Garlic Spinach and Cheese Rolls

Soft and fluffy rolls that are smothered in garlic butter and filled with a delicious spinach and cheese filling, these garlic spinach and cheese rolls are perfect for picnics, brunch, tea parties, and as a side with soups.

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About This Recipe

These garlic spinach and cheese rolls are kinda like savory cinnamon rolls, just instead of a cinnamon sugar filling it’s filled with garlic butter and a spinach and cheese filling before being rolled up and then sliced into rolls.

These rolls are perfect as appetizers, as a side with soups, for picnics and potlucks, and they’re also amazing for tea parties, or even just as a snack! If you love cheese and warm, fluffy bread, then you are going to LOVE these garlic spinach and cheese rolls.

Let’s talk about how it’s made, the dough is made with eggs and butter, which makes it so rich and soft. Once the dough is rolled out, we first spread on a layer of homemade garlic butter, which takes 5 minutes to make, and then finally a layer of spinach and cheese filling is added on top.

For the cheese I used two different types, cottage cheese and mozzarella, however, you could use any of your favorite types of cheese. And when the rolls are baked, it’s topped with more garlic butter that gives them a beautiful shine along with a more delicious flavor, I mean you can never go wrong with garlic!

What You Need To Make This Recipe

Alright, there are three components in these garlic spinach and cheese rolls: the Dough, the Garlic Butter, and the Spinach & Cheese Filling.

All-purpose flour: all you need for this recipe is all-purpose flour, you do not need bread flour.

Butter: you’ll need butter for both the dough and the garlic butter. Make sure all of the butter is soft, otherwise, it’s going to be difficult to mix into the dough as well as to make the garlic butter.

Yeast: I used instant-dry yeast, but active-dry yeast will work as well because we’re going to be combining the yeast with warm milk in the beginning anyways.

Sugar: you only need very little for the dough.

Eggs: use at room temperature for the best results.

Spinach: I used fresh spinach.

Garlic: you’ll need lots of fresh garlic, minced for the garlic butter.

Parsley: this is needed for the garlic butter as well, but if you don’t have it you could substitute it for coriander or just leave it out.

Cheese: I used cottage cheese and grated mozzarella. You could use any of your favorite types of cheese just make sure it’s about 1-1 1/4 cup of cheese in total. Some other options would be feta cheese, ricotta, goat cheese, etc.

How To Make Garlic Spinach & Cheese Rolls

Step 1: Make the dough: Combine milk, sugar, and yeast in a tall glass, give it a mix, and set aside for 5 minutes. Then whisk in the eggs.

Step 2: Combine the fry ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl if you’re making the dough by hand) and add in the egg and yeast mixture. Use the dough hook to knead the dough until it has come together.

Step 3: Add in the softened butter while kneading in 2 batches. Then transfer the dough into a greased bowl and let that rest for 1 1/2 hours.

Step 4: In the meantime prepare the spinach and cheese filling. Roughly chop up the spinach and then cook it on medium-high flame until fully cooked, about 5 minutes. Transfer that into a bowl, and let it cool down completely. Then mix in the cottage cheese and grated mozzarella and set aside.

Step 5: Make the garlic butter: In a small bowl combine softened butter, mined garlic, chopped parsley, salt, and pepper.

Step 6: Once the dough has rested, roll it out on a floured surface and evenly spread on the garlic butter, save about 1/4 of the garlic butter to add on top of the rolls once they’re baked.

Step 7: Then evenly distribute the spinach and cheese filling on the rolled dough. Tightly roll the dough upwards to make a log. Place the log of dough, seam side down, and use a thread or clean floss to cut it up into rolls.

Step 8: Place the rolls in a greased 10×10-inch square pan, cover it, and let it rest for another hour. Then bake at 180 °C / 350 °F for 30 minutes or until fully golden brown. Use a pastry brush to spread the remaining garlic butter on the hot rolls. Serve warm.

Storing The Spinach & Cheese Rolls

Store any leftovers in an air-tight container at room temperature for 1-2 days, for any longer you should store them in a refrigerator because of the cheese.

See the instructions below on making the rolls the day before and baking them the next day.

Pro Tips

Don’t overheat the milk, this will cause the yeast to die resulting in the dough not being able to rise, and you’ll end up with dense spinach and cheese rolls.
Use room temperature butter for the dough and the filling, this just makes it so much easier to combine into the dough as well as to spread on for the garlic butter.
To quickly bring cold eggs to room temp., place them in warm water (not hot!) for 5-10 minutes.
If you have a convection oven (oven with a fan setting), reduce the temperature by 20 degrees.
You could make the spinach and cheese filling a day ahead, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it.
You could also make the garlic butter ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator. But make sure to bring it to room temperature before making the spinach and cheese rolls, otherwise, it’s going to be difficult to spread onto the dough.

FAQ’s

Can I use a different type of flour?

I would recommend you use all-purpose flour, but if you have bread flour, you can use that as well. Do not use any other type of flour like whole wheat or cake flour.

Why is my dough so sticky?

This is supposed to be a little sticky, that’s why if you have a stand mixer use it! But if you feel it’s way too sticky to handle, then you can go ahead and add a few more tablespoons of flour.

What other types of cheese can I use?

You can use what I did, which was crumbled cottage cheese, and grated mozzarella. Some other options would be crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, ricotta, etc.

Can I use just butter instead of making garlic butter?

For sure! But you’ll have just spinach and cheese rolls without the garlic. Use the same amount of softened butter as stated in the recipe for the garlic butter.

What does lukewarm mean?

“Lukewarm” describes a temperature that is moderately warm, not too hot, and not too cold. It’s typically around 90-100°F (32-38°C). Lukewarm is often used to describe liquids that are slightly warm to the touch but not hot, making it ideal for things like dissolving yeast in baking or warming up beverages.

Check out my YouTube Channel for detailed recipe tutorials! Made one of my recipes? Tag me on Instagram, I would love to see your creations!

If you loved these spinach and cheese rolls, then of course, you have to try out my soft and fluffy Cinnamon Rolls!

Recipe Card

Garlic Spinach and Cheese Rolls

Prep Time: 20 min

Rest Time: 2 1/2 hrs.

Cook Time: 30 min

Total Time: 3 hrs. 20 min

Course: Appetizer

Servings: 12

Calories: 329kcal

Ingredients

For the dough:

1 cup milk, lukewarm (240ml)
2 tbsp granulated sugar (15g)
1 1/4 tbsp instant yeast (15g)
2 eggs, room temp.
4 cups all-purpose flour (600g)
2 tsp salt (12g)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened (60g)

For the spinach and cheese filling:

150g fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 (heaping) cup cottage cheese, crumbled
1/3 cup mozzarella, grated

For the garlic butter:

6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened (85g)
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
handful of parsley, finely chopped
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Equipment/Utensils

Stand mixer with a dough hook attachment (or a large bowl if making by hand)
2 medium-sized bowls
2 spatulas
Small whisk
Tall glass or small bowl
Rolling pin
10 x 10-inch square baking dish

Instructions

Make the Dough:

In a tall glass combine lukewarm milk, granulated sugar, and instant yeast. Give it a whisk and set aside for 5 minutes.
Add in the eggs and whisk to combine.
In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine all-purpose flour, salt, and the egg and yeast mixture. Knead on medium-high speed until the dough comes together.
Add in softened butter in two batches while kneading. Knead the dough for an additional 1-2 minutes until smooth. Transfer the dough to a greased bowl and let it rest for 1 1/2 hours.

Make the Filling and Garlic Butter:

In a small saucepan combine roughly chopped spinach and a drizzle of olive oil.
Place on medium-high flame and cook for 5-6 minutes or until the spinach is fully cooked. Transfer the cooked spinach to a medium-sized bowl and let that cool down completely.
Once fully cooled, add cottage cheese and grated mozzarella. Mix until incorporated. Set aside.
For the garlic butter: In a small bowl combine softened butter, minced garlic, chopped parsley, salt, and pepper. Give this a good mix using a spatula. Set aside.

Assembly:

Once the dough has risen, gently punch it down and transfer it onto a well-floured surface. Roll it out into a rectangle that’s roughly 15 x 10 inches.
Save 1/4 portion of the garlic butter (for the top) and spread the remaining 3/4 portion of it onto the rectangular dough as evenly as you can, see pic above.
Next, evenly spread in all of the spinach and cheese filling on top of the garlic butter, see pic.
Starting from the 10-inch side, roll the dough upwards to form a log, making sure to roll it up tightly.
Use a tread or a clean floss to cut approx. 1 1/2 ich rolls from the log, see pic for reference.
Arrange the rolls in a greased 10 x 10-inch square pan, leaving some space in between because they’re going to rise again. Cover the pan using a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let it rest for another hour.
Once an hour has passed, preheat your to 180 °C / 350 °F and then bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden brown.
As soon as the garlic spinach and cheese rolls come out of the oven, use a party brush to spread on the remaining garlic butter from earlier. Since the rolls are hot, the butter will melt immediately giving them a beautiful shine! Serve warm, and enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 328.77kcal

Total Fat: 13.78g

Carbs: 41.96g

Sugars: 2.78g

Protein: 8.97g

Sodium: 534.27mg

Fiber: 1.73g

** Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, cooking methods, portion sizes, and more. **