These pull-apart Keto bread rolls are made with yeast, which makes them pillowy-light and extra fluffy. They're delicious at breakfast with sugar free jam and work equally well as keto dinner rolls.
German babies are pretty much born with a bread roll in their hands, and I am no exception. When I was little, my breakfast of choice were "milk buns". These were sweet, airy white rolls made with milk and yeast, a bit like brioche or challah. I'd devour them for breakfast!
I've published a whole bunch of great bread and roll recipes on this blog already. They range from extra rustic (such as this Paleo bread - omg it's divine when sliced thinly and toasted) to extra versatile (such as my almond flour bread and this low carb bread - both are perfect for sandwiches).
The one thing I felt was missing was a healthy gluten free remake of my beloved milk buns. And after a bit of experimenting I've come up with a recipe that is a worthy substitution!
These buns are soft, airy and taste delicious. No, they don't taste exactly like traditional white buns. But they come pretty close. And even better, they are only 2.1g net carbs per bun.
Ingredients
To make low carb rolls with yeast, we need certain, slightly unusual, ingredients. Why?
Yeast, as we all know, is a living thing. It feeds on the sugars in the ingredients, emits carbon dioxide and thus the dough rises. Traditional milk buns contain wheat, milk and sugar. Plenty of sugars there. So how do you make a bun rise using low carb ingredients such as almond flour?
Here are the ingredients I used:
Dry Ingredients
- Almond flour - I used ground almonds, which is equivalent to regular almond flour in the US. If you want to use extra fine almond flour, I recommend that you start with 1 ¾ cups of almond flour as it is more absorbent.
- Whey protein powder - This gives the low carb rolls a fluffy and light texture.
- Psyllium husk powder - Also helps create a soft bread texture.
- Baking powder and yeast - For a good rise.
- Inulin - A prebiotic, soluble fibre. It is gently sweet and has amazing health benefits. Here's an informative article. Inulin is FANTASTIC to make low carb yeast dough rise.
- A generous pinch of salt
Wet Ingredients
- Eggs - We are using eggs and additional egg whites. Beat them until fluffy. This adds air and lightness to the buns.
- Butter - Melted and cooled
- Greek yogurt - Should be room temperature. The yogurt makes the rolls rise more and gives it that milk bun taste.
- Water - Should be lukewarm.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Instructions
Let me show you how to make keto yeast rolls. Here are the basic steps. For detailed instructions and nutrition details, scroll down to the recipe card.
STEP 1
First, proof your yeast. We want to make sure it's working and activated - and if it doesn't, we can start all over again without having to throw away expensive ingredients or having to eat tiny, hard rolls!
You simply mix the yeast with warm water and inulin. Cover your bowl with a kitchen towel and put in a warm, draught-free place for 5-10 minutes. This could be above a radiator, on top of your oven or even inside your boiler cupboard.
See the froth and bubbles in the image above? That's what needs to happen.
STEP 2
Blend the eggs, egg whites and melted butter in a food processor until fluffy. You can also use a large mixing bowl and a handheld electric mixer.
Once the yeast is activated, add it to the mixture and blend to combine.
Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
STEP 3
Now add the first half of the dry ingredients - whey, almond flour, psyllium, salt, baking powder - plus the Greek yoghurt. Blend until combined.
STEP 4
Add the second half of the dry ingredients. The dough thickens quickly. This is what it should look like - sticky and rather firm. Time to work rapidly now, so the dough does not cool down too much!
STEP 5
Line a baking tray with parchment paper. I used a regular-sized pie dish, but a rectangular casserole dish would work just as well.
Wet your hands so the dough doesn't stick too much and form 8 balls, leaving space around the bread rolls because they will double in size.
STEP 6
Cover again with your kitchen towel or, even better, with a lightly oiled piece of cling film first and then with the kitchen towel (less chance of the dough drying out).
Place the lot back in your warm place of choice for 50-60 minutes to let the dough rise.
STEP 7
Time for the yeast rolls to go into the oven! I recommend to bake them for around 15 minutes or until lightly browned, and then add another 7-10 minutes loosely covered with aluminium foil. Total baking time should be around 22-25 minutes.
Note - I did NOT cover the rolls in the images and found they turned just a little too dark for my liking. Covering them with a foil dome should make them just perfect.
Katrin's Expert Tips
Honestly, this is a NO SHORTCUTS recipe. The correct temperature of the ingredients is essential.
Your eggs must be room temperature. Also, make sure that you give the butter time to cool down so it's only lukewarm and not scalding hot. Yeast thrives in a warm environment. If it's too cold or too hot, they can die off and your rolls simply won't rise.
Trust me on this one. I made my Keto hot cross buns using the same basic recipe and my eggs were still on the cool side. The result? The buns tasted great, but did not rise as much as these keto yeast rolls.
Substitutions
If you don't have inulin, use either honey or maple syrup instead. Yeast bacteria feed on the sugar to thrive and in theory there won't be much of the sugar left once your dough has risen. I cannot guarantee that ALL sugar will be gone, but most of it would likely have been gobbled up!
Many people don't like or cannot have almond flour. I have not tried this recipe with coconut flour myself yet, but normally using around â…“ the amount of flour works well. This is because coconut flour absorbs more liquid than almond flour.
You could use sour cream in place of the Greek yoghurt. Coconut yoghurt would also work - i.e., yogurt made FROM coconuts, such as by the Coconut Collaborative. If you wanted to use coconut cream, add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar as well.
Recipe FAQs
The best substitute is egg white protein powder.
Some psyllium husk powder brands turn pruple when baked. This does not affect the taste. I have used Green Origins and Just Natural without issues. The NOW brand is also supposed to be fine.
The egg taste is in the yolks and with 4 egg yolks, the rolls taste "eggy". I hate food waste as much as you do and use the leftover egg yolks for keto mayonnaise.
Storage
I like to store these rolls in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Gently reheat them in the microwave or pop them in the toaster.
You can also freeze them for up to 3 months! If I do this, I always slice them in half first. This way, I can pop them in the toaster straight from frozen.
More Keto Bread Rolls And Buns
- Keto Dinner Rolls
- Keto Buns Recipe30 Minutes
- Keto Biscuits (Sugar Free, Fluffy, Cheesy)30 Minutes
- Best Keto Hot Dogs (Homemade Buns!)40 Minutes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Pull-Apart Keto Bread Rolls
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups / 200g almond flour or ground almonds
- 3 tablespoon whey protein powder
- 3 tablespoon psyllium husk powder
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon inulin
- 2 teaspoon active dry yeast
- generous pinch of salt optional
Wet Ingredients
- 2 eggs, large room temperature
- 2 egg whites room temperature
- ¼ cup / 50g butter melted
- scant ¼ cup / 50g Greek yoghurt
- â…“ cup / 80ml lukewarm water
Instructions
- Proof the yeast! Put the yeast and inulin into a bowl and add the warm water (40 Celsius / 105 Fahrenheit). If you don't have a thermometer, the water should be warm to the touch. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and leave in a warm place for 5-10 minutes until it starts to froth and thicken.
- In the meantime, combine the dry ingredients - almond flour, protein powder, psyllium husk powder, baking powder - in another bowl and set aside.
- Using an electric mixer or a food processor, whisk the room temperature eggs and egg whites, melted (warm, not hot!!) butter and the activated yeast mixture until well combined.
- Add the yoghurt and the first half of the dry ingredients mixture. Blend until combined, then add the second half of the flour mix. The dough will thicken quickly as the psyllium and the almond flour absorb the moisture.
- Line a pie dish or a casserole dish with parchment paper. Lightly wet your hands and form eight dough balls. Make sure you leave some space around the rolls as they will significantly increase in size.
- Cover the dish with lightly oiled cling film and a kitchen towel and return to a warm space for around 50 to 60 minutes until the rolls have substantially expanded - see the images in the post. I like to place my tray on top of the radiator.
- Towards the end of the rising time, pre-heat the oven to 175°C/350 Fahrenheit.
- Bake for around 15 minutes or until the rolls are starting to brown. Then cover loosely with aluminium foil and continue to bake for another 7-10 minutes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
First published April 2019. Republished with more information in February 2024.
Joan Lederhos
I haven't tried this recipe yet. I was wondering if I could substitute more coconut flour for the Psyllium husk powder. In the past I have had a grainy feel from the psyllium husk powder in the rolls I've tried before. I am using the powder, not the husk...I think. But I can't find a recipe that uses yeast, and not psyllium powder, yours is pretty close, though. Thanks for any input.
Katrin
My feeling is that psyllium is more absorbent than coconut flour. It also has a sturdier texture. If you want to sub it out, you'd have to judge the consistency of your dough and add more coconut flour if necessary. Another thought would be to blitz ground flax in a food processor to make it powdery and use that instead.
Linda
Dear Joan, I have the same problem with psyllium husk. I put it in an electric coffee grinder reserved for baking, and pulverize it to a very fine powder. Do this well in advance and let the dust settle before opening the top of the grinder! Otherwise, you end up with a huge choking cloud of very fine flour. Then sift it through the finest sieve you can find. Works a treat to - ahem - smooth out graining psyllium husk.
Alisa Miller
I'm confused as I've read that at temperatures over 135 degrees, inulins indigestible sugars are converted into regular sugars and will throw you off keto!?
Katrin
As far as I am aware there was a study that showed this happened after a prolonged period of time. However, in our case the inulin will be fed on by the yeast during the time it rises and it will broken down by the time it even reaches the oven.
Katherine
Hello. My fiancé cannot eat psyllium, he breaks out with allergic reactions.. Can you recommend a substitute for this? Thanks!
Katrin
Hello Katherine, I think either ground flaxseed or ground chia seeds could be used, although I have not tried it myself and I cannot guarantee the outcome. YOu'll probably need more flax than psyllium because psyllium powder is super absorbent.
littleleftie
Hi--made these for the 2nd time today---followed all instructions to the letter---and for the 2nd time, the dough was so soft that there was absolutely no way it was going to form buns. Instead, I had to pour it into the lined pie plate, let it rise and bake and treat it like scones....cutting them after baking. Saved it. But any ideas on why the mix is so soft? I even added another tbsp of psyllium powder without any obvious difference from the 1st time. Taste great, thought!!
Katrin
Are you using psyllium husk powder or psyllium husks? The psyllium husks look like powder at first glance, but they are tiny, tiny sticks. The powder is much finer and twice as absorbent. This could have been the issue.
Danielle
Hi Katrin,
It was a pretty warm outside the day I made the rolls so I opted to sit the pre-cooked rolls in the direct sunlight but inside the house. I brushed some clingfilm with olive oil as instructed and covered the tray. I also put a dry tea towel over them. I lost track of time and the rolls were sat there for almost an hour 30 minutes, which I presumed wouldn't do any harm. The rolls did increase in size slightly, but not as much as I had thought they would.
It looks like I need to find a better place for them to warm. How much should the dough increase in size during the proving process?
Katrin
Hi Danielle, you can compare the 2 images in the process shots - I took pictures before and after I let the dough rise. They pretty much doubled in size. I recently made another type of yeast rolls and put them in the oven to rise at the lowest setting, about 40-50 degrees Celsius, which also worked. YOu could give that a try maybe? (Boiler cupboards also tend to be extra warm, if that would be an option in your house?)
Ã…sa
By far the best low carb bread I have ever had! Thank you so much for sharing!
Love it!!
Katrin
You're welcome!!! Enjoy your Sunday 🙂
Sam
HI Katrin,
Thanks for the recipe, i made these at the weekend to have with a bbq and they tasted great! my only issue was that the dough was really runny, much runnier than in your photo. i subbed in maple syrup for the inulin and mixed everything by hand as i dont have a food processor. i thought maybe the mixture seemed too eggy, any thoughts?
Sam
Katrin
Hi Sam, I can only guess here. It's the psyllium powder that really thickens the dough. I've had a reader recently who used psyllium husks (looks like little sticks) as opposed to psyllium husk powder (powder) in a different bread recipe and had a similar problem with wet dough. Maybe this could have been the issue?
Marta Cantwell
Hello, can I use sour cream instead of yogurt?
Katrin
Yes, you could definitely give it a go. As sour cream would add more fat, I wonder though if it would end up less light/fluffy. Maybe use only 3 tbsp pf butter instead of 4 (= 1/4 cup)?
Jameelah
That is so great! I make it to eat with some chicken liver peri pero Portuguese style and rock on the table. Thanks a lots! XOXO from Brum
Katrin
Awesome!!! That sounds delicious 🙂
Sherry
What can i substitute the whey powder for
Katrin
You could try using more almond flour instead