Batter Roll Redux - or - A Bit of Butter in the Batter Makes the Batter Better!

Mmmmm ...

This morning I got a comment from Bre in KY about the roll recipe I posted the other day. Bre wrote in to say she liked the rolls and thought I would like to know about a couple of adjustments she'd made when she baked them.

Of course, I did! In fact, I welcome any information you want to share about a recipe - when it works, and when it doesn't. 

As it happened, I made the rolls for our Easter dinner too, incorporating my own little changes. It turned out Bre and I both lowered the baking temperature to 400 degrees, down from 500. We both increased the salt amount slightly. Bre also added some butter to the batter, which was the one additional note I made to myself after tasting my second batch.

Now, I'm happy to report I feel like I've made the best, most delicious dinner rolls I've ever tasted - right here in my own kitchen! That bit of butter in the batter made the batter better! This batch was light, yeasty, buttery and just sweet enough, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

For testing purposes, I cut the recipe in half this time. Well, that and I only had one egg left after cooking for a couple of day's worth of non-stop cooking. And there was simply no way I was risking life and limb in our never-ending rain, lightning, thunder, gale force winds, floods and tornado warning for one stinkin' egg!

Turns out a half recipe is the perfect size for 10 people to have two rolls apiece. That's good! Really good! I can't be trusted home alone with a full batch of these babies!

If you like rolls and you like baking - but even if you like rolls but don't like baking - I hope you will give this recipe a try when you want a fast and easy dinner roll that borders on roll perfection.

After all, I've sacrificed a lot to do all this research and tasting just for you.

Sticky, gooey batter really works!

A BIT OF BUTTER IN THE BATTER – EASY YEAST ROLLS

scant 1 tbsp. yeast (I use SAF instant yeast)

1 whole egg

¼ cup light olive oil

¼ cup melted salted butter

1 cup warm water

¼ cup white sugar

¾ tsp. salt

2 ½  - 3 cups all-purpose flour

Roll batter may be made with a stand or hand mixer, or stirred by hand. Place all ingredients, except flour, in a large mixing bowl and blend. Add flour and mix to form a thick, sticky batter. Cover the bowl with a towel and let stand at room temperature for one hour. Grease baking pan with shortening and/or butter. (I use both, to keep the butter from burning.) Pinch off small pieces of the dough and tuck under all around to smooth tops. Place dough in greased baking pan, leaving space between for rolls to expand. Brush tops of rolls with melted butter. Cover pan with a towel and let stand another hour. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for about 10-15 minutes, until golden brown on top. Serve warm, or bake ahead of time and reheat to serve. Makes about 18 rolls, depending on size.

Note:

For individual rolls, use a scoop to put batter into a greased muffin tin, fill about ¾ full. Brush tops with butter and bake at 400 degrees until golden brown.
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