Cheesy Garlic Swirl Rolls

These garlic swirl rolls feature a soft and fluffy yeast bread base stuffed with a swirl of flavorful garlic herb butter and two kinds of cheese.

Your newest carb addiction is calling! Yes, bread and cheese is involved, I’m so sorry to do this to you.

These rolls are so worth it though because they’re basically cinnamon rolls but savory-style with a rich garlic butter + tons of cheese instead of the cinnamon swirl. Life can’t get any better than this!

A bowl of soup’s best friend and also appropriate for just about every time in between. Trust me, you need this carby goodness in your life immediately!

These Yeast Rolls feature…

• A soft and fluffy texture
• A swirl of garlic herb butter and gooey mozzarella and Parmesan cheese
• An easy dough that comes together in minutes with no stand mixer required

Making the Yeast Rolls

(scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe)

Ingredients You Will Need

• Active dry yeast
• 2% or skim milk
• Honey
• Egg
• Kosher salt
• All-purpose flour
• Unsalted butter
• Garlic
• Parsley
• Mozzarella cheese
• Parmesan cheese

Stand Mixer or Hand Mixing

Both a stand mixer and a mixing bowl + wooden spoon will work for mixing this bread. Obviously, by hand requires a little more elbow grease and arm power, but it will definitely work.

If you choose to go the stand mixer route, make sure you use the dough hook for mixing and let the machine knead the dough on medium speed 5-7 minutes until the dough is stretchy and elastic.

If you are making the dough by hand, use a large bowl and a wooden spoon for mixing the dough. For kneading, turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead about 10 minutes or whenever the dough is stretchy and elastic.

Tips for Perfect Yeast Rolls

1. Heat milk to 110F degrees – I recommend temping the milk to ensure it’s not over 110F. If you use liquid that is too warm, it will kill the yeast and your dough will not rise.
2. Measure flour correctly – I use the spoon-and-level technique for measuring flour as this will prevent over-measuring your flour. Use a spoon to scoop flour into the measuring cup, then level with the back of a knife. You can also weigh the flour in grams for more precise measurements.
3. Knead dough properly – this step is where you will develop the gluten in the dough which is crucial for forming the structure of the rolls. You can knead by hand or use your stand mixer with the dough hook attachment.
4. Allow dough to rise until doubled – turn the dough into a clean greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 1 to 1-1/2 hours.
5. Let dough rise in a warm place – yeast dough loves warm environments for rising. I recommend 75F-80F for a rising environment in your kitchen.
6. Shred cheese manually – freshly shredded cheese will melt much better than pre-shredded.
7. Use fresh garlic – I use a whopping 4 cloves garlic in these rolls for a strong garlicky flavor in every bite.
8. Roll dough out into a 12×16 inch circle – this gives you that perfect ratio of dough to cheese filling.
9. Spread filling to within 1/2-inch of dough edges – this will keep the filling from spilling out the edges.

Recipe Variations

Try these ideas for a different twist on these rolls.

• Try another cheese – try shredded cheddar, asiago, or gouda.
• Use another fresh herb – try minced thyme, rosemary, or sage in place of the parsley. You can also use a combination of several herbs.
• Add meat to filling – lay a few strips of deli chicken, turkey, or ham on garlic butter and top with cheese.

Storing and Freezing Rolls

These rolls store well in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days. For best results, I recommend reheating them in a 350F oven 8-10 minutes or individually in microwave before serving.

To freeze rolls, allow to cool completely, wrap well, and freeze up to 2 months. You can heat them straight from the freezer in a 350F oven 15-20 minutes or defrost on the counter first and then reheat.

These are literally THE softest, fluffiest, most melt-in-your-mouth yeast rolls I’ve had to date. You can’t help but go back for another….and another and another.

It’s the cheesy, garlicky filling, guys, it just gets everyone.

Save this recipe using the ‘save to recipe box’ button below. If you make it, please let us know! Leave a comment + star rating below, or take a photo and tag it on with #wholeandheavenlyoven.

More yeast roll favorites to bake up next!

• Garlic Cheddar Skillet Rolls
• Asiago Rosemary Dinner Rolls
• Texas Roadhouse Yeast Rolls

This post was updated with new recipe adjustments and photos on 12/2/25.