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Whole Grain Potato Dinner Rolls
I developed this recipe for Thanksgiving because having bread rolls is a tradition in my husband’s family, and because having leftover mashed potatoes is a tradition in my family. Plus, I’d heard that potato starch molecules do interesting things in bread, making it softer and more moist among other things. This recipe uses 1/2 cup (100g) of mashed potatoes per 14-15 rolls, and if you look at an assortment of potato roll recipes online, you’ll see that’s a lot of potato. I wanted a big impact and I think I got it.
I also have confession to make: I was planning to test and write this whole grain recipe for the website, but then use all purpose flour for my Thanksgiving crowd (who I thought might find my healthy whole grain rolls too challenging). Insert your betrayed-face emoji here. But then I ate a roll from my first test batch, and it was so soft, fluffy and perfectly delicious, that I changed my mind and decided I will be making the whole grain recipe, exactly as written below, for Thanksgiving at my house.
Leavening and Timing
In making this recipe, I kept in mind the craziness that is Thanksgiving prep–brainstorming what can be made ahead and how to manage oven and refrigerator real estate. These potato rolls seemed like a good idea because I like to make mashed potatoes 1-2 days ahead. Of course, people have slightly different ratios of potatoes, milk, butter and salt in their mashed potatoes (e.g. I don’t measure a single thing when making mashed potatoes), but this dough is forgiving and “correctable” when you knead it (more on that below).
The primary recipe I wrote uses instant yeast and is a 4-hour process from mixing to cooling rack. My recommendation is to make the rolls a day before, and leave them covered in the pan(s) until just before dinner is served. You can then pop the pans in the oven for a few minutes to warm them up, or microwave them in batches on a plate for just a few seconds–start with 5 seconds to test your microwave.
I also tested doing the first rise the night before and refrigerating the shaped rolls overnight to bake the next day. Keep in mind you need refrigerator space for this approach. Refrigerating the shaped rolls worked okay, but I suggest you let most of the final proof happen at room temperature before you put the pan into the refrigerator. My test batch, which I refrigerated immediately after shaping, barely rose overnight (9 hours) in the refrigerator and then needed 4+ more hours to warm up and rise the next morning. This seemed more stressful than having all or most of the final proof at room temperature for 1 1/2 hours the night before.
You might want to try the recipe version with sourdough starter that I also tested. It’s just as fluffy, but has sour in the flavor profile and less Maillard reaction (browning of the crust). Don’t let the color fool you; the rolls are done in 18-20 minutes (unless, of course, you’ve increased the roll size). Initially, I backed out some of the milk and flour of the yeast version in order to have identical hydration in the sourdough version. However, the rolls came out so differently that I realized this approach didn’t result in consistency of flavor anyway, so I might as well go with a recipe that’s easier to read. Simply replace the 7g of instant yeast with 80g of sourdough starter, and be prepared for a long process: 8-12 hours bulk fermentation and 3-6 hours final proof (see the recipe for more details). In this version, you’re definitely looking at mixing up the dough 1-2 days ahead.
Sourdough leavened potato dinner rolls
Flour Selection
The recipe calls for 3 cups of whole grain flour. I used a mix of turkey red and Kamut, but you can choose another strong red wheat to pair with a different lower gluten wheat, or use all strong wheat. Different flours may absorb more or less water, so aim for a dough that is malleable, almost sticky, but hand-kneadable after the initial mixing.
Pans and Roll Size
The recipe is written for 15 almost freestanding rolls in a 9×13-inch pan or 14 rolls in two round 8 or 9-inch pans.
If you want pull-apart rolls that are bursting from your pans, either multiply the recipe by 1.5 or use a smaller pan, for example a 9-inch square pan. If you put more dough in your pan or pack it in more densely, you will need a longer baking time. Aim for an internal temp over 200F and begin checking at 18 minutes.
For your dividing reference, the dough weight is approximately 825g on the yeast-leavened recipe and 905g on the sourdough recipe.
Whole Grain Potato Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
Optional Toppings
Sourdough Version
Instructions
Prep and Mixing
First Rise
Dividing and Shaping
Final Proof and Baking
Serving and Reheating
Sourdough Version
Shopping List
Whole Grain Potato Dinner Rolls