25 Homemade Rolls and Breads to Complete Your Thanksgiving Feast

October 08, 2014
Laurey W. Glenn

A Southern Thanksgiving includes a few key components. Of course, there’s the turkey, which we’ll roast, smoke, or even fry, but in the South, the sideboard is arguably treated with just as much care as—if not more than—the starring bird. There are the potatoes, mashed and swirled with buttermilk, and the mac, baked and loaded with lots of cheese. There are the traditional casseroles—green bean, sweet potato—that have been passed down through the generations. There are the relics of the Thanksgiving of Grandma’s childhood—molded cranberry salad, anyone? And, of course, there are the humble rolls.Dinner rolls are a simple, yet essential element of any Southern Thanksgiving. They balance out all the dynamic flavors and textures of your plate, providing a vehicle to soak up that succulent gravy and wipe your plate clean. This year, instead of settling for store-bought dough, really impress your guests with a basket of hot, homemade rolls. Many of these breads can be made in advance to ease your Thanksgiving day prep load—just pop them in the oven before the feast and serve warm. From Pumpkin-Buttermilk Biscuits to Whole-Grain Mini Bread Loaves, a selection of these homemade breads will satisfy any hungry Thanksgiving crowd.

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Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls

Laurey W. Glenn

Recipe: Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls

You can bake and freeze these yeast rolls well in advance of Thanksgiving Day for the ultimate make-ahead solution. 

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Cheddar-Caramelized Onion Bread

Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Katelyn Hardwick

Recipe: Cheddar-Caramelized Onion Bread

Bake this bread in a cast-iron skillet to achieve a supremely crispy crust and rustic effect. Cut the loaf into triangles and serve it hot out of the oven.

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Parmesan-Herb Angel Biscuits

Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Ginny Branch Stelling; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Parmesan-Herb Angel Biscuits

Parmesan, thyme, and rosemary give your traditional angel biscuits some extra flavor.

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Yeast Rolls

Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Yeast Rolls

You'll need to make the dough for these rolls a day in advance to allow for chilling.

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Overnight Yeast Rolls

Southern Living

Recipe: Overnight Yeast Rolls

Make these rolls a few days in advance and all you have to do on Thanksgiving morning is pop them in the oven.

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Buttery Chive-and-Mustard Drop Biscuits

Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Cindy Barr; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos

Recipe: Buttery Chive-and-Mustard Drop Biscuits

Chive and mustard bring surprising, slightly-spiced flavor to these moist biscuits. Just drop tablespoons of dough onto the sheet pan and bake—it’s really that easy.

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Best-Ever Spoon Rolls

Southern Living

Recipe: Best-Ever Spoon Rolls

Light and fluffy, these simple spoon rolls are the perfect companion for that Thanksgiving turkey.

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Buttermilk Fantail Rolls

Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: William Smith

Recipe: Buttermilk Fantail Rolls

Stack thin layers of this dough in muffin tins to achieve the coveted and extra-impressive fantail effect.

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Whole-Grain Mini Bread Loaves

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kathleen Varner; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Whole-Grain Mini Bread Loaves

Keep things a little lighter and healthier this Thanksgiving with these miniature whole-grain bread loaves. Coat them in benne or sesame seeds for extra crunch.

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Sweet Potato Biscuits

Micah A. Leal

Recipe: Sweet Potato Biscuits

Light and fluffy with a bit of earthiness from the mashed sweet potato, these Sweet Potato Biscuits will be Mama’s new favorite.

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Sour Cream Crescent Rolls

Southern Living

Recipe: Sour Cream Crescent Rolls

Mama’s secret to achieving super-moist crescent rolls? Adding sour cream to the dough.

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Cornmeal Crescent Rolls

Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer

Recipe: Cornmeal Crescent Rolls

Rolling the homemade crescent roll dough in cornmeal adds a bit of bite to the tender pastry.

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Easy Everything Dinner Rolls

Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Lydia Pursell; Food Styling: Tami Hardeman

Recipe: Easy Everything Dinner Rolls

Looking for an easy way to dress up those dinner rolls? Roll them in everything seasoning for an explosion of flavor.

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Our Favorite Buttermilk Biscuit

Photo: Brian Woodcock

Recipe: Our Favorite Buttermilk Biscuit

You can’t go wrong with the classics, and no Southern Thanksgiving is complete without a platter of fresh-from-the-oven buttermilk biscuits.

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Pumpkin-Buttermilk Biscuits

Victor Protasio; Propr Styling: Mindi Shapiro Levine; Food Styling: Torie Cox

Recipe: Pumpkin-Buttermilk Biscuits

Bring some seasonal spice to your biscuits with by kneading pumpkin puree right into the dough. Serve the leftovers with crispy ham and hot honey for a quintessential day-after-Thanksgiving breakfast.

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Cornmeal Angel Biscuits

Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Ginny Branch Stelling; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Cornmeal Angel Biscuits

These biscuits will definitely go quickly.

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Potato Bread

Katrin Ray Shumakov

Recipe: Potato Bread

No Southern barbecue feast is complete without plain slices of white bread, and this Potato Bread is Thanksgiving’s answer to the much-loved barbecue tradition.

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Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Hector Sanchez; Styling: Caroline M. Cunningham

Recipe: Rosemary Focaccia Bread 

This Rosemary Focaccia Bread will bring a bit of Italian elegance to your Thanksgiving spread. The mild, herbaceous quality of the rosemary goes perfectly with those mashed potatoes.

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Hurry-Up Homemade Crescent Rolls

Beau Gustafson

Recipe: Hurry-Up Homemade Crescent Rolls

This from-scratch recipe is suited for any level of cook—even first timers. Tip: Brush unbaked rolls with lightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and fennel seeds. Or, brush unbaked rolls with melted butter; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, kosher salt, coarsely ground pepper, and dried Italian seasoning.

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Angel Biscuits

Photo: Alison Miksch

Recipe: Angel Biscuits

Nestle these yeast biscuits snug together in the pan and they'll rise even higher when baked. You don't have to use all the dough at once—refrigerate in an airtight container up to 5 days.

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Potato Rolls

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Potato Rolls

These dinner rolls are also terrific for sandwiches.

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Sweet Potato Rolls with Cane Syrup Glaze

Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kathleen Varner; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Sweet Potato Rolls with Cane Syrup Glaze

Mashed sweet potato adds fluffiness—and a lovely orange color—to these inventive rolls.

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Cherry-Pecan Swirl Bread

Greg Dupree; Prop Styling: Cindy Barr; Food Styling: Chelsea Zimmer

Recipe: Cherry-Pecan Swirl Bread

Looking for something on the sweeter side? Give this ultra-indulgent cherry bread a try. 

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Sandwich Bread

Micah A. Leal

Recipe: Sandwich Bread

If your favorite part of Thanksgiving is the sandwiches made from turkey leftovers, homemade sandwich bread is the perfect way to complete the meal. 

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Pumpkin Roll

Southern Living

Recipe: Pumpkin Roll

It's the perfect fall dessert - your Thanksgiving guests won't be able to resist a second helping. 

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