Parker House rolls are an American dinner table classic with a long history.
Invented in the 1870s at the Boston Parker House Hotel (the same hotel that brought us the Boston Cream Pie), these tender rolls have since made their way onto the list of New England’s favorite foods. Both crisp and yielding, you’ll find these rolls on dinner tables year round, though this easy-to-make enriched dough is at home in a holiday spread, too.
Traditionally, these rolls have a “pocketbook” shape that gives them a buttery middle fold. Our recipe forgoes the fold, instead shaping the dough into balls and batch baking them in a 10-inch circular cake pan. Brushes with butter both before and after cooking means they’re still shiny and indulgent.
While this is a relatively simple recipe that works for dinner anytime, it’s impressive enough for a festive table.
This recipe appears in Taking Thanksgiving Classics for a Spin. Find more Thanksgiving recipes here.
