Sheltering in place and with Covid all around us, I have had the time to perfect my bread making skills. Making many different styles and flavors. I finally decided I love making my bread rolls. My honey Nick makes sandwiches for his lunches also we toast them up to complete our meals. If only I could add the scratch-n-sniff to this article. Here it is, my recipe of the most simple way to make and be successful with your homemade roll. I promise once you make it a few times it’ll be like 1,2,3……..
Ingredients:
3 1/2 cup Flour
1 cup of warm Water
3 Tsp dry yeast (add to warm water and add the sugar) whisk well and let it get to bubbly stage this means its active.
3/4 cup active sourdough Starter ( you can buy live starter (online) or make your own, many recipes online, takes several days to do but once you have it you’ll have as long as you take care and feed your started) Mine was a gift from my neighbor Pam & we call her “Baby Sally”
1 Tbls Sugar
1 1/2 Tsp Sea salt
1 cup Shredded Cheddar
1/2 cup Bacon Crumbles
1 Egg, egg wash
Optional: Trader Joe’s “Everything but the bagel sesame seasoning blend” or whatever you want to top with.
Instructions:
In a large mixing bowl mix all ingredients together with a spoon, let rest 15 minutes.
Using dough hook knead for 5 minutes.
In a medium size bowl (I use Stainless steel) lightly coat with olive oil, place dough inside and cover loosely with plastic wrap. DO NOT have oven heated. Place bowl in oven, let rise for 2 hours, remove from oven and fold dough a few times, keeping inside of the same bowl, cover and rise for 1 more hour best to rise another 2 hours.
Prepare a flat baking sheet (no edges) with a piece of parchment paper that is cut to size of your baking stone. Place baking stone in oven.
Remove your dough from oven. Turn on oven to 450 degrees, heat for 40 minutes
While oven is heating up your baking stone, make your dough balls not over kneading, place on parchment paper covered baking sheet, inch or so apart. (try to finish within 10 min or less to let dough settle for final rise) Cover your dough balls with a towel. Let rise.
After your 40 minute rise, whisk egg together making egg wash and brush on top of your dough balls and sprinkle with your topping then score the top criss cross using a razor blade.
Let dough rest while oven is heating.
After 40 minutes carefully slide the parchment paper on hot baking stone.
Bake 10 minutes then turn down oven to 375 degrees bake another 10 minutes baking should be close to done, maybe 2 minutes more, bake until tops are golden brown.
Take out the rolls by sliding back on your flat baking sheet and place on a cooling rack, sliding the baking sheet away. This is just to make it easier for transferring rolls.
Wait if you can for 20 minutes and enjoy!
The rolls are soft in the middle and crusty on the outside best served on the same day of baking. Store in a ziplock. The rolls soften on the outside the next day, so crust is softer but still delicious. I like toasting my roll.
Yields: 8 Large Rolls
Variety of ways to make rolls; Add fresh garlic pieces, jalapenos & cheddar cheese. Make plain rolls with different toppings; Sesame seeds, Poppy seeds, Coarse Sea salt, Everything but the Bagel seasoning blend from Trader Joes, Herb de Provence be creative and make and bake what your pallet is screaming for. Enjoy!
