The Best Rolls

Danielle's Favorite Rolls

Check out these beauties!! Boy of Boy do I LOVE bread, its one of my many contributors to my tummy squish. If you have read some of my past posts you have probably started to pick up on the fact that I get a lot of recipes or inspiration from my wonderful mother. I love her so much and have such fond memories of cooking with her. I can remember as a kid just begging to help her do anything I could in the kitchen. My siblings would be out playing but I wanted to be in the kitchen helping my mom. In many ways I am a lot like her but our love for food and cooking links us together. I often call her at work to get her opinion on how I should cook something or if a pairing of flavors sounds good or gross. One year my mom gave my sisters and I a cook book complied together by the woman at her church. I had used it a few times and found some pretty good things in it but it wasn't until a couple years later when I volunteered to make rolls for thanksgiving that I discovered my mom had put her roll recipe in the book. What was truly amazing to me was that she named the recipe "Danielle's Favorite Rolls". I must admit I got a little teary eyed when I discovered it. So the title alone will tell you how much I love these rolls and I love bread of all sorts whether its French, Italian, pumpkin, banana, garlic etc. If it's bread I'll eat it but who wouldn't right. I think one of the best smells in the world is fresh baked bread. Who's with me??

My mom has a fancy bread maker and throws all of her ingredients into it and lets the machine do all the work for her. I however am not that cool so I have to do it the slightly more tedious way but I have recently discovered that I really enjoy making bread especially the kneading it by hand part, it just makes me feel so accomplished and rustic. 

Start out by heating your milk and water in a small sauce pan along with your butter. You want to be very careful with this and watch it. You just want to scald it which means to just bring it to the point right before it boils. You will know when its there when it starts to steam and small bubbles start to form along the edge of the pan. The butter doesn't need to be melted, just softened. Remove it from the heat and let it slightly cool.

In a standing mixer combine yeast, sugar, salt and one cup of flour. Add your milk mixture and beat with a dough hook until its some what combined then add your eggs.

It will look something like this, my bowl was already a mess since this was my second batch of dough. 

With all this Holiday Baking I have been doing I had to get my little man involved. He quickly learned that it was fun to watch the beater go around and around and I think he just liked being involved. He would make noises the whole time the machine was on. I'm not sure if he was trying to mimic it or out do it, either way he is silly and I love him to pieces. And yes I was holding on to him so he wouldn't fall off the counter and I had to watch those cute little fingers very closely. It was better then him pulling himself up against my legs whining for me to pick him up. 

At this point start to add your flour one cup at a time. The amount you use will vary on where you live. Altitude always plays a part in baking which can sometimes make things frustrating. Once the dough pulls away from the edges and forms a ball its done and ready to knead by hand. Put a little flour out on a clean work surface and dump out your dough, it will obviously be a little sticky so get some flour on your hands to help out. It won't take much kneading just enough to get it to be smooth but it should have some elasticity to it. 

I always spray a bowl with cooking spray then place my dough inside so it doesn't stick to the bowl. You can cover it with a clean towel or cling wrap. Let it double in size. The time frame on this will depend on the warmth of your house. It took about an hour and a half for mine to rise. 

This is before it had risen

Pound down your raised dough with your fist just to deflate it a little. Form it into 12 balls, this is a technique that took me a little bit to master, my mom is a pro and she taught me her ways. You want them to be nice and smooth on top. Place them in a greased 9x13 pan and let them double in size again. Then bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. They should be golden in color and you always know when bread is done if it it sounds hollow when you tap on the tops with you knuckle. 

My mom always smeared a little butter on the tops when they came out of the oven to give them a nice shine. This is optional of course but um butter is delicious so why wouldn't you want to do that. These rolls are so amazing. They are thick and dense and are delicious with just butter or with jam or used to make a sandwich with. If you are a bread lover you won't be disappointed. Have patients making them, remember bread can be tricky especially if its your first time but practice makes perfect. 

Danielle's Favorite Rolls

4 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour

2 Eggs, beaten

1 c. Milk

1/4 cup water

1 Tbsp of yeast (about a package and a half) 

1/3 cup Sugar

1/3 cup Butter

1/2 tsp Salt 

Scald milk and water, add butter then let cool. In a a mixer combine yeast, salt, sugar and 1 cup of flour. Add milk mixture and beat until combined. Add beaten eggs. Mix in remaining flour 1 cup at a time until dough forms a ball. Knead on a flour surface until smooth and elastic. Put in a greased bowl and let rise; until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Shape into 12 rolls; let rise again. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown. 

Bread Machine Version

Warm milk in microwave for 60 seconds. Add Wet ingredients to your bread machine (use warm tap water). Next add your dry ingredients and set machine on the dough setting. Once the dough is done rising remove and shape into 12 balls. Place in greased 9x13 pan and rise again until doubled in size. Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.