Amish Dinner Rolls (19)

 

Having recently visited Amish country in Pennsylvania, I was excited to try and recreate the delicious rolls I ate there. Of course, King Arthur already has a recipe.

This recipe is actually a potato roll. There are literally mashed potatoes in the dough. The potato bread recipe I typically use does not require butter, so I was fairly certain these would taste better. Butter = better. 

The recipe lists the ingredients, and instructs you to simply mix the whole thing together until it's a soft, smooth dough.  I wasn't really comfortable with that technique, so I reverted back to my standard bread making routine. 

I measured the flour, yeast, and salt into the bowl of my Bosch, and pulsed to combine. Then I added in the mashed potatoes and ran the machine until it was mostly small clumps. I should mention here, that I ran my cooked potatoes through a  ricer, so all the pieces were small to start.  

In a medium measuring cup, I combined the starch water, sugar, and eggs, and stirred until combined.  These I slowly drizzled into the flour mixture, with the mixer on low. Once that was combined, I added in the butter one bit at a time until it was incorporated. Last but not least, I let the whole thing mix on medium for eight minutes. It was a VERY sticky dough. I scraped it into a well greased bowl and covered to rest for 90 minutes. 

I thought with all the butter and eggs, this dough wouldn't get much of a lift. But after 90 minutes it had doubled in size beautifully. I greased a 9x13 pan, laid a parchment sling inside, and greased that as well. Then I divided the dough into 24 equal pieces by weight. This was a pain in the rear, which took forever because the dough was still so darn sticky. Next time, I'm doing 18 rolls.  I also gave up on my normal "roll the dough pieces on the counter to make a perfect ball" technique because it stuck to me and the countertop (despite greasing both). In the end, I sprayed my hands with Pam, and rolled each portion into something resembling a ball before plopping it into the pan. 

They were left to rise 90 minutes, which again, was plenty of time to produce some very puffy, full rolls. They cooked for a total of 28 minutes before I removed them from the oven and buttered the tops. 

I could tell just from looking at the rolls that I had made a mistake. There was very little definition between the rolls, and they had almost flattened on the tops, instead of rounding. When I pulled one open, my fears were confirmed--too much moisture in the dough, not enough flour. 

Now this is why bread making is tricky. Different elevations, and the day to day changes in humidity, can make a big difference. You must learn to get a feel for the tackiness each recipe is supposed to have, and adjust accordingly. That's why making a recipe for the first time can be hard. I knew this was supposed to be a sticky dough. And it was. It was, however,  too sticky.  Next time, I will add a few more ounces of flour and see how it goes.  Also, I will let them rise less on the 2nd proof. Those bubbles are just too big for a dinner roll. 

Despite all those textural problems, the taste was fantastic. The whole 9x13 pan was gone within an hour. I will definitely give these rolls another try! Bakers learn as they go...

Scores (out of 5): Dustin: 4 . Breanna: 2. Michael: 4 . James: 4. Andrew: 5. Total  19/25

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/amish-dinner-rolls-recipe