Homemade Kaiser Rolls

This past Wednesday was my hubby's birthday. Anytime we celebrate a birthday in our home, the birthday person chooses his favorite dinner meal and type/style of cake or dessert they would like me to prepare for that evening. Marty chose barbecue pulled pork for dinner and left the rest for me to surprise him with. In our opinion, the best roll to serve bbq pork on is the Kaiser roll. I decided that since I've been experiencing such great success with my baked, yeast breads lately, I would try homemade Kaiser rolls. I recently purchased "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" by Peter Reinhart. It has been so informative to read through to understand the how's and why's of bread baking. I would highly recommend this book to any novice baker who has been hesitant in working with yeasts.

I will be honest, I had to rush this recipe a little because I forgot to prepare the Pate Fermentee the night before. I was able to have the "starter" in the fridge by 9a.m. and removed it after lunch to warm to room temperature before preparing the remainder of the dough for the rolls. The finished rolls didn't seem to have been too affected by the rushed process. I don't have a Kaiser dough cutter, so I rolled each roll into a 6 inch rope and then tied it into a knot. I then sprinkled poppy seeds on top since my kiddos don't like sesame seeds. The rolls had a nice crisp outer crust and wonderful chewy centers. They were perfect filled with the bbq pulled pork (recipe to come).

I'm calling my first attempt at Kaiser Rolls a great success. I'm sure that the next time I fix them, and don't have to rush the recipe, they will be even better. The process of this recipe, though a little time consuming, was fairly simple and definitely one I will be using again.

Just a little added information during this economy crunch. I read today that if you begin to make your own bread every week, instead of buying bread at the store, the average family would save approximately $4.00 per week. That is an annual savings of over $240.00! I found this very interesting and encouraging for me. I'm looking for any way I can to assist my family in saving money.

From the heart of my kitchen to yours, may your experience be fun and your food always flavorful! Enjoy!

Pate Fermentee

1 1/8 cups (5 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/8 cups (5 oz.) unbleached bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
3/4 cup to 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons water at room temperature

1. Stir together the flours, salt and yeast in a 4-quart bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Add 3/4 cup of the water, stirring until everything comes together and makes a coarse ball (or mix on low speed for 1 minute with the paddle attachment). Adjust the flour or water, according to need, so that the dough is neither too sticky nor too stiff. (It is better to err on the sticky side, as you can adjust easier during kneading. It is harder to add water once the dough firms up.

2. Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for 4 to 6 minutes (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook for 4 minutes), or until the dough is soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. The internal temperature should be 77 to 81 degrees.

3. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. cover the bowl with plastic wrap and ferment at room temperature for 1 hour, or until it swells to about 1 1/2 times its original size.

4. Remove the dough from the bowl, knead it lightly to degas, and return it to the bowl, covering the bowl with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight. You can keep this in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it in an airtight plastic bag for up to 3 months.

Kaiser Rolls

1 1/2 cups (8 oz.) pate fermentee
2 1/4 cups (10 oz.) unbleached bread flour
3/4 teaspoons plus a pinch salt
1 - 1 1/2 teaspoons diastatic barley malt powder or barley malt syrup
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil or shortening, melted
10 tablespoons to 3/4 cup water, lukewarm (90-100 degrees)
Poppy or sesame seeds for topping
Semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting

1. Take the pate fermentee out of the refrigerator 1 hour before making the dough. Cut it up into about 10 small pieces with a pastry scraper or serrated knife. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour to take off the chill.

2. Stir together the flour, salt, malt powder, and yeast in a 4-quart bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Add the pate fermentee, egg, oil and 10 tablespoons water. Stir (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment) for 1 minute, or until the ingredients form a ball. If there is still some loose flour, add the remaining 2 tablespoons water.

3.Lightly dust the counter with flour, transfer the dough to the counter, and begin kneading (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook). Knead for about 10 minutes (6 minutes by machine), adding flour, if needed, to make a dough that is soft and supple, tacky but not sticky. The dough should pass the windowpane test and the internal temperature should register 77-81 degrees. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it to coat it with the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

4. Ferment at room temperature for 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size. If the dough doubles in size before 2 hours have elapsed, remove it, knead it lightly to degas it, and return it to the bowl to continue fermenting until doubled from original size or until 2 hours have elapsed.

5. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into 6 to 9 equal pieces (4 ounces for large rolls, 2 2/3 ounce pieces for smaller rolls). Form the pieces into rolls. Mist the rounds lightly with spray oil, cover with a towel or plastic wrap, and let the dough relax for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sheet pan with baking parchment, lightly mist it with spray oil, and then dust with semolina flour or cornmeal.

6. Prepare the individual rolls by cutting them with a kaiser roll cutter or knotting them. Place the rolls, cut side down, on the parchment, mist lightly with spray oil, and loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap or a food-grade plastic bag.

7. Proof the rolls for 45 minutes at room temperature, then flip them over so the cut or folded side is facing up. Mist again with spray oil, cover the pan and continue proofing for another 30 to 45 minutes, or until the rolls are double their original size.

8. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Uncover the rolls and prepare them for baking. If you want seeds on your rolls, mist them with water and sprinkle poppy seeds over the top. If not, just mist them with water.

9. Place the pan in the oven, spray the oven walls with water, and close the door. After 10 minutes, rotate the pan for even baking and lower the oven setting to 400 degrees. Continue baking until the rolls are a medium golden brown and register approximately 200 degrees in the center. This will take 15-30 minutes for large rolls, or less for smaller rolls.

10. Remove the rolls from the pan and transfer to a cooling rack. Wait at least 3o minutes before serving.

Source: The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart