Finger rolls
Delicious, soft finger or bridge rolls. They’re perfect for a picnic and really easy for kids to make.
This simple bread recipe is perfect for making finger or bridge rolls. They’re everything a good roll should be, light, soft, and fluffy. Homemade finger rolls are much nicer than shop bought ones, especially if you eat them while they’re still warm from the oven.
Made with milk and an egg, these rolls are softer than some bread recipes and definitely my favourite.
What should I put in my finger rolls?
Finger rolls are great for any filling. They’re ideal for sausages so are a great bake for kids if you’re planning a BBQ/ cookout and want to involve them in some of the preparation.
Alternatively why not do something simple like egg mayonnaise, tune or even recreate your favourite subway roll at home.
What’s the best flour to use in finger rolls?
When making these bread rolls, strong white bread flour is the best flour to use. Bread flour has more protein in it than plain or all-purpose flour, which helps it rise and gives it more structural shape.
How can kids help to make finger rolls?
Like all bread recipes, these finger rolls are really easy so a perfect bake for children.
Kids will get to practice measuring out all the ingredients and mixing them together.
Unlike some bread recipes, these bridge rolls have an egg in them, so there’s also a chance to practice some egg cracking.
Kneading dough is one of my kids favourite things to do in the kitchen. It’s a wonderful tactile experience where they can stretch and pull the dough and feel how it changes texture over time.
Shaping the rolls is always a fun job for kids. If your kids like playing with playdough, they’re bound to be good at rolling the rolls to make their distinctive ‘finger’ shape.
What other easy bread recipes for kids can i make?
If your kids enjoyed making these finger rolls they might also some of our other easy bread recipes for kids including:
Easy white bread recipe
Soda bread
Homemade bagels
Hedgehog rolls
English muffins
Breadsticks
Soft bread rolls
Shaped dinner rolls
Tiger bread
Homemade garlic focaccia
Ingredients
500g (4 cups) strong white bread flour
1 tsp salt
25g (2 tbsp) caster sugar
7g packet instant yeast
30g (2 tbsp) butter
250ml (1 cup) milk
1 egg
How to make finger rolls
Measure out the dry ingredients
Get your kids to measure the flour out and add it to a large mixing bowl or freestanding mixer.
In separate corners, get your kids to add the salt, caster sugar and yeast.
Add the wet ingredients
Get your kids to measure out the milk. We find the easiest way to do this is to set a jug on our digital scales and use the ml setting to weigh it out. Don’t worry if you don’t have digital scales though – just do it the old fashioned way with a measuring jug.
Measure out the butter and add it to your milk.
Warm the milk and butter up in the microwave for a minute or so, or do it gently in a pan on the hob.
Do it until the butter has almost melted and the milk is warm, but not hot (stick your finger in to test it.)
Finally, add the egg into the milk mixture. If your kids are doing this, crack the egg into a small bowl first, just in case any rogue shell goes in. If it does, simply use a larger piece of shell to fish it out.
We also find it handy to have a spare bowl or food bin handy to put the shell in otherwise my kids tend to just dump it on the worktop, which makes a bit of a mess.
Give the mixture a whisk to blend it all together.
Make the dough
If you’re using a freestanding mixer, attach the dough hook.
Turn the mixer on a slow speed then slowly add the milk mixture. This is quite a fun job for kids if you can trust them to pour it quite carefully. You might not need all of the milk. Stop adding it if it looks too sticky.
Knead the dough for 5 minutes. Keep going until the dough is soft and looks smooth.
We tend to use out mixer to give us a head start with the kneading then finish if by hand. My kids enjoy kneading dough but don’t necessarily have the attention span to do it for long enough by hand, so this seems like a good compromise.
If you don’t have a mixer, simply pour the milk into your bowl and mix it in with wooden spoons.
Once it’s come together, tip it onto a floured work surface and knead it for 10 minutes.
Kneading is a really fun, tactile job for kids of all ages to try. If you’ve never done it before, start by holding the dough with one hand and stretching it away from you with the other. Bring it all back together and repeat.
Pop your dough in a bowl and cover it with oiled clingfilm or a clean tea towel. Leave it somewhere warm to prove for 1 – 2 hours. You’re ready for the next step once it’s double in size.
Make the finger rolls
Remove the dough from the bowl and knock it back. ‘Knocking back’ basically means punching the air out. It can be quite fun for really little kids if they want to get involved in the kitchen.
Divide the dough into 9 (you can make fewer or more depending on how big you want your finger rolls.
We’ve used this recipe to make 6 large finger rolls before, but it could also make 12 smaller ones that would be perfect for a frankfurter sausage.
If you’re making 9 divide the dough into 3 then divide each piece into 3 again.
Shape each piece of dough into a long sausage shape. If your kids like playing with playdough, they’ll enjoy this.
Lay each finger roll onto a greased or lined baking tray. Leave a little gap between each one so they have space to grow. Lay them facing the same way and don’t worry if they end up touching, as this is what will give them a lovely soft edge.
Cover the finger rolls again and leave them to prove for another hour or so until they have doubled in size again. You know they’re definitely ready when if you gently poke them the dough should spring back.
Bake your finger rolls
Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C Fan / 425F
Bake your finger rolls in the oven for around 20 minutes.
Every oven is a little different, so keep an eye on them. You can turn the oven down a bit towards the end of baking if they’re looking too brown, or cook them a wee bit longer if needed.
They’re ready when they’ve turned golden brown and if you tap the bottom they should sound hollow.
Remove them from the oven, leave them to cool for a few minutes before popping them on a wire rack.
Serve and enjoy.
Finger rolls
Ingredients
- 500 g (4 cups) strong white bread flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 25 g (2 tbsp) caster sugar
- 7 g packet instant yeast
- 30 g (2 tbsp) butter
- 250 ml (1 cup) milk
- 1 egg
Instructions
Measure out the dry ingredients
- Measure the flour out and add it to a large mixing bowl or freestanding mixer.
- In separate corners, add the salt, caster sugar and yeast.
Add the wet ingredients
- Measure out the milk either using digital scales or a measuring jug.
- Measure out the butter and add it to your milk.
- Warm the milk and butter up in the microwave for a minute or so, or do it gently in a pan on the hob. Do it until the butter has almost melted and the milk is warm, but not hot.
- Finally, add the egg into the milk mixture.
- Give the mixture a whisk to blend it all together.
Make the dough
- If you're using a freestanding mixer, attach the dough hook. Turn the mixer on a slow speed then slowly add the milk mixture. You might not need all of the milk. Stop adding it if it looks too sticky.
- Knead the dough for 5 minutes. Keep going until the dough is soft and looks smooth.
- If you don't have a mixer, simply pour the milk into your bowl and mix it in with wooden spoons. Once it's come together, tip it onto a floured work surface and knead it for 10 minutes.
- Pop your dough in a bowl and cover it with oiled clingfilm or a clean tea towel. Leave it somewhere warm to prove for 1 – 2 hours. You're ready for the next step once it's double in size.
Make the finger rolls
- Remove the dough from the bowl and knock it back (knock the air out).
- Divide the dough into 9 (you can make fewer or more depending on how big you want your finger rolls.)
- Shape each piece of dough into a long sausage shape.
- Lay each finger roll onto a greased or lined baking tray. Leave a little gap between each one so they have space to grow. Lay them facing the same way and don't worry if they end up touching, as this is what will give them a lovely soft edge.
- Cover the finger rolls again and leave them to prove for another hour or so until they have doubled in size again. You know they're definitely ready when if you gently poke them the dough should spring back.
Bake the finger rolls
- Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C Fan / 425F
- Bake your finger rolls in the oven for around 20 minutes.
- They're ready when they've turned golden brown and if you tap the bottom they should sound hollow.
- Remove them from the oven, leave them to cool for a few minutes.
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You might also like
If you liked these finger rolls you’ll love our other easy bread recipes as well as our favourite easy bakes for kids.
This recipe was first published in June 2020 and updated in October 2023.
Is there 389 calories in one or in 9?
The calories given just give a rough idea, but it would be just for one roll.