Roll Making and Reading

 

 I'm currently testing out dinner roll recipes.

This came as a result of the heavy rocks I tried to pass off as whole wheat cloverleaf rolls at Christmas dinner.

It was a new recipe I tried.  I was a bit concerned when they hadn't risen much at all after the required rising time.  I went ahead and baked them anyway.  Big mistake!  What emerged from the oven were small, heavy sad looking cloverleafs.  With no back-up plan in place I put them in the bread basket and hoped for the best.

It came as no real surprise when partial rolls were left on plates.

I have made homemade rolls in the past with good success.

For whatever reason this batch was a major dud.

The ingredients were all fresh, so I think it had to do with the rising not happening properly.  To be truthful that is always the thing that scares me away from bread making.  It often doesn't seem to rise like it should for me.

Yesterday, I found this recipe on one of my favorite cooking blogs and thought it would become my first test subject.

As you can see in the first photo the dough looked very nice coming out of the bread machine.

I shaped them, covered them with a tea towel and set them in the oven to rise.  The oven was off, but I put a small pan of hot water on the bottom shelf.

Once the rising time was up they were looking good.  Doubled in size and nicely shaped.

I didn't use this method for the Christmas rolls.  They just sat on the counter.  Maybe this had something to do with the major flop??

 After baking, they looked that nice golden brown color I was hoping for.

The true test, of course, took place at the dinner table.

They were a nice soft texture with a slightly sweet taste.

Best of all, they were light as a feather.  So unlike those Christmas rocks.

They made a batch of 15.  We kept six out and put the rest in the freezer.    I'm hoping to find a few foolproof and delicious recipes before Easter rolls around.   That way there will be no surprises at the dinner table.

This recipe is a definite keeper in the soft, slightly sweet category.

Next up I'd like to try some crusty types and then maybe some with herbs.  I used to have a good recipe for one with potatoes and rosemary.  Can't seem to find that recipe, however.

If you have any good candidates, feel free to let me know about them.  I'll keep you posted if I come across any more good ones.

Also, if you have good tips for getting bread dough to rise properly, I'm curious to know your secrets. 

In other exciting news, I've decided to start keeping track of how many books I read this year.  I know, riveting isn't it?  

 Without trying to meet any goals or challenges, I'm just curious to know how many books I read in a year and figured this might be the best place to keep track of it all.

The first one for this year is Duskin by Grace Livingston Hill.  I had never heard of this author until I began blogging and now find it fun to find her books at the thrift shops.  This was an enjoyable read, although I wouldn't say it was one of my favorites.

 

The White Gate by Mary Ellen Chase was another thrift shop find.

Written in 1954 it was this description that caught my interest:

"The white gate around which she centers its chapters is the symbol to a child of all which life holds of excitement and wonder.  Within the gate are its certainties:  an old house in Maine, a country family, a great warm kitchen with red geraniums in its windows; books; a flock of pigeons in the barn loft."

Sounded like the perfect cozy wintertime read to me and it was.

I read this in a few short sittings and am now onto book 3.  This one is also from the thrift shop, but an entirely different type of book than these first two.

Looks like we're in for some wintery weather in the next few days.

Should be nice for more reading time.  Are you reading anything good right now?