Delicious homemade 30 minute honey wheat rolls that are made from scratch in about half an hour. Easy recipe for busy weeknights or holidays!
Recipe published 7/29/13. Recipe updated with new photos and information 7/5/18.
One of my favorite (and one of the most popular) recipes on i heart eating is my 60 Minute Dinner Rolls. Sometimes, though, one hour is still too long wait for fresh, hot rolls.
These 30 Minute Honey Wheat Rolls are ready – start to finish – in about 30 minutes. So, they’re perfect for those nights when you want some fresh bread but don’t have a lot of time.
Unlike a lot of whole wheat rolls, these rolls are soft – thanks to the mixture of whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour.
The rolls also have a mild honey flavor which works really nicely with the nutty whole wheat flour.
Can I use active dry yeast?
Yes! You can use an equal amount of active dry yeast.
Just wait for 5-10 minutes for the yeast to foam up after step 5. Then continue with the recipe as written.
Can I use low-fat milk?
You can! Anything from skim milk to whole milk will work in these whole wheat rolls.
More quick roll recipes!
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30 Minute Honey Wheat Rolls
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup butter plus extra for brushing on
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons instant yeast
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 Lightly grease a half sheet pan or a 9x13-inch rimmed cookie sheet.
- In a small saucepan, melt butter.
- When butter is mostly melted, stir in milk, and heat mixture to 100-110 F.
- Meanwhile, add yeast and honey to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or a large mixing bowl if mixing by hand).
- When milk mixture is at temperature, add to yeast and honey; stir to combine.
- Add salt and egg, and stir until combined.
- Stir in all-purpose flour.
- Add 1 cup whole wheat flour, and stir in.
- Add remaining whole wheat flour until dough clings to paddle and cleans the sides of the bowl. Dough will still be pretty sticky.
- With lightly floured hands, shape dough into 12 rolls, and place dough on prepared baking sheet.
- Cover, and let dough rest for 10 minutes.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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Jen says
May 5, 2019 at 9:42 pmThis is fantastic!! I made them for my mom tonight and they turned out excellent!
Kate says
May 6, 2019 at 9:04 amYay!! I’m so glad that the rolls turned out well for you. Thanks for commenting! =)
Maria says
February 24, 2019 at 2:46 pmJust made these for dinner with a chicken stew. They were very easy and quick to make, I used powdered skim milk and 2 packets of active yeast. They are a little drier than I expected but all in all excellent for stew. Thank you for the recipe!!!
Kate says
February 24, 2019 at 2:58 pmGreat! I’m glad that you liked them! Thanks for commenting. =)
Hannah Marie says
January 28, 2019 at 9:50 pmThese were super dense. Great taste but not fluffy at all.
Kate says
January 29, 2019 at 10:01 pmHi! I’m sorry that they were dense. There are a few things that could cause that – too much flour in the dough or a cooler kitchen that slowed the yeast down. If you would like help troubleshooting, please let me know!
Rebekah says
November 23, 2018 at 7:46 amThank you so much for sharing this recipe. I made these to go with our Thanksgiving dinner. This recipe is the best. I even made gluten free rolls for my children using Bob Red Mill Gluten free 1 to 1 Baking flour. The rolls were delicious and not one was left. I can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Kate says
November 24, 2018 at 3:06 pmThank you! I’m so glad that you enjoyed the rolls! Thank you for commenting! =)
kjc says
November 18, 2018 at 9:44 amthanks for the recipe! When do I brush on the butter? Novice baker here!
Kate says
November 18, 2018 at 1:23 pmGreat question! You can brush the rolls with additional melted butter after they are finished baking. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask. =)
Adrianna says
August 17, 2018 at 8:48 pmI finally found a quick wheat roll recipe that works at my altitude that is soft and delicious! All the rolls I’ve tried to this point we either to much yeast, only white flour, or turned out dense and dry.
I used white whole wheat for the recipe in place of the whole wheat. I live in Santa Fe NM, which is 7,000 ft and very dry dessert. We luckily had rain today! I used the warming/proving drawer under my oven because my oven has a proofing setting, and I find it helps get a good even rise that isn’t over the top here. My oven has also convection which I used for this recipe.
Thanks for the recipe, this combined with the tricks I’ve learned about my altitude and my oven it works like a charm! My search for a great wheat dinner roll ends today.
Kate says
August 17, 2018 at 10:14 pmI’m so glad you like the rolls, and thank you so much for sharing your tips! I get questions about high altitude adjustments, but I don’t have the ability to test them out. I really appreciate when other people can jump in and share what has worked for them. Thanks again! =)
Ashley says
July 28, 2018 at 1:53 pmThese were awesome! I let them rise a little longer. They tasted like biscuits.
Kate says
July 29, 2018 at 12:21 pmThanks! I’m so glad you liked them! =) Thanks for commenting!
Caroline says
June 26, 2018 at 11:50 amI love these rolls! Especially hot with butter or honey on top!
Kate says
June 26, 2018 at 1:17 pmThanks! Me too! So good, right?!
Leora Jaeger-Siegel says
February 9, 2018 at 2:55 pmi live at 7000 feet. What do you suggest as an adjustment?
thanks
Kate says
February 12, 2018 at 10:09 amI’m afraid that I haven’t done much baking at higher altitudes, but King Arthur Flour has a great guide to making adjustments for high altitude baking.
Erin says
November 21, 2016 at 6:13 pmI’d love to make these, but my sheet pans are larger than13x9. Would a 13×9 glass pan work or would it work to use the larger sheet pan and just have empty space on one end?
Kate says
November 21, 2016 at 8:31 pmI think that a glass 9×13-inch baking dish should work. You may need to adjust the temperature because of the glass pan, but I don’t see any reason that it wouldn’t work.
Jessica GH says
September 15, 2015 at 3:33 pmI like to bake, and I have made all sorts of bars, cookies and cakes. However, bread baking with yeast is out of my comfort zone. I would like to make these a day or two in advance. I am having company over, and baking is a messy process for me; I basically want to be able to pop these into the oven like frozen or storebought and have homemade taste.
Do you know how to do that? Would I just make the dough up until the baking point and then place them in the refrigerator? Would it be better to freeze? When heating up, would I bake as directed? Any guidance would really make my meal! My father is borderline diabetic, and I am trying to make sure I serve more complex carbs when he comes over.
Kate says
September 16, 2015 at 9:36 amI would make the dough up to step 10 and then freeze at that point. I would uncover, and let them sit out while the oven preheats to rise before baking. You may find that you need to add a few minutes. I haven’t baked these when frozen, and oven temps can vary. Also, if you’re going to freeze them, you’ll want to add a little extra yeast to the dough – about 1/4 tsp. or so.
I wouldn’t put it in the fridge. Even though it will be a slower rise, the dough will continue to rise for that day or two in there, and you don’t want it to overrise.
Hope that helps! If you have questions, please feel free to ask!
Elaine says
May 11, 2015 at 10:40 amHi. May I know why u heat up the milk since I stand yeast doesn’t require warm liquids to activate it? Also if doing this bread by hand is it necessary to knead longer to get to window pane? Does the time taken to roll into smaller buns affect the softness?
Kate says
May 11, 2015 at 11:56 amSince these are quick rolls, we need the milk to be warm to help encourage the faster rising time. If the milk was cool or at room temperature, it would mean a slower rising time (and thus we wouldn’t get a 30 minute roll).
Yes, if you’re kneading the dough by hand, you will need to knead it longer.
I’m sorry, but I’m not sure what you mean by the smaller buns affecting the softness.
Elaine says
May 12, 2015 at 2:28 amThanks Kate. I will try using warm water then. :)
Kate says
May 12, 2015 at 10:44 amIf you have any other questions, please let me know! =)
Teresa says
January 21, 2015 at 9:26 pmCan I just use all white whole wheat for this recipe? Also, I noticed for the white honey rolls you used 1/3 cup honey, but for these wheat rolls you only used two tablespoons? Just wondering why. They look delicious; thanks for sharing your recipe.
Kate says
January 21, 2015 at 9:54 pmI don’t see why you couldn’t use that. From what I understand, white whole wheat can be substituted cup for cup for whole wheat flour.
Thanks! There’s really nothing more to it than I was going for a sweeter roll with the other recipe. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask!
thatkewlgirl says
September 26, 2014 at 5:30 pmI made these substituting oats (Regular old Quaker hot cereal, milled in my Ninja) for the wheat flour. OMG! A new family favorite!
Kate says
September 26, 2014 at 9:09 pmI’m glad they worked out for you! The oatmeal sounds like a yummy addition. Thanks for sharing! =)
Jocelyn says
December 25, 2013 at 11:12 pmThese are delicious rolls! I served them for Christmas dinner, and they were greatly enjoyed. At the risk of sounding ridiculous, I used a longer rise technique, so decreased the yeast to 1 T. They rose beautifully. Thanks so much.
Kate says
December 26, 2013 at 9:03 amThanks so much!! That doesn’t sound ridiculous at all! I’m glad you were able to adapt it for your needs! I hope you had a Merry Christmas, and thanks for the tips! =)
Martin Kucera says
November 21, 2013 at 1:34 pmKate,
I am a very novice baker, matter of fact, these were my first rolls ever. I don’t have the patience for ‘normal’ bread baking, so 30 minute rolls were the ticket.
I need to know, are wheat rolls and bread always more dense than white, or am I doing it wrong? The flavor was great, but not as airy of a texture, that I would hope for. Also, would this recipe work for smaller size tea rolls?
Will be trying your 60 minute roll recipe, next!
Thanks!
Kate says
November 21, 2013 at 1:48 pmYes, wheat rolls do tend to be more dense. I think the more whole wheat flour the rolls have, the less airy they are. Also, since the rising time on those rolls is so short, they are a little heavier. You could add another 10-15 minutes to the rising time and end up with a roll that’s a little lighter.
If you liked the idea, then I think you would like the 60 minute dinner rolls or my 60 minute cresent rolls (https://www.ihearteating.com/2013/11/18/60-minute-buttery-crescent-roll-recipe/). Both recipes are just as easy, but both produce a lighter roll, though the crescent rolls are probably the lightest of the three.
I hope that helps! If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.
Kate says
November 21, 2013 at 1:50 pmPS Congrats on your first rolls! =)