Potato Rolls

I usually eat healthily, although this photograph paints a different picture. I do on occasions, have a burger and fries. But even then, everything is homemade and the fries are baked. I also eat a huge-five-portion-fruit/veg salad with this meal. The total of this meal was 800 calories, not bad going considering most of my dinners are around 700 calories.

My choice of burger bun is this recipe for potato rolls. These potato rolls are light, soft, tender and delicious. They are versatile and can also be served as dinner or sandwich rolls.

They also freeze well. Once baked and cooled, simply wrap them individually in cling-film (plastic wrap) and place them into a freezable container/plastic bag and freeze until needed. Thaw overnight at room temperature when needed.

POTATO ROLLS
Makes 4-5 burger buns or 8 dinner rolls
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma’s - “Essentials of Baking”

Ingredients
65 g (2 ¼ oz) mashed potato
105 ml (⅓ c and 1 ⅔ T) warm water
80 ml (1/3 c) milk
1 t lemon juice
½ T sugar
1 ¼ t yeast
235 g (1 ½ c and 1 T) plan (all-purpose) flour
½ t salt
30 g (2 T) unsalted butter, melted
Sesame seeds (optional)

Method
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the mashed potato, warm water, milk, lemon juice, sugar and yeast. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until frothy.

2. Add the flour, salt and butter and mix with the dough hook attachment until a dough is formed. Once the dough is formed, knead for an additional 8-10 minutes.

3. Cover with cling-film (plastic wrap) and allow to prove until double its size, around 1 hour. Alternatively place the bowl into the refrigerator for an overnight cold prove. If doing a cold prove, remember to take the dough out of the refrigerator 1-2 hours before proceeding to the next step.

4. Punch the dough down and divide into 4-5 or 8 equal sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place onto a baking tray lined with parchment/silicone/greased. If forming dinner rolls, press lightly to flatten; if forming burger buns, flatten to a thickness of about 1 ½ cm (½ inch), allowing adequate room between them. Cover with a damp tea (kitchen) towel and allow to sit in a warm spot for 60-75 minutes or until double in size.

5. 20 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.

6. Spritz the dough with water and sprinkle sesame seeds on top if desired. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden and puffy. The bread should sound hollow when tapped on the underside.

7. Transfer the rolls onto a wire rack for cooling. Enjoy!