Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 2 tablespoons melted for brushing on rolls before baking
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (one packet) instant (rapid rise) yeast
• 3 cups flour

Directions

1. Bring milk to a boil; let stand until a skin forms on the surface, 3-5 minutes. Skim skin off surface and discard.
2. Transfer milk to mixer bowl, add 6 tablespoons melted butter, sugar, and salt; whisk to combine and let mixture cool to 90-100 degrees.
3. Whisk in eggs and yeast until combined.
4. Add flour using the dough hook, mix on low speed until combined, 1-2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and knead for 3 minutes more. Dough should feel tacky and moist but should not stick to your finger. (Add more flour if dough is sticky.) Continue to knead on medium speed until a cohesive, elastic dough has formed, 4-5 minutes longer.
5. Lightly spray a medium bowl with cooking spray. Transfer dough to bowl, lightly coat surface of dough with cooking spray, and cover with plastic. Let dough rise in a warm location until doubled in volume, 2-3 hours.
6. Coat two 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray; set aside. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat dough into a round 12 by 10 inch rectangle, gently pressing out air; starting from the edge farthest from you, roll dough into a cylinder.
7. Using palms, roll dough back and forth until cylinder is about 18 inches long and even thickness. Using a knife, cut cylinder in half crosswise, then cut each half into 8 evenly sized pieces.
8. Working with one piece at a time and keeping remaining pieces covered in plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, form dough pieces into smooth, taut rounds. Set piece of dough on an unfloured area of the work surface. Loosely cup hand around dough — not directly over it, without applying pressure to the dough — and move hand in small circular motions; this works the ball even.
9. Arrange shaped rolls in prepared cake pans, cover cake pans with plastic wrap lightly coated with cooking spray, then cover pans securely with foil. Refrigerate at least 24-48 hours.
10. Remove foil but not plastic wrap from pans. Let rolls rise in a draft-free, cool room-temperature location until doubled in volume, 6-7 hours.
11. Heat oven to 400 degrees when rolls are close to baking and remove plastic wrap. Brush rolls with 2 tablespoons melted butter; bake until deep golden brown, 14-18 minutes.
12. Cool rolls in pans on a wire rack 3 minutes, then invert onto rack — cool 10-15 minutes longer. Break apart and serve warm.