These Amish Friendship Bread cloverleaf dinner rolls are fluffy, chewy, and easy to make. This recipe uses 1 cup of active, bubbly, well-fed Amish Friendship Bread starter and no additional yeast!
To make this recipe using your Amish Friendship Bread sourdough starter, use it on a day when it’s bubbly and has doubled in size (before your daily stirring), usually within 6-24 hours after a feeding.
Yeast cheat: If you want to use your starter (for that gentle, tangy flavor and/or to use it up) but it’s not super bubbly, then you can cheat by mixing one packet of dry active yeast with ¼ cup warm milk. Let it stand for 10 minutes until foamy. Reduce the remaining milk in the recipe to ½ cup.
If you’d like to make these in time for dinner, start right after lunch. You’ll want to allow for two rises of an hour each, maybe more if your kitchen is drafty.
In a microwave-proof measuring cup or bowl, heat ¾ cup milk (reduce to ½ cup milk if you are “cheating”–see above) and 2 tablespoons butter for 35 seconds in your microwave. Set aside–the butter will continue to melt.
Add 2 cups of the flour plus the salt to a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the starter and the milk/butter mixture (and the yeast mixture, if you’re cheating). On low speed, mix the dough and add ¼ cup of flour at a time until a soft dough ball forms and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about two minutes. The dough will be slightly sticky. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free area to rise for one hour. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin–I save my used butter wraps in the freezer to make this step a breeze (see below).
After one hour, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, and divide into thirds. You should have 36 pieces in total. Roll each piece into a ball.
Note: The photos show 4 small dough balls instead of 3 because I was making “lucky” four-leaf cloverleaf dinner rolls for St. Patrick’s Day. If you want to do this, divide the 12 equal larger dough balls into 4 pieces each, resulting in 38 pieces total. For best results, use 3 pieces per muffin cup.
Arrange three of the small dough balls into each muffin cup. Cover with a dish towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free area to rise for another hour (or two).
Bake at 375° F (190° C) for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. While the rolls are baking, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and set aside.
After removing the rolls from the oven, brush the tops with the melted butter. If desired, top with extra sea salt, sesame seeds, or garlic salt.
Remove from pans and allow to cool on a wire rack. Enjoy!
Amish Friendship Bread Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 cup Amish Friendship Bread starter fed, bubbly
- ¾ cup milk
- 4 tablespoons butter divided, plus extra for brushing
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2½ cups flour divided, with extra as needed
If "Cheating"
- 1 package active dry yeast
- ¼ cup warm milk
Instructions
- If "cheating," start by making the yeast mixture, combining the yeast and warm milk. Let it stand for 5-10 minutes, until the mixture is bubbly or foamy. Reduce the milk in the recipe to ½ cup.
- In a microwave-proof measuring cup or bowl, heat ¾ cup milk (reduce to ½ cup milk if you are "cheating") and 2 tablespoons butter for 35 seconds in your microwave. Set aside–the butter will continue to melt.
- Add 2 cups of the flour plus the salt to a standing mixer with a dough hook. Add the starter and the milk/butter mixture (and yeast mixture, if you're cheating). On low speed, mix the dough and add ¼ cup of flour at a time until a soft dough ball forms and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about two minutes. The dough will be slightly sticky. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free area to rise for one hour. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin (I save my used butter wraps in the freezer to make this step a breeze).
- After one hour, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, and divide it into thirds. You should have 36 pieces in total. Roll each piece into a ball.
- Place three dough balls into each muffin cup. Cover with a dish towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free area to rise for another hour or two, until almost doubled in size.
- Bake at 375° F (190° C) for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. While the rolls are baking, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and set aside.
- After removing the rolls from the oven, brush the tops with the melted butter. If desired, top with extra sea salt, sesame seeds, or garlic salt.
- Remove from pans and allow to cool on a wire rack.
- ENJOY!
Notes
- To make this recipe with only your starter, use it on a day when it’s bubbly and has doubled in size (before your daily stirring), usually within 6-24 hours after a feeding. Otherwise add a little cheat yeast!
- The recipe image shows 4 small dough balls instead of 3 because I was making “lucky” four-leaf clover dinner rolls for St. Patrick’s Day. If you want to do this, divide the 12 equal larger dough balls into 4 pieces each, resulting in 38 pieces total. For best results, use 3 pieces per muffin cup.
>> Have you tried this? Share your best pic with us or leave a comment below and let us know how it worked for you!
My current starter is 2 years old, I brought it out of the freezer 5 months ago and have been baking bread regularly since. I used this roll recipe for Easter rolls this year. I made the dough using my bread machine on the dough cycle. I always add 2 tsp of yeast to my starter when using as a yeast style dough. I mixed the dough up on Good Friday left to rise in my fridge and shaped into rolls on Saturday afternoon put back in the fridge covered and on Easter Morning allowed them to raise for 4 hours before baki g. They turned out Amazing!
Can you freeze these before baking?
At what point would you be able to freeze the dough balls to be able to use them at a later date?
My rolls are coming out dense. What flour do you use? Any tips? When you say knead for 2 minutes is that by hand or with the mixer dough hook? Trying to figure out what I am doing wrong. Thanks.
Hi Jamie! That’s always a bummer when your rolls don’t turn out the way you want them to. We love the King Arthur All-Purpose Flour for this recipe. However, the King Arthur Bread Flour should work well, too. When we knead for two minutes, we use the mixer dough hook.
One common issue with dense bread is usually the kneading amount. If you have kneaded it for two minutes and it’s coming out dense, we’d recommend kneading it for a minute or two more and trying that. Are you just using the starter or are you adding yeast, as well? If just using the starter, you want to make sure your starter is very happy and active (doubling in size after feeding) before you use it.
Let us know if this helps!
I added a tablespoon of sugar to the recipe, and they came out so good that they didn’t need butter at all. They definitely surpassed my expectations!
Awesome! So glad they turned out for you, Jennifer!
Amazing! I love them!
Amazing! My whole family loved them, I made them for a special night for Mom. Awesome recipie!
If using on the 10 day do you fed the starter before using starter for rolls.?
Yes, on Day 10 you need to feed your starter before using it, as it will be hungry!
Firstly, I LOVE AFB and the recipes on this site. However, I cannot stop myself from pointing out that 4-leaf clovers and shamrocks are NOT the same thing. If you are making dinner rolls for St. Patrick’s Day, make them 3-lobed to represent the shamrock. I realize you were probably alluding to the , “luck of the Irish,” with your 4-lobed clovers but, like I said, I cannot stop myself from pointing out this common misconception.
Thanks for the wonderful recipes. My family and friends ask for these recipes over and over!
LOL, thanks for letting us know! So glad to have you here with us, Eileen!
I have tried twice and been unable to get the dough to rise. The rolls come out so dense and once they cool are hard as a rock. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Soley! Are you using starter that has just been fed, so it’s bubbly and almost double in volume? That’s usually the culprit, and you’ll want to make sure your other ingredients are fresh, too. Are you feeding your starter at the correct ratios (1 cup flour, 1 cup milk, 1 cup sugar for every 1 cup of starter)? This recipe relies on your starter to do some heavy lifting, so you’ll want to make sure it’s ready when you make these rolls.
My stand mixer has a metal bowl. Is it still Ok to use in mixing starter and flour?
Some of us don’t have a stand mixer. Would love to have knead by hand directions as well.
Hi Micki! Here’s a couple references that should help you with kneading your dough: https://www.americastestkitchen.com/articles/374-Bread-Baking-101-How-to-Knead-Dough
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GbV0b4sqpw
Let us know if you have any more questions!
Made these yesterday with frozen starter. Used cheater method because wasn’t sure it was active enough. 12 big beautiful fluffy rolls with that indescribable starter taste. A keeper recipe for sure!!
That sounds delicious, Pamela! So glad they turned out for you!