Whole Wheat Bread Rolls(Vegan)

 Whole Wheat bread rolls are soft and delicious. The rolls are bite-sized and make a perfect snack.     Enjoy with butter, homemade jam or honey.



We are at the peak of winter. The orchards are bare, the shrubbery brown and a calm pervades all around. Winter brings with it subzero temperatures and icy winds. The Sun is pale and mostly thick clouds dominate the sky rendering it ineffective.


Baking days are over. The yeast just refuses to awake from its slumber. It needs to be pampered by keeping the dough in the Sun and then keep moving with the movement of the Sun. A few days back, the day started on a bright note. And the bread baking spirits rose high. The dough was prepared quickly and placed under the pear tree where the Sun gets strongest in the morning. It took 4 hours for the dough to double. Second proofing had to be done in the oven itself. The dough was shaped into small bite-size rolls.

When it comes to baking with whole wheat flour, bread rolls are the best bet. Somehow I feel that the rolls are small in size and cook well through. You don’t get a doughy centre that sometimes happens in a loaf. Well, this is my thought and idiosyncrasy, and I always prefer rolls to loaf.



In this recipe, we make a sponge. That makes the rolls really soft.  The sponge method produces bread with more complex flavours and a lighter texture. This method suits baking with whole grain flours very much. And the dough needs just one rise. This suits baking in the winter.

This time, I decided on shaping rolls in a different way, I made oval rolls and arranged them in an eight-inch cake pan that was greased well and dusted with flour. The rolls came out soft and spongy.



On winter nights, we love to slice our rolls, spread a little butter and toast them on the hot griddle. It makes a lovely accompaniment to a bowl of soup and makes a fulfilling light dinner.




Whole Wheat Bread Rolls (Vegan)

Ingredients

Sponge

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons unrefined sugar
  • 1 tablespoon instant dry yeast

Dough

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice (or, ¼ cup orange juice)
  • Sponge (as above)

Instructions

Sponge

Mix all the ingredients mentioned under the sponge in a bowl. Mix 2-3 times to get a smooth batter. When all the ingredients are well incorporated, the mixture will become stringy. Cover and let it sit for I hour. It will rise and become very bubbly.

Dough

  1. In a large bowl, take all the ingredients of the dough and add sponge. Mix and knead for 5-6 minutes or until you get a very smooth and satiny and slightly sticky dough.
  2. Grease one 8 inches round cake pan. Pinch small balls of dough and shape them into rolls. Place the rolls in the prepared pan. Cover and keep in a warm place until the rolls double in size.
  3. Bake at 180 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until brown.
  4. Brush warm rolls with butter.
  5. Serve warm. 

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8 comments:

  1. If the ingredients are halved, how long will the dough take to rise?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello! The dough will take lesser time to rise. Your dough must double in volume. That is the right time to place in the oven. Happy Baking!

      Delete
  2. In case we want to make tuttifrutti buns, do we have to add extra sugar and milk to the dough?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To make buns, add a little extra sugar. You may add milk. Milk will make the buns softer and will also improve the keeping quality. Add tutti frutti after first rise. Happy Baking!

      Delete
  3. Hello, is the lemon juice essential? Will leaving it out affect the bread?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You may leave lemon juice and add extra water instead. Happy Baking!

      Delete
  4. Hello Namita
    Love your recipes. I wonder why lemon juice was used in this recipe. Is it because it contains atta?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello! Yeast works well in neutral to slightly acidic environment. Adding lemon juice helps the dough to rise and ferment well.

      Delete