When I committed to NaBloPoMo, I’m not sure that I realized the commitment it would entail. Well, sure, I knew that it meant that I would post daily. It meant that I would be able to refresh my blog with a multitude of recipes that I’ve been dying to share, but for one reason or another, hadn’t blogged yet.

The main reason that I decided to commit to posting each day for the month of November is to return some of the spontaneity to blogging. Life is busy and sometimes, it’s more convenient to write on a Sunday, post on Thursday and use the rest of the week to well, live life. As practical as this approach is to the business of blogging, it also means that if I make or try something really great, I don’t always get to share it right away.

Some recipes don’t need to be shared right away. You can make a honeyed-cheddar and apple panini year round, just as soft chocolate chip cookies can be enjoyed regardless of the season. But there are some things that need to be shared before the holiday season. Today, I need to convince you that you should make your own dinner rolls this year.

Whether it’s a Thanksgiving turkey, a Christmas ham, a steaming noodle kugel, or something totally delicious that my painfully sheltered palate doesn’t even know about, there are few holiday meals complete without a basket of steaming hot rolls, so hot that when they melt the butter you can imagine the steam seeping from them.

Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

Makes 30

1/4 cup warm water (115 degrees)

2 packets (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast

1 1/2 cups warm whole milk (115 degrees)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for bowl and pans

1/4 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons salt

3 large eggs

6 to 6 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for work surface

Directions:

1. Place water in a small bowl; sprinkle with yeast, and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together milk, butter, sugar, salt, and 2 eggs. Whisk in yeast mixture.

2. Using a wooden spoon, stir in 6 cups flour, 1 cup at a time, until you have a soft, shaggy dough (if necessary, add up to 1/2 cup more flour). Turn dough out onto a floured work surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 5 to 10 minutes. Butter the inside of a large bowl; place dough in bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let stand in a warm spot until dough has doubled in size, about 1 1/4 hours.

3. Butter two 13-by-9-inch baking pans. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a 15-inch rope; cut each rope into 15 1-inch pieces. Press each piece into a disk, then shape into a ball. Arrange dough balls in prepared pans.

(To make ahead: Wrap pans well, and freeze, up to 2 months.) Cover pans loosely with plastic; let stand in a warm spot until rolls have doubled in size, about 1 1/4 hours (2 hours more if frozen).