The 3-Ingredient Recipe My Mom's Been Making for Over 20 Years

If there's anything autumn calls for, it's an easy, comforting recipe. While in some places, it might not be cold enough yet to embrace cozy meals, my family has a recipe that's perfect for the transition from summer to fall. Think gooey, bite-sized morsels that are reminiscent of summer grilling, except it's not summer and you don't need a grill: hamburger rolls.

While I grew up knowing them as my mom’s hamburger rolls, they technically come from my dad’s side of the family. That said, I’ve only ever had the ones my mom made, and after 20-plus years of hamburger rolls, she truly has them perfected.

What Are Hamburger Rolls?

They go by many names, but hamburger rolls are essentially mini, mess-free cheeseburgers. Picture your average dinner roll stuffed with melty cheese and a hamburger patty. I bet your mouth is watering already.

A couple of these rolls make a great dinner, especially when served alongside tater tots or french fries. They're also the ultimate finger food, which makes them an ideal snack for tailgating. Since they reheat beautifully, my family loves to make a big batch ahead of time and freeze them so that we always have a delicious snack close by. We often find it hard not to sneak into the fridge for one or two rolls in between meals.

How to Make My Mom's Hamburger Rolls

My mom likes to make her dough from scratch. This can sound a little daunting but I promise it's worth it. If you're up to the task, her dough recipe is very similar to this one. The main difference is that my mom likes to double the recipe to ensure there's enough dough for all the meat.

To make these rolls, divide your dough into smaller portions, then top with a scoop of cooked (and seasoned with whatever you like) ground beef and one slice of American cheese that has been folded into quarters. Wrap the dough over to enclose the fillings. In our household, these rolls usually come out the size of a baseball, but as long as your filling is surrounded by dough, there's no way to mess this up. The size of the roll is up to you. 

Bake the hamburger rolls at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for about 12 minutes. Don't panic if you have some cheese spillage—sometimes that's the best part of making hamburger rolls.

Tips for Making Hamburger Rolls

If making dough from scratch intimidates you, you could always opt for a store-bought shortcut. Pre-made dough not only makes this easier and less time-consuming, but I'm sure it'll result in something just as delicious as my mom's recipe. I can imagine crescent roll dough or biscuit dough could be a good foundation, for example. Just don’t tell my mom I gave you this suggestion. Hamburger rolls are revered in my household and I don’t want her to hear I’m making adaptations to the recipe. I want her to keep making them for me, after all.

I like to use ketchup for dipping, but if I'm being honest, you don’t need much else to dress up these hamburger rolls. My entire family agrees these are best eaten just as they are. But if there are certain burger condiments you can't live without, feel free to add them.

Someone needs to call my mom to get these commercialized and sold in the freezer section of every grocery store. Until then, I guess we'll have to keep making them at home. Well, you can make yours—I’ll be begging my mom to make mine.