Bread Rolls - Try #1

The picture I found looks lovely, this is how my rolls are going to turn out.  With some blood, sweat and tears I'd imagine.

I had a cook book  - The Complete Cook given to me as a housewarming gift many years ago, it has since been chewed by the over-excited Beagle we once had, and is well thumbed.  Still, it contains a lot of valuable information and recipes, ideal for any novice or amateur cook.  I think you can get hold of a copy in Amazon, should it take your fancy!

So here goes nothing...

Soft Wholemeal Rolls (taken from the Complete Cook)

250g/8oz Wholemeal Flour
1 Tsp Salt
25g/1oz Fat (butter or lard)
1 1/2 Tsps Fast Acting Yeast and a tsp sugar
about 150ml/1/4 Pint of warm milk

Frothy Yeasty Stuff

Add the yeast and sugar to the warm milk and set aside for 15 minutes or so, until becomes frothy.

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl, add the frothy mixture and beat until the dough comes away from the bowl.  Knead for 10 minutes.  Put the dough into an oiled bowl and set aside to prove until double its original size.

Knock the dough back, roll into a fat sausage shape and cut into 8 equal sized pieces.  Shape into rounds and press down firmly with the back of your hand and release.  Place the rolls onto a floured baking sheet leaving a space for expansion. cover and prove for about 15 minutes, or doubled in size.

Dust with flour and bake in a hot oven (230oC/450oF) for about 15-20 minutes. 

Got this prove down!

This time I thought I had it in the bag.

The dough proved perfectly in the confines of its bag, I made the little rolls and proved again.  My rolls are not going to turn out like the picture they stayed pretty much the same size.  Frustration is setting in... what on earth am I doing wrong here people?!  Still, perseverance is key!  I popped the rolls in the oven, and promptly forgot about them.  Simply becasue Georgie had popped over with the girls to make paperweights out of pebbles for their teachers end of school leaving gift.  Him upstairs said we should've used the bread rolls instead of pebbles they'd probably last longer.  Needless to say his input wasn't considered.

Nevertheless, bread pebbles are still a step up from napalm proof bread biscuits.

Still I am absolutely sure that you don't have this post-prove bread curse, so please have a go, I'd love to see your bread efforts, bad or good... bad preferably, it would make me feel a hell of a lot better!

Go forth and bake.

Love Melissa x