Gluten-Free Crescent Rolls
Categories: Breads, Recipes
Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Crescent Rolls, Dairy Free, GFCF, Gluten-Free Yeast Bread, Pigs in a Blanket
These airy crescent rolls present so beautifully on the dinner table, but if you double the batch, and wrap them around some hot dogs (gluten-free), you’ve got some pigs-in-blankets that’ll be the envy of the lunch table (and not just among the gluten-free kids!). They also work the day after for an out-of-the-ordinary peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Or ham sandwich, or, well, you get the idea. Make a bunch. Enjoy them all!
Crescent Rolls
- 1/3 cup warm water
- 1 teaspoon granulated cane sugar
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) rapid rise yeast (Red Star® Quick Rise Yeast)
- 1 1/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons Jules Gluten Free™ All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons honey or light agave nectar
- 1 egg
- Melted butter or non-dairy alternative to brush onto rolls (Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
In a large bowl, mix warm water, sugar, and yeast and let stand for 5 minutes. If it does not bubble at this point, throw it out and repeat the proofing step with fresh yeast.
Whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside. Stir to combine the honey or agave and egg in a separate bowl, then add to the dry ingredients together with the yeast mixture and beat on the low speed of an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes, or until well-blended. The dough will be wet.
On a well-floured pastry mat or clean counter, turn dough out and cut into approximately 6 equal size balls. Pat each ball into an elongated triangle, cutting the edges to form an even isosceles triangle and gathering the trimmings to make one more roll.
Liberally brush melted butter onto the dough at this point, then, from the wide end of the dough triangle, begin gently rolling the dough into a log, until the narrow tip of the triangle wraps around the roll on top. (Use a bench scraper or butter knife, if necessary, to help roll up the dough).
Place each roll onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet and pull the ends of each roll in toward the center to form a crescent shape. Brush off excess flour then brush the tops of the risen rolls with melted butter.
Cover with a damp towel or sheet of wax paper sprayed with cooking oil and place for 30 minutes in a warming drawer or oven preheated to 200ºF, then turned off.
Preheat the oven to 375ºF (static) or 350ºF (convection).
Bake for 10 minutes, or until light golden brown. Do not over-bake!
Note: To make “Pigs in a Blanket”, simply place a hot dog at the wide end of the triangle of dough before rolling up, and roll to enclose the “pig” in the “blanket” of dough by rolling it up to the small end of the dough. Bake as directed above.
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Stephanie said: on December 31, 2010
This is a great recipe! I’ve been researching, but the majority of recipes I’ve seen use cottage cheese or ricotta cheese. I’m trying to make gluten free AND dairy free crescent rolls, so this is a great recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Heather Middleton said: on January 8, 2011
love this recipe! Have made the rolls and they were divine! Next I’m going to use the dough for mini pigs in a blanket and for monkey bread! Can’t wait!
Barb said: on August 11, 2011
These were great! Any chance you can freeze the dough once they are rolled, so you could just take them out of the freezer and pop them in the oven as needed?
Thanks!
Jules said: on August 14, 2011
Barb, that’s a really interesting notion! I haven’t tried that method yet, since they’re so easy to warm up once cooked and since they only take a couple minutes of cook time. I usually just roll them out and cook them on the stove right away, but I always have some left for freezing and they are great that way. Put a piece of wax paper between each one so it’s easy to remove just one, then take the frozen tortillas and either re-heat on the stove top, or in the microwave wrapped in a towel. They’re quick and easy that way too!
Connie said: on February 9, 2012
Hi Jules! I’m looking to make these for a dinner for 40, but I’d like to make ahead and freeze. Your response here seems to be about the tortillas (which are wonderful, by the way!), but I was just wondering if you have experenced the best way to make these ahead of time so that they will still be fresh for the dinner. Thanks!
Jules said: on February 9, 2012
Hi Connie, I have not made this particular recipe ahead of time, but freezing is the best way to keep bread fresh. Lightly warm them in a towel in the oven just before serving, and they should be fine.
Diana Novellano said: on August 17, 2011
I made these today. I made pigs in a blanket with little smokies. (grass fed beef and nitrate free) I also made chocolate crescents. I just rolled chocolate up in the dough. I also rolled them out with a rolling pin and cut out triangles with a pizza cutter. That worked out better for me. They were both soooooooo delish.
Jules said: on August 17, 2011
Ooooooooh Diana, rolling chocolate up in the dough!??!? Girl, you are a creative genius!! I must try that!!!!!!!
Michelle Holland said: on October 27, 2011
Hi, I’ve tried this recipe twice and cannot get them to rise. I’m using the same rapid rise yeast that I use to make your sandwich bread and it always works. What could I be doing wrong?
Thanks for your help.
Jules said: on October 29, 2011
Michelle – a couple possibilities. First, I’m assuming you’ve checked your yeast to make sure it’s fresh & still active. Also, make sure all your ingredients are room temperature before you add them in. Do not over-work the dough when rolling it out and cutting it, etc. If you let the rolls rise for 20 minutes and they haven’t risen much, let them rise longer. They should rise in the bake cycle too, but they need to have risen some before you bake them. Please email us at Support@JulesGlutenFree.com to work through any more recipe issues so we can help you get it right! I know how frustrating it can be to not have yeast breads want to cooperate, so send us an email and we can help with more specific guidance after we find out exactly what you’ve already tried, etc.
Gabriela Egan said: on December 13, 2011
Jules, I have a questions. I have tried to make this recipe twice and the dough always comes out to dry. We live in El Paso, TX where it is very dry weather not sure if that has something to do with it? I’m using your mix, with egg replacer. I always have to add extra water. Also for the baking, I have a gas oven and they never really brown. I cooked one batch for 15 minutes and they weren’t done all the way and then other time I cooked them for like 30 minutes, never browned and of course they were hard although my son loved them as he is teething. I have baked non-gluten free without an issue. I have also tried using a stone and a disposable cookie sheet. Any idea what I might be doing wrong? Thanks!
Jules said: on December 15, 2011
Gabriela, you’ve identified a few possible issues here. Your dry climate is not to be overlooked. The other issue here is the egg replacer. I am not a fan of using egg replacer in yeast breads, but I have great results when I use the flaxseed meal + hot water recipe to replace eggs (1 Tbs. flaxseed meal + 3 Tbs. hot water steeped for 10 min = 1 egg). As for the browning, gluten-free doughs do not brown the same way as wheat doughs. I find that brushing the dough with your preferred milk will make them brown nicely. Do not leave the rolls in the oven longer to brown, because all that will do is dry them out! I hope these tips help! ~jules
Kandi said: on December 16, 2011
I just tried making this recipe and could not get it to work. The dough just crumbled on me and never formed a ball. I used the GF all purpose flour mix that I had on hand which contains white rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch and guar gum. This flour has never failed me (in fact I use it in all my “regular” recipes that I ahve converted into GF nad it has never changed the taste or texture. Any suggestions? I am in desperate need of a crescent roll dough for a casserole I make (well used to when I could buy pillsbury)
Jules said: on December 17, 2011
Kandi, I’m not sure about your flour mix – if it’s got a large proportion of white rice flour, that could be the problem for you with this recipe. If the dough was too dry to form a ball, I’d suspect that was the issue because my flour mixture has very little rice flour in it at all, and rice flour can have a drying effect. If you try this recipe again, I would suggest that you just add more liquid until the dough does behave like dough (and holds together in a ball!). It’s hard when you’re working with a different flour blend than the one I used to develop this recipe, but that would be my best guess!
Jenny said: on January 3, 2012
I can not wait to try these, I have a wonderful recipe I make with crescent rolls. Peel, and slice 2 apples into 8 pieces each. 16 slices total. Wrap a piece of the dough, the size of half a triangle of the regular crescent dough, around one of the apples slices. (When making this recipe for people that do not reguire gluten free I use 2 tubes of reg. crescent roll dough and cut each triangle into 2 pieces, giving you 16 triangles.) Place all 16 wrapped apples in a greased 9 x 13 pan. Preheat oven to 350 while oven is preheating melt 1 stick of butter and 1 1/4 cup sugar until bubbly. Pour over little bundles of apples. Then take 1 can of Moutain Dew and pour over the apple bundles. Bake for 35 min. until golden brown. Sauce will thicken as it cools. This recipe sounds weird, but believe me you will want to crawl in the pan and eat your way out!!!! I serve with ice cream.
Jules said: on January 3, 2012
Wow Jenny! That does sound weird, but that’s never scared me off yet! I’m going to have to add your wacky recipe to my “to do” list in the new year!!!!
Mira said: on May 29, 2012
Hi Jules! I just made these and they turned out great, the only thing is all I could taste was the yeast other than that mine didn’t have much flavor. could I be doing something wrong?
Jules said: on May 30, 2012
Mira, not sure about the yeast taste. What kind of yeast did you use? Did you brush with butter/Buttery Sticks and use honey or agave in the rolls? You can always use a bit more honey or agave or another teaspoon of sugar. Glad they turned out great for you, though!
Catherine said: on October 9, 2012
Made 3 batches of those tonight!!! The 1st one was just to see if my kids liked them, since I just realized I wouldn’t be able to make mummy hot dogs for Halloween this year (recently found out my 2nd son is allergic to gluten). They inhaled them…
So I made a double batch right after homework, one for dinner, one for the freezer. They are really delicious. I’m having a little trouble getting them to brown; will try the milk trick. Do I still brush melted butter on?
My biggest problem was explaining to my youngest ones that we were NOT having mummy hot dogs tonight!!
Jules said: on October 18, 2012
Yay Catherine! Mummy Hot Dogs?! I LOVE IT! To get them to brown (although, mummies are white … just sayin’
) use milk, butter or egg wash — the protein in any of these liquids is what will brown, giving the dough a look of having browned. Send us a pic of the mummy hot dogs! I’d love to feature it on Facebook or in a Recipe Newsletter to share the inspiration with others!!!
Dorothy said: on November 19, 2012
If I just have regular yeast (not rapid-rise), do I change the directions at all? I read your “yeast tutorial” and don’t see the answer to that.
Jules said: on November 20, 2012
Hi Dorothy – if a recipe calls for rapid rise yeast, and you only have regular yeast, just let it rise longer. At least an hour for most breads. Hope that helps!
Paula Willey said: on April 5, 2013
Love this recipe! I used flax gel as my egg replacer and found that the yeast water and the gel were too much liquid with the amount of flour that the recipe states. I ended up using more flour – not sure how much because I would add until the batter looked manageable but still wet. (it was like soup without the added flour). Any suggestions on adjusting the proportions of the ingredients? Thank you!
Jules said: on April 5, 2013
Hi Paula, so glad you love the recipe!! Sometimes the liquid:dry ratio can be thrown off when using egg replacers and altitude is always a factor with yeast breads, as well. Luckily you were aware enough of how the dough should look, that you kept adding flour until it was able to be rolled out. It sounds like you must’ve added at least 1/2 cup – 1 cup more flour, from your description. Next time you make it with the egg replacer, keep copious notes so you’ll know how much flour you added to get the dough to be perfect. Please come back and share your amounts too, so others can learn from your trials!
Sara said: on April 6, 2013
I just made this followed the directions to the exact used egg and it was super dry and crumbly, not sure what to do?
Jules said: on April 6, 2013
If you ever have recipe issues, please email Support@julesGlutenfree.com so we can walk through exactly what ingredients and method you used. It’s difficult to say what might have gone wrong, as that’s certainly not the desired result! The easy answer is that next time you need to add more liquid to get the dough to a malleable state, but there must have been some measuring or other issue to cause them to be so dry. Send an email so we can get to the bottom of it with you!