Dinner Rolls (United States)
At one time, the United States was a nation of farmers. Most Americans lived out in the country where they raised crops or livestock. In the 1860s, even Brooklyn was covered with golden wheat fields. If you lived on one of those farms, you would eat fruits and vegetables from your own land. The food was simple, but fresh and delicious. Every evening, your mother would bake her own dinner rolls. You would slather them with home-churned butter and gobble them down. Here’s a recipe for old-fashioned dinner rolls. They’re soft, wheaty and a little bit sweet.
Ingredients
1 _ cups white unbleached flour
1 _ cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons yeast
1 _ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons soft butter
_ cup non-fat dry milk
1/3 cup instant potato flakes
1 _ cups warm water
Equipment you’ll need
measuring cup and spoon
mixing bowl
wooden spoon
baking tray
clean dish towel
Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir with a wooden spoon. When the dough becomes too thick to stir, mix it with your hands.
Now you’re ready to knead the dough. Gather it into a ball and place on a clean work surface. With the heel of your hand, push down on the dough. While pressing down, you should also push the dough away from you so it stretches into a kind of oval shape, something like a skate board. Fold the dough in half, then push and press again. If dough is very sticky, sprinkle a little flour over it, but not too much. After 10 minutes of pushing, pressing and folding, the dough should feel smooth and springy. Place in a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave the dough to rise for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Roll the dough into a snake and divide it into 16 pieces. Now it’s time to shape the rolls. You can roll them into balls. Or roll each piece into a 5 inch snake and tie it into a knot. You can also make up your own shapes.
Place rolls on a lightly greased baking tray and cover with a damp dish towel. Leave them to rise for 15-30 minutes.
Bake for 16 – 18 minutes. Eat rolls while they’re still warm.