Making Soft White Dinner Rolls Ahead

Our answer

Nigella's Soft White Dinner Rolls (from FEAST) are a good addition to a Thanksgiving dinner and it is possible to make the dough ahead and freeze it. For the best results we would suggest freezing the dough after the first rise (at the end of step 4), in a resealable bag. Alternatively you could shape the dough into balls, freeze them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and then transfer them to a resealable bag once they have frozen solid. Freeze for up to one month.

If you have frozen the dough without shaping then you will need to transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover it and let the dough thaw overnight in the fridge. The next day shape the rolls, cover them and let them prove before baking. As the dough is cold the proving will take longer and can take a couple of hours. For frozen, shaped rolls you can put them directly onto a greased baking sheet, cover them and leave in a warm place to thaw and prove. This can take 3-4 hours. When the rolls are proving you need to keep an eye on them and bake them as soon as they are ready. The rolls are ready to bake when they have roughly doubled in size, feel slightly puffy and if you press the side of a roll gently with a finger then it will leave an indentation.