Wheat Rolls
(can make white rolls by using all regular flour,
instead of whole wheat flour in this recipe)
1 ¾ c. milk
¼ c. shortening or oil
¼ c. sugar
1 t. salt
1 c. Whole wheat flour +
1 c. Whole wheat flour
1 ½ – 2 c. Regular flour
1 pkg. (2 ½ t.) yeast
Brief Instructions: Heat milk until warm just. Add all ingredients except flour plus 1 c. Of the flour and mix. Wait a couple of minutes for the yeast to get started. Add remaining flour. Let rest about 20 minutes. Knead until smooth, Let rise until doubled (45 min. – 1 hour.) Shape. (may be frozen for baking later.) Let rise again. (30 min.) Bake at 375 deg for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
More Detailed instructions
(if you don’t normally make yeast bread doughs)
This is a great recipe to start with. It is pretty simple. You probably already have all the ingredients except the yeast. In working with yeast the most important thing to remember is yeast is living so please don’t kill it. The usual way to kill it is if the ingredients too hot, like the liquid, or letting it rise in too hot a place (like as oven on low.) It looks like there are a lot of steps but they are each easy, and several involve you ignoring the dough for a period of time.
1) Heat the milk to warm (I use the microwave but I stir the milk afterward to ensure there are no hot spots.) It should be no warmer than a baby bottle, about 100 degrees.
2) Add all remaining ingredients except the flour(s). Then add 1 cup of the flour. (If you are doing wheat rolls, I add 1 cup of the whole wheat flour.) Stir this well.
3) This step is optional, but it ensures the yeast is still alive. Wait about 10 minutes. If the yeast is alive you should see bubbles forming.
4) Stir in the rest of the flour. If your house is humid you might need a bit more flour, if it is dry a bit less flour. I use a dough hook ( sort of a loopy thing with a wooden handle), to mix it, but you can use a heavy wooden spoon. It should have enough flour so it isn’t very sticky any more.
5) Let the dough rest about 20 minutes.
6) Knead the dough on a floured board or counter or bowl until it is smooth. (Well mixed)
7) Put dough in an oiled bowl and loosely cover with a towel or waxed paper and let it rise until doubled. (about 45 min – 1 hour)
8) Push the dough back down.
9) Shape the dough in to balls (maybe a scant ¼ c dough each) and place next to each other but not touching in a greased (or sprayed with Pam) pan. You can use any type of cake pan, square, rectangular or round.
--- for those of you making mini communion loaves, I take 1-2 tablespoons of dough, roll it into a ball, and place them a couple of inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.) then I press them down a little with the palm of my hand or a spatula into a loaf shape. After they rise, but before baking (see step 10) I score a cross in the top with a knife. ---
10) Let them rise again until doubled. (Maybe 30 minutes.)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
11) Bake until lightly browned. A nine inch round or square pan will take about 20 minutes. A larger pan may take a bit longer. The mini communion loaves may take as little as 10 minutes.
These freeze well.
If you want them for a special meal you can freeze the dough after it is shaped. You will need to allow time for them to thaw and rise before baking.
You can also freeze them after they are baked.