Crusty Water Rolls

“Rather a piece of bread with a happy heart than wealth with grief.”-Egyptian Proverb

I am on a new journey in life to bake more homemade bread. My goal is to bake bread at least twice a month. My hope is to become a better bread baker. Why? For me baking my own homemade bread is a bit less expensive, it is satisfying knowing I can provide my family with healthy breads, homemade bread taste better, and I also feel an innate sense of accomplishment in doing something that has been done for thousands of years.

Crusty Water Rolls

Needed Ingredients:

2 ¼ teaspoon of yeast

1 cup of lukewarm water

1 tablespoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

2 tablespoons of soft shortening or homemade lard (How to Render Lard-The Texas Pioneer Woman Blog-Grit Magazine)

2 beaten egg whites

About 4 cups of flour

 

Method:

Dissolve yeast into ¼ cup of the lukewarm water. To the rest of the water add the sugar, salt and homemade lard or shortening while blending well. Next combine the dissolved yeast to the rest of the mixture and then add the beaten egg whites.

 

Next, add 1 cup of flour and mix thoroughly.

Keep adding flour to make a soft dough. Knead 5 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Shape into a large ball and place into a greased bowl. Let the dough rise until doubled in size in a warm spot. I let it rise inside the oven with only the oven light on with the oven door closed.

After rising, punch down the dough and let it rise again until doubled in size. Punch dough down again and let rest 10 minutes. Shape into rolls and place into a greased muffin tin.

Let the dough rise until doubled in size in a warm spot.

Place a large baking dish with hot water on the rack under the muffin tins. This will make the rolls crustier. Bake at 400º F. for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.

 

 

 Baking is one of life’s simple, but great pleasures. I have a wonderful time as I concentrate on mixing, kneading, waiting on the bread to rise, and finally baking the bread. The house smells heavenly of fresh baked bread. How wonderful to have homemade rolls served with homemade butter or homemade cream cheese topped with homemade jelly or jam or homemade fruit butters! I hope my words and pictures inspire you to bake a fresh batch of rolls!