Hot Honey Chipotle Cheddar Sourdough Pull-Apart Rolls

Sweet and spicy stopped being a garnish this year – bakeries are folding chipotle straight into glazes and layering honey with real heat instead of just drizzling it on top. These pull-apart rolls take that swicy energy and put it where it belongs: melted into a soft sourdough roll, with sharp cheddar woven through the crumb.

Pull one away from the pan and the cheese stretches. Brush on the hot honey chipotle butter while they’re still hot, and the whole tray goes glossy.

Why You’ll Love It

• Rides this year’s biggest bakery trend – real heat and honey layered together, not just a drizzle on top
• Sharp cheddar folded straight into the dough for melty pockets in every roll
• Bakes pull-apart style in one pan – no individual shaping fuss beyond rolling balls
• A hot honey chipotle butter brushed on hot out of the oven, so it soaks in instead of sitting on top
• An overnight cold retard means the rolls proof on your schedule, not the dough’s

Ingredients & Equipment

Heads up: Some of the links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means if you click and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Volume measurements are included for convenience, but they’re approximate – for the most consistent results, weigh your ingredients on a kitchen scale, especially the flour.

Dough

• Active sourdough starter, fed and bubbly (100 g / ½ cup)
• Whole milk, warmed (180 g / ¾ cup): warm to the touch, not hot
• Unsalted butter, melted (43 g / 3 Tbsp)
• Honey (21 g / 1 Tbsp)
• Bread flour (480 g / 4 cups)
• Fine sea salt (9 g / 1½ tsp)
• Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, divided (170 g / 1½ cups): 140 g goes into the dough, the rest tops the rolls before baking

Hot Honey Chipotle Butter

• Unsalted butter, melted (57 g / 4 Tbsp)
• Honey (85 g / ¼ cup)
• Chipotle peppers in adobo, minced, plus 1 tsp adobo sauce (15 g / 1 Tbsp): start with 1 pepper for medium heat, add a second for more
• Fine sea salt, a pinch

Finishing

• Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
• Fresh chives, chopped (optional)

Equipment

• Kitchen scale: for weighing ingredients
• Stand mixer with dough hook (or a large bowl and a wooden spoon)
• 9-inch round cake pan
• Small saucepan: for the hot honey chipotle butter
• Pastry brush
• Bench scraper
• Wire cooling rack

Sample Schedule (2-Day)

Hot Honey Chipotle Cheddar Sourdough Pull-Apart Rolls

Pillowy sourdough rolls baked pull-apart style with sharp cheddar folded in, then brushed with a sweet-heat hot honey chipotle butter the moment they leave the oven.

Print Recipe

Cook Mode Keep your screen awake while you bake, no more mid-knead taps.

★ Leave a Review 📷 Submit Your Bake

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Rise Time 13 hours hrs

Total Time 13 hours hrs 55 minutes mins

Servings: 12 rolls

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Calories: 300

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Dough

• 100 g (½ cup) active sourdough starter, fed and bubbly
• 180 g (¾ cup) whole milk, warmed
• 43 g (3 Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
• 21 g (1 Tbsp) honey
• 480 g (4 cups) bread flour
• 9 g (1½ tsp) fine sea salt
• 170 g (1½ cups) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, divided

Hot Honey Chipotle Butter

• 57 g (4 Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
• 85 g (¼ cup) honey
• 15 g (1 Tbsp) chipotle peppers in adobo, minced, plus 1 tsp adobo sauce
• 1 pinch fine sea salt

Finishing

• flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
• fresh chives, chopped (optional)

Heads up: Some of the links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means if you click and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Equipment

• Kitchen scale
• Stand mixer with dough hook (or a large bowl and a wooden spoon)
• 9-inch round cake pan
• Small saucepan for the hot honey chipotle butter
• Pastry brush
• Bench scraper
• Wire cooling rack

Method

 

1. Bloom. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the warm milk (180 g / ¾ cup), active starter (100 g / ½ cup), melted butter (43 g / 3 Tbsp), and honey (21 g / 1 Tbsp) until the starter is mostly dissolved.
2. Mix the dough. Add the bread flour (480 g / 4 cups) and salt (9 g / 1½ tsp). Mix on low with the dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
3. Knead. Increase to medium speed and knead 8-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic and mostly clears the sides of the bowl.
4. Fold in the cheddar. Add 140 g of the shredded cheddar (reserve the rest for topping) and knead just until evenly distributed through the dough, about 1-2 minutes.
5. Bulk rise. Shape the dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise at room temperature 1½-2 hours, until noticeably puffy (the cheese keeps it from doubling the way a plain dough would).
6. Divide and shape. Turn the dough out and divide into 12 pieces (about 85 g each). Shape each into a smooth ball and arrange snugly in a greased 9-inch round cake pan.
7. Cold retard. Cover the pan and refrigerate overnight, 8-12 hours.
8. Proof. The next day, let the rolls sit at room temperature 1-1½ hours, until puffy and touching one another.
9. Bake. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Scatter the reserved 30 g of cheddar over the tops of the rolls. Bake 22-25 minutes, until deeply golden and the cheese on top is bubbling and browned in spots.
10. Glaze. While the rolls bake, whisk together the melted butter (57 g / 4 Tbsp), honey (85 g / ¼ cup), minced chipotle with adobo sauce (15 g / 1 Tbsp), and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan over low heat until combined. Brush generously over the rolls the moment they come out of the oven, then finish with flaky salt and chopped chives.

Notes

These started as a way to use up the tail end of a cheddar block and a jar of chipotles in adobo that kept getting shoved to the back of the fridge. The hot honey butter is the whole point – brush it on generously, right when the rolls are still too hot to touch.

If you want these milder, use half the chipotle and skip the extra adobo sauce. If you want them hotter, add a second chipotle – the honey mellows it out either way.

I like these best pulled apart warm, straight out of the pan, with extra hot honey butter on the side for dipping.

How to Make It

Tips & Troubleshooting

• Shred your own cheddar: pre-shredded cheese is coated in anti-caking starch that can make the dough feel drier, and block cheese simply melts better.
• Don’t skip the cold retard: it firms the dough enough to shape cleanly and deepens the tang against all that sweetness.
• Watch the honey butter, not the clock: simmer it just until combined – too long over heat and the honey can scorch.
• Heat varies a lot by pepper: chipotle mellows as it bakes, but if yours run extra hot, start with less and taste the butter before brushing it all on.

How to Store

To store: keep glazed rolls covered at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 5.

To freeze: freeze baked, unglazed rolls in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw and warm in a 300°F oven, then make a fresh batch of hot honey chipotle butter to brush on just before serving.

Nutrition

Per roll, based on 12 rolls per pan. Estimated from the ingredients used – provided for convenience and not a substitute for a full nutrition label.