Ever walked past a bakery and had your olfactory senses taken hostage by a sudden assault of one of the heavenliest aromas ever to delight the human nose? And if you were at your most vulnerable at that time, that is, if you were hungry, chances are, you succumbed under the onslaught of the wafting smell, rushed in and bought a couple of fragrant, warm loaves, fresh off the oven. So hot and fresh that they could not be sliced and you had just indulged the most basic of your instincts and simply torn off chunks of the loaf and stuffed them into your drooling mouth? Forget about the butter or jam or omelets or whatever else might otherwise be needed to go with the bread. Hot fresh bread needs no accompaniment.

The bread family is far flung and has its own avatar in each culture. Whether it is our own humble chappathi and naan or the gourmet brioche and pumpernickel, bread has something warm and comforting about it. Something, hearty, something filling, and is truly a comfort food, not just for the body, but for the soul too… I love bread.

So today’s recipe is a member of this much loved bread family - Butter Crescent Rolls.  

What You Will Need:

1/2 cup Milk

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, softened

1/3 cup Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Salt

.25 ounce or 7 gm Active Dry Yeast
1/2 cup Warm Water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1 Egg

3 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
1 Egg, beaten



The Magic that Transforms the Boring Ingredients into Life-giving Bread:

1. Warm the milk in a small saucepan until bubbles form at the edges; remove from heat.

2. Mix in the butter, sugar, and salt. Let cool until lukewarm.

3. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

4. In a large bowl combime milk and yeast mixtures.

5. Stir in one egg.

6. Stir in flour one cup at a time until dough pulls together.

7. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and give those wrists and arms and knuckles a good workout. Knead, knead, knead till the dough is all smooth and elastic; soft and pliable – just like we would like out spouses to be. Only, it actually works in the case of the dough. About 8 minutes should do the trick.

8. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until double in volume (about 1 hour).

9. Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, and form into rounds. Cover, and let rest for 10 minutes.


10. Using a floured rolling pin, roll each dough half into a 12 inch circle. Cut each circle into 6 wedges.

11. Roll each wedge up towards the point. Bend ends inward to form crescents, and place point side down on lightly greased baking sheets. 
This is also the time when you get to unleash your culinary creativity. When you roll up the wedges, spread the insides with cheese, jam, honey or a choco-nut spread like Nutella. Or just roll up a whole sausage to make what is called ‘pig-in-a-blanket’. Or if you don't like crescents, braid it.

12. Cover, and let rise until double (about 30 minutes).

13. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

14. Brush rolls with beaten egg (that’s what gives it that wonderful golden brown colour), and bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

15. Remove from oven, remember to use oven mitts. Ovens can get terribly hot and a mere brush against the rack can badly burn you.

16. Break off a piece of comfort and… go on. Indulge yourself. Fresh bread tastes simply awesome with honey!


With a little bit of time and effort, you can make fresh bread at home. And when you pop a piece of home made bread into your mouth, you would realise that it was worth all the time and effort. Baking your own bread can be very satisfying. So go on. Give it a try. Meanwhile, I just heard my oven timer go off. Let me go break bread…

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Remitha Satheesh

Remitha Satheesh loves baking and trying out new recipes when inspiration strikes. She only wishes it would strike more often.