Dinner rolls have always been on my Thanksgiving table until I went gluten-free. Then, they were missing for many years and I longed for them every Thanksgiving. A few companies offered frozen versions but one included dairy, so that was out, and the other, well, let’s just say I was happier not having any dinner roll. I started making my own and I am so happy to have them back on my Thanksgiving dinner table.
I love spooning some cranberry sauce on my dinner roll for a “jelly” sandwich experience and sometimes, I add some turkey or even some stuffing for a full Thanksgiving sandwich bite. And, of course, if there are leftover dinner rolls, I enjoy a turkey mini-sandwich the next day.
Our gluten-free, dairy-free dinner rolls recipe makes delicious french-bread style dinner rolls that are soft and chewy with the wonderful flavor of french bread. The recipe will make 12 rolls and you can eat them right away or store them in the freezer for up to six months to satisfy your craving for gluten free dinner rolls whenever you want.
And, these dinner rolls make great mini sandwiches!
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Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free French Bread Dinner Rolls
Welcome dinner rolls back into your life with these soft and chewy balls of deliciousness.
Suggested Tools
Stand Mixer
Probe Thermometer
French Baguette Baking Pan
Precision Scale
Soda Stream
Spatulas
Small Whisks
Glass Measuring Cups
Prep Bowls, 4 inch
Digital Food Scale
#10 Disher
Silicone Pastry Brush
The Ingredients
Dry: Flour and Starch
- 275 g rice flour, White
- 200 g Tapioca flour
Dry: Supplemental
- 35 g soy milk powder
- 12 g xanthan gum
- 8 g gelatin, unflavored
- 15 g baking powder
- 29 g sugar, granulated
- 13 g kosher salt
Wet Ingredients
- 70 g sunflower oil, Healthy Harvest Brand
- 120 g egg whites , (100%, no fillers) Kirkland brand from Costco
- 11 g distilled white vinegar
Yeast and Water
- 11 g dry active yeast, NOT instant
- 1.75 cups carbonated water
Egg Wash
- 35 grams egg whites, or the whites of one egg
- 1 tsp cashew milk, unsweetened, or your favorite dairy-free milk
Optional Seeds
- Sprinkle with poppy, sesame, or other seeds
"Buttery" Coating
- 2 tbsp Earth Balance Buttery Spread, melted
The Process
Mise en Place
- Prepare for baking by setting out your tools: bowls for measuring, mixer, parchment paper, French bread pans, carbonated water (or soda stream), 10" round to make circles, whisk, measuring cup, mixer with paddle attachment, non-stick spray, scooper, and spatula.
Prepare and Preheat the Oven
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Make sure your racks have enough space between them to easily accommodate two racks with a baking pan on each one.
The Dry Ingredients
- Set your digital scale to grams and make sure the Tare (clear) after you set the bowl on top of the scale. Measure the rice flour and tapioca into the stand mixer bowl. Measure and add the supplemental ingredients to the same bowl as the flours. I use a small bowl to measure the supplemental ingredients and then add them, one by one, to the mixing bowl.
Measuring the Wet Ingredients
- Measure each of the wet ingredients and then put in a small bowl. You can measure them into one bowl, hitting tare after each ingredient or you can measure each into a separate bowl. If you measure each in separate bowls, combine all the wet ingredients into one bowl when done measure all three.
Measure the Yeast
- Using a small bowl measure out 11g of dry active yeast.
Prepare the Water
- If you are using a Soda Stream for your water:As the warm water is flowing from the facet, put a probe thermometer in the stream and when it reaches a steady 110 degrees, fill your Soda Stream bottle and then carbonate the water using the Soda Stream.Add 1.75 cups of the carbonated water to a 4 cup measuring cup.
- If you are using Club Soda for your water:Add 1.75 cups of Club Soda to a 4 cup measuring cup, preferably glass.Microwave for 3 minutes, then temp the water using a probe thermometer. Heat longer if needed to bring the Club Soda to 110 degrees.
Activate the Yeast
- When you have your 110-degree water ready, begin whisking the water as you add the yeast slowly to the water. Keep whisking until nearly all the yeast has dissolved. You should see foam when you do this. If you do not, your yeast may be out of date or you did not carbonate your water.
Time to Mix and Proof (Rise)
- Attach the mixing bowl to the stand mixer, attach the mixer's paddle attachment and raise the bowl into the mixing position. Set to speed 1 for 15 seconds to combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients while the mixer is still set at speed 1. Now, add the yeast and water slowly. Once it is all added, increase the speed to 2 until all the water is incorporated into the dry ingredients. Increase the speed to 3 for a minute or so and then 4 another minute or so.
- When the mixing is complete, the dough should be soft and silky, similar to frosting. Lower the bowl and remove the paddle attachment. With a wet spatula, scrape the dough from the sides of the bowl down into the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it on the top of your stove for 20 minutes (oven is on and set to 400 degrees).
Prepare the Egg Wash
- A few minutes before the first proof/rise is done, whisk together the egg whites and cashew milk in a small bowl until frothy. Set aside.
Prepare Parchment Paper for Pans
- Cut two pieces of parchment paper, large enough cover the dimensions of the baguette pan. Spray the majority of the top sheet only with non-stick spray.
Scooping and Forming the Dinner Rolls
- Move the bowl of dough to your work area and turn on your scale, set to grams. Put a small bowl on top of the scale and tare to zero. Spray the bowl you will be scooping into, the spatula, and the scooper/disher with non-stick spray. Have a bowl of hot water nearby to dip your hands into.
- Start scooping the dough into the bowl on top of your scale until you reach 250g. If you need to take the dough out of the bowl on the scale, wet your hands before touching the dough. Once you have 80g in your bowl, wet your hands, grab the ball of dough and add it to one of the baguette pans.NOTE: I prefer an 80 gram dinner roll but feel free to try smaller or larger sizes.
- Continue scooping all the dough balls and adding them to the pans, making sure you leave room between each dough ball.
- After all the rolls are scooped, bring you bowl of water close, wet your hands slightly and roll each dough ball in your hands to smooth and form. You will want moist, not wet hands. The rolling process is very much like making meatballs. You will want a light but steady touch.
- After your have formed (or rolled) the dough balls, give your egg wash a quick whisk and using a pastry brush, lightly coat the top of each dough ball. If you are adding seeds to the dinner rolls, add them now.
- Put the two baguette pans of dinner rolls on the stove for the second 10-minute rise/proof.
Baking the Dinner Rolls
- Place each baguette pan on a rack in the 400 degree oven. Set your timer for 7 minutes. When the 7-minute time goes off, rotate the two pans in the oven and set the time to 7 minutes.
- After the second 7-minute timer goes off, remove the dinner rolls from the oven if they are done to your liking. They should be a golden brown on the top. They will most likely be done and if you want more color on them, leave them in for a couple more minutes. Or, you can temp them with a probe thermometer to see if they are at 201 degrees.
"Butter the Rolls
- While the rolls are still on the baguette pans, brush each with the Earth Balance. Let sit for a couple of minutes and transfer them (without the pan and parchment) to a cooling rack.
Now What?
- Serve the dinner rolls warm, or if serving the next day, place in the fridge. If not serving for more than a day, let the dinner rolls cool to room temperature and place in a bag and freeze. When ready to use from frozen, heat the rolls in the microwave for about 30-60 seconds or until thawed. Serve as is or toast lightly in the oven or toaster oven.
- The dinner rolls also make terrific mini-sandwiches. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Although any certified gluten-free flours and starches will work wonderfully, I recommend Bob's Red Mill: https://www.bobsredmill.com/
Soy Milk Powder can be found in most natural food stores and some grocery stores. If you are not dairy-free, you can replace it with milk powder. Find Soy Milk Powder Here: https://www.nowfoods.com/natural-foods/soy-milk-powder-organic
Find Knox Unflavored Gelatin at your grocery store.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 246kcalCarbohydrates: 37gProtein: 5gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 643mgPotassium: 55mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 79mgIron: 1mg
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