rolls and everyone watches in awe as the steam rises… Fluffy and fragrant, buttery and flaky, each bite begs you to stop and savor.
Go ahead, grab half. I’ll share.
So now that you know which rolls you are serving on your Thanksgiving table, what about…
- The Main Course? Never fear! Just click on over to my Easy Oven Roasted Turkey recipe for a picture perfect, golden and juicy bird.
- For Side Dish inspiration check out these Garlic Green Beans, this comfort-food classic Corn Casserole, or this beautiful Cranberry Jello Salad.
- Need a killer Dessert to satisfy that holiday sweet-tooth? Try one of my 15 Drool-Worthy Thanksgiving Desserts.
- I’ve even got your Beverage choices covered with this Cranberry Apple Cider, or for a more boozy Thanksgiving, try my Autumn Sangria.
Butterhorn Recipe
These simple homemade crescent rolls are buttery, soft, and just a touch sweet. They're easy to make ahead or freeze, and they are SO worth it!
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons yeast
- 1 cup lukewarm water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together yeast, water, and salt and let sit until dissolved, about 10 minutes. Stir in the sugar, butter, eggs, and flour. Mix well then loosely cover with saran wrap and let stand in the refrigerator overnight. The dough will double in size.
- The next day, remove the dough and divide it into four equal pieces. Generously flour your work surface, hands, and a rolling pin. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll out into about a 9 inch circle. If the dough is sticky, add a little more flour. If it springs back, allow it to rest for 10 minutes then try again. Slice the circle into 8 equal triangles, then roll them up from the wide end to the narrow end. Place the rolls on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
To freeze:
- You can either freeze these rolls after they're shaped, after they're risen, or after they're baked. To freeze before the rise, place the baking sheet in the freezer and flash freeze until solid, then place rolls in a freezer zip lock bag for up to 1 month. When ready to bake, remove the number of rolls you want and place them on a baking sheet. Cover with a clean towel and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees then bake for 8-10 minutes.
- To freeze the risen rolls, allow the rolls to rise on the baking sheet, then place the sheet in the oven, flash freeze, and store in a zip lock bag for up to 1 month. Ready to bake, remove, thaw for 20 minutes then bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden.
- To freeze the baked rolls, follow the instructions below, then place the cooled baked rolls in a zip lock bag. When ready to serve, simply thaw overnight then reheat for a few minutes in a warm oven.
To bake:
- Cover the rolls with a clean dish towel and allow to rise for 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden in color.
Recipe by NeighborFood
Just making sure this is 2 Tablespoons which would mean need jar of yeast or measure from several packages of yeast?
That’s correct. You can use a jar or you’ll need 3 packets (you won’t use all of the third).
At 76 I have baked a lot! These butterhorn rolls are the easiest, fastest and so good! I have tossed my tried and true recipe. So happy to have found this gem. Thank you, Teresa
So glad you love the butterhorn recipe! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
To double the recipe, would I double all ingredients and otherwise process the same way? Thanks.
Hi. I made this recipe and baked one after being proofed and it was awesome. Froze the rest and one week later to test before Thanksgiving, took a couple out of the freezer, let them thaw for 20 mins., then baked. They were okay, but lost some of the rise and not nearly as good as when I baked them right away. Not sure what happened, but now I’m going to try baking first after the rise, then freezing them and see if they reheat nicely. Thanks for any advice.
I fixed these delightful butterhorns for our Thanksgiving gathering this year and they were very well received. Came out light and fluffy with the tiniest hint of sweetness. I found that using my pizza cutter to divide the rolled out dough worked really well. Avoided a disaster by re-reading the baking instructions the next morning. I had forgotten that they need to rise for 2 hours before baking! So glad there was still time to do that. I made 2 batches so I was able to freeze some for Christmas. Whoo Hoo! Thanks for a wonderful recipe Courtney.
Do you have suggestions for baking them fresh at high altitude? I want to do my baking up there and I want fresh rolls on the very day. If I freeze the dough And take them with me I think the altitude will change them too much. Hope you or any of your faithful friends on here have suggestions they would be greatly appreciated. I have experience baking these at sea level and they are magnificent. A tradition in my family for years. Now that the matriarch has passed I am the official chef and baker for the Holidays. Happy Thanksgiving to you! jj
Melanie sent me and I followed your exact advice. I got my butt up, mixed them up, and now I’m back to relaxing. HAHA! Can’t wait to bake them up later this week. 🙂
Awesome! You’ve totally got this. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
I’ve never heard of a butterhorn and now, I can’t get them out of my mind. They look fantastic, Courtney! And I love the pretty roll-up look. So fancy 😉 The best part is that they can be made ahead. I have so many lofty plans for the four Christmas dinners I’m attending/hosting. Home made bread is on the menu for each so I was starting to stress out a bit. I should make four batches of these this weekend and toss ’em in the freezer!
Dang girl! You’re going to be a busy lady! These make 32 rolls so depending on how many people you’re having, you may not even have to make a double batch!
I was reading this and thinking, “Yea, so no. I can’t make rolls, she’s right I have too much to cook.”…but um, OMG these are insanely easy, Courtney! Thank YOU!
Rolls were on my to try list for this year and you’ve made it look so easy that this must be the recipe to try! Pinned and headed to my Turkey Day table, stat!
Thanks for sending me here, Melanie!
Courtney, these butterhorns look so good and you make it look so easy!! love and pinned!! I’m going to enlist help from my sister and kids for thanksgiving food prep this year . . these butterhorns need to happen, yo!
Thanks dear! Definitely delegate these babies out! Everyone will love them!
I’m reaching for these first thing!!