Spinach-Artichoke Stuffed Rolls

Name: Spinach-Artichoke Stuffed Rolls
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 9 rolls
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups/295 milliliters whole milk; 5 cups/600 grams all-purpose flour; 1/4 cup/50 grams granulated sugar; 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk; 3 tablespoons/45 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing; 1 tablespoon instant yeast; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 14 ounces/395 grams canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped; 10 ounces/285 grams frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove excess liquid; 8 ounces/225 grams cream cheese, at room temperature; 3/4 cup/85 grams finely grated Parmesan; 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt; 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1 egg; Sesame seeds, for finishing

By Erin Jeanne McDowell

Total Time: 1¼ hours, plus rising
Rating: 4(166)
Notes: Read community notes

These fluffy rolls look unassuming on the outside, but on the inside, they're generously filled with creamy spinach-artichoke dip. They're inspired by bierock, a bun of Eastern European origin that is traditionally stuffed with ground meat and onions — but this creamy meatless version takes the cake. If you have a little spinach-artichoke dip leftover, snack on it hot or cold with pita chips, or use it to fill a sandwich or an omelet.

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Ingredients

Yield:9 rolls

For the Dough

1¼cups/295 milliliters whole milk
5cups/600 grams all-purpose flour
¼cup/50 grams granulated sugar
1large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
3tablespoons/45 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing
1tablespoon instant yeast
1teaspoon kosher salt

For the Filling

14ounces/395 grams canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
10ounces/285 grams frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove excess liquid
8ounces/225 grams cream cheese, at room temperature
¾cup/85 grams finely grated Parmesan
¾teaspoon kosher salt
½teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For Finishing

1egg
Sesame seeds, for finishing

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
In a medium pot, heat the milk over medium-low until just warm to the touch (about 95 degrees).
Step 2
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine the flour, sugar, egg and egg yolk, butter, yeast, salt and the warm milk. Mix on low speed for 4 minutes, then increase the speed to medium and mix until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Step 3
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
Step 4
Divide the dough into 9 even pieces (about 120 grams each), and shape them into balls using your hands. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes while you make the filling.
Step 5
Make the filling: In a medium bowl, stir together the artichoke hearts, spinach, cream cheese, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 6
Use the palm of your hand to flatten each ball of dough to about ½-inch thick and about 4½ to 5 inches wide. Scoop 3 tablespoons of filling into the center. Wrap the dough around the filling and pinch firmly to seal. Use your hands to shape the dough into balls. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Step 7
Transfer rolls seam side down to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them evenly and staggering slightly. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 to 35 minutes in a warm place.
Step 8
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, beat the remaining egg. Brush the surface of each roll with the beaten egg and sprinkle generously with sesame seeds. Bake until the rolls are golden-brown, 25 to 30 minutes. (They may spread and touch while baking, which is O.K.)
Step 9
Let cool for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Wrap leftover rolls tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

Tip

To reheat the rolls, microwave each bun for 25 to 30 seconds and serve immediately.

Ratings

4 out of 5

166 user ratings

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Mel Harte5 years ago

This sounds like a take-off of the borek, a category of savory Turkish pastries; a simple hack might be to use a good brand of prepared puff pastry sheet, layer the dip on that, score the cuts, and bake. Once cool enough, complete the cuts. Or use the puff pastry to make a long envelope like a strudel, with the filling in the middle. Far less work, and just as delicious!

sue e5 years ago

I so wanted to love this recipe. He dough was very dense. I felt like the 5 cups of flour was too much. Also it was difficult because the density of the dough to get the dough pinched around the spinach-artichoke filling.

Claudia5 years ago

I find that making bread by hand makes it easier to gauge how much flour is enough. I usually don’t use all that is suggested in the recipe. I use the minimum and add sparingly during kneading.

Thomas Matson5 years ago

Can you make them the night before and put them in the refrigerator before cooking them for brunch the next morning?

Heidi5 years ago

LOVE this recipe! The only thing I might try differently is make smaller portions with less dough or make more filling & add more to each roll. I plan on serving these for brunch with about 15 people, making day in advance.

Sandy Sincek5 years ago

I made the rolls last night as the recipe is written with one exception. Instead of using a stand mixer to render the dough, I did it by hand. Not much work since it was only six minutes of mixing and kneading. The results were very good. The crust is crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside. Good flavor, too. I liked the overall dip, it works well with the roll and has the right density. When I make it again the only alteration I would make is to heighten the flavor of the dip.

mrey5 years ago

I tried less flour, but found I needed more. I also made a more traditional (imitation) meat and cabbage filling. The dough here made delicious, tender buns—the sesame topping was perfect. My one comment would be that, as in life, smaller buns are sometimes more appealing. I’d make 12 here instead of 9.

Heidi5 years ago

Might I add, everyone loved these, they disappeared in an instant!

Lisa5 years ago

I think I would use store bought rolls.

LAS4 months ago

One pack quick rose and one pack regular yeast 22 mins enough

Jo8 months ago

We scarfed these up! Made it vegan by using water instead of milk, plant butter, & Red Mill egg replacer. I used a readymade pouch of Garbanzos al Pastor as filling, plus vegan cheddar shreds. There was not enough of that, so I filled the last roll with the mushroom mixture from last night's Epic Fail - sweet spiced mushroom w/ apricot, after picking out the hard rice that didn't cook in the pan - and that was amazing with it's garlicky five-spice seasoning. Made only half a recipe, 6 rolls.

03/20231 year ago

We liked the dough a lot and will reuse it for other savory rolls. The spinach artichoke was fine. I’d try using more spinach or fresh spinach next time.

LC1 year ago

As I do not have an electric mixer, I started mixing the dough with 4 cups of flour and then gradually added the last cup of flour as needed while kneading the dough by hand. I also agree with other recommendations to up the ingredients for the filling a tad for a better filled roll. My store was out of sesame seeds, and while I'm sure these would be great rolls served plain, I decided to top mine with parmesan cheese because WHY NOT. It was great!

Ruth2 years ago

These were really wonderful with some changes. I halved the dough recipe, used half AP/half bread flour, metric measures, & kneaded by hand 10 min. To improve the bread:filling ratio, I didn’t halve the filling, but did change ingredients: Chard sauteed with garlic & squeezed to remove some moisture, 2 diced celery ribs sauteed on high ~4 min, minced red onion, & cream cheese + mascarpone. Flattened dough for 6 rolls to 1/4", mounded as much filling as possible & left them almond-shaped.

Violeta3 years ago

Didn't have artichokes, so I stir fried mushrooms, peppers and raw spinach to get liquid out. It worked great.

Ryan3 years ago

I found it hard to get the bread dough wrapped around the filling, so I ended up using less filling, but then once baked, there was proportionally way too much bread so the taste of the filling really didn’t come through. I think if I did it again I would proportion out the filling and flatten the dough more to get the right amount in each one. I also found the bread itself a bit bland (maybe because I had too much?), so might add more salt or just go with something flakier.

Dianne Fishel3 years ago

We combined the dough from this recipe with the filling from the spinach artichoke dip recipe from the NYTimes since the reviews said this filling was boring. We ended up with 9 gigantic six inch round gorgeous looking buns. The taste was so-so even after we added a lot more kosher salt, pepper and cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes. The bread was too sweet. Spinach-artichoke filling needs to be left as a dip served with chips. One star on this recipe.

Cara4 years ago

Beautiful soft, flavorful enriched dough/bun. Was surprised I needed all of the flour, but not a sprinkle more (mixed/kneaded by hand). Made into 12 buns per another reviewers recommendation: 6 with this filling, six with a vegan bierock filling. I accidentally over baked by a few minutes, (forgot to adjust time for smaller buns) but they were still AMAZING!!! Will absolutely make again. Served with NYT seared zucchini with Parmesan. Great, easy, ‘special’ feeling dinner for us.

Bianca4 years ago

I used 550g flour and accidentally only made 8 rolls. I had a small amount of filling leftover. The flour was the right amount -- but next time I would not be scared to put more filling in each roll.

Marcella4 years ago

Not a baker, but was able to make these successfully!!! They came out so beautiful :) Next time, I'll add some proteins. Took them as lunch on our 17+ mile hike and boy it was a real treat :) will definitely do them again. Thx NYT Cooking!

Heidi5 years ago