French Bread Rolls

I originally made this recipe from My Kitchen Cafe to go along with her Italian Meatball Subs. I made them again yesterday, just trying to get some practice in (I have a long way to go when it comes to baking still), and although they turned out much better than the sub rolls from the night before (which still tasted great, just didn't look pretty), hers are much prettier (see them here)! The good news is that any bread recipe that I can follow get a yummy result with, you can too :-). One of these days I'll get it down!

(makes 12 large rolls)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:
In a large bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
To the yeast mixture, add the oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 12-14 equal pieces, and form into round balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth (or greased saran wrap), and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Bake for 12-13 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.
*Can freeze the rolls after baking – microwave on high for 2 minutes before serving.

1 comments:

Andrea the Kitchen Witch said...

homemade rolls are delicious, regardless of looks :) And these look pretty darn good, too!