These are not really Parkerhouse Rolls but they will not disappoint you and are so easy to make.

The Spicery Rolls
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup margarine (I use butter)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups water (hot but not boiling)
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/4 cup yeast (yes, that is correct...I use Instant yeast)
9 1/8 cups flour (or less, depending on the weather)

In a large bowl, pour boiling water over butter. Add salt and sugar and stir well. When butter is melted, mix in additional water. Stir in evaporated milk. Slowly add flour and yeast. Turn out onto floured board and knead for about 10 minutes. Next grease a large bowl thoroughly, put the dough in it and turn it over so the surface will be greased. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, punching down twice, about an hour. form into dinner-size rolls. Let rise until doubled. Bake 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees. Makes 36 large rolls.

Parker house rolls are just a basic roll dough....rolled out about 1/2 inch thick, cut into rounds, the rounds buttered and folded in half, allowed to rise and dusted with flour and baked.
Here's a good Recipe I have made hundereds of times.

2C Scalded Milk, cooled to warm temperature
3T Shortening or Butter, Melted
½ C Sugar
1 t salt
2 eggs, beaten
2 pkgs yeast (or 1T bulk yeast)
1/3 warm water
4-5 cups flour

Dissove the yeast in the warm water (about 105 degrees) with a teaspoon of the sugar, wait until it foams. While waiting for the yeast to foam, mix the milk, butter, remaining sugar and salt. After the yeast foams, add the yeast mixture to it, and the two beaten eggs to the mixture. Either by hand or in a stand mixer, blend in flour a cup at a time until the dough is soft and fairly sticky. Turn onto a floured board and knead just until the dough is no longer sticky, but is smooth and satiny.

Let rise until doubled, punch down, knead a little, then shape into rolls. Bake at 350 until golden. May brush with egg wash or butter and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Also good rolled in butter and cinnamon sugar. Dough is a good base dough for a variety of sweet breads like cinnamon rolls or brioche.

These are not really Parkerhouse Rolls but they will not disappoint you and are so easy to make.

The Spicery Rolls
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup margarine (I use butter)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups water (hot but not boiling)
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/4 cup yeast (yes, that is correct...I use Instant yeast)
9 1/8 cups flour (or less, depending on the weather)

In a large bowl, pour boiling water over butter. Add salt and sugar and stir well. When butter is melted, mix in additional water. Stir in evaporated milk. Slowly add flour and yeast. Turn out onto floured board and knead for about 10 minutes. Next grease a large bowl thoroughly, put the dough in it and turn it over so the surface will be greased. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, punching down twice, about an hour. form into dinner-size rolls. Let rise until doubled. Bake 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees. Makes 36 large rolls.

Thanks to both of you! Quick question (I'm a bread newbie): for either recipe, must I knead the dough by hand, or can I have the mixer do it for me? I thought the Bosch was good for kneading.

Also, I'm assuming I should grease the baking pan?

Thanks!

Paige, the Bosch can certainly do the kneading for you in either of those recipes, or in darned near any bread recipe you have. I seldom knead bread by hand anymore because I have carpal tunnel issues and it hurts. My bread machine does the kneading, then I remove the dough from the machine and shape, then bake it in the oven.

I always grease the pans when I bake bread or rolls.

Just in case you want one more recipe, here is Grandma's favorite. This recipe was used for sandwich loaves, for dinner rolls, for cinnamon or garlic rolls, whatever suited her.

For Parkerhouse rolls, simply shape as LindaC instructed above. I always brush the tops of mine with a little melted butter when they come out of the oven, because it makes a more tender crust. I like chewy crust for french and italian breads, but tender crust for things like dinner rolls.

BREAD (GRANDMAÂS RECIPE)

1/3 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
2 eggs
1 pkg yeast
1 tsp salt
4  4 ½ cups flour
vital wheat gluten (optional)

Mix milk, butter and sugar, heat until butter melts and liquid is very warm. Add eggs, then beat in flour, salt and yeast until stiff dough forms. Turn onto floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, 7 Â 8 minutes. Turn dough into greased bowl and let rise in warm place until double. Punch down dough, shape into loaves or dinner rolls and let rise again. Bake at 350 until done (25 - 30 minutes for loaves, 12-15 minutes for dinner rolls)

Makes 1 large or two small loaves or 18 dinner rolls

Annie

I don't know how I'll decide which one to use! It's comforting that they are all so similar, though.

One more stupid question, since I'm only going to have one chance to get this right: I am going to roll the dough and cut it into 3 inch circles, as suggested above. How far apart should I place them? I guess it would be nice if the sides were nice and soft, but in order for them to rise up together in the oven, should they start out an inch or so apart? And should I use a cookie sheet, or a baking pan with sides? OK, that's 2 questions. :-)

Paige, the answer is....it depends. LOL

My kids don't like the "outside" crusty parts, they like the soft middles that you get when the sides touch. I bake mine in a cake pan, and put them about an inch apart. When they rise to double, they will touch and give you that "soft" middle.

If I want them crusty, which is how I like them, I'll put them on a baking sheet a couple of inches apart so they don't touch and then they get crusty on all sides.

Here are some I baked at Christmas, using a "half sheet" pan and cutting them into about 2 inch rounds but not folding over. You can see that I got 2 dozen on a half sheet size pan.

{{!gwi}}

Annie

Thanks Annie. One inch apart it is. That picture is making me hungry! yum.

I make new recipes for people all the time!
DOUBLE QUICK PARKERHOUSE ROLLS (makes 18-24)
1 cup boling water
1 cup evaporated milk
Scant 1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 pkgs dry yeast
1 tsp salt
4 cups flour
Butter or margarine, softened

In a large bowl, pour boiling water over evaporated milk & sugar. Cool & add eggs, yeast, salt & flour. Mix well. This will be a thin dough.

Place dough on well-floured waxed paper. Pat until flat. Spread dough with butter as you would butter a piece of bread. Fold dough in 1/2 & pat the dough out to double size. Spread dough with butter again. Fold in 1/2. Pat or roll again. Repeat this procedure 3 more times, ending with fold & roll to double the size. Cut in rouds with a biscuit cutter & put into well-greased muffin tins. Brush tops of rolls with melted butter. Cover loosely w/Saran. Let rise until doubled. Bake in a preheated 375° oven for 10-15 minutes.~~Bound to Please

I think ginger has posted Butter Flake rolls....but the dough would probably be fine for parkerhouse.
Parkerhouse rolls are traditionally a long oval of dough...a round rolled out, buttered and folded almost in half.
I have posted a link to a very old series of pictures showing how to shape them.
I would not grease my pan but use parchment to cover and place a bit closer than an inch apart....you want them to touch when they go into the oven.
And I said I would make bunny buns!...Dummy me....all those ears and tails to make! LOL!
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: rolls

No, Linda.

I believe Parker House is a specific shape of any dinner roll, with half of the circle rolled and buttered and the other half folded over and baked like a half moon.
.
My favorite recipe for dinner rolls. Try a bread machine if you have one.

Buttery Dinner rolls [Makes 32 nice size rolls]
1 cup warm water
1 stick butter or margarine
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
3/4 teas. salt
4 cups flour
3 teas. dry yeast

Place water in bread machine pan.
Add melted butter, sugar, salt and eggs.
Put 4 cups of flour on top. Do not stir.
Sprinkle yeast on top of flour.
Turn on DOUGH cycle. It is ready in 1-1/2 hours.
Turn out onto floured surface. Do not over work. Pat out gently to about 3/4 inch thickness. [About the size of a med.large pizza] No need to use a rolling pin. Cut with biscuit cutter. Place on sprayed cookie sheet just like in Annie's photo. Bake at 350 for about 15 or 20 minutes. Make sure the bottoms get a little brown. I also like using my large pizza pan with the small holes.
This recipe was originally made in a mixing bowl. I changed it to work in my bread machine.

Shirley

I agree with you Shirley, you make your dough and then make either Parker House, clover leaf, fan tans, butter flake or whatever.
Parker House rolls are so named because they were served and presumably developed at that venerable old hotel in Boston.
Below is a link to the "Real Thing".
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: Rolls from The Parker House

You all are great, thanks so much! I'll report back with the results.

Reporting back:
I used Linda C's recipe this time, as the scalded milk appealed to me. I used the method in the link provided by linda for shaping the rolls. Here's a pic of the result (for those who didn't see it on the Cooking forum):

The rolls were very yummy, although I accidentally overkneaded in a misguided attempt to get the gluten to develop more. Thanks for all of the help, and I will try each of the other recipes in time!

paigect,

Your rolls look absolutely wonderful and I am sure they were delicious.

Shirley