Bready or Not: Soft White Dinner Rolls using Sourdough Starter
These Sourdough Soft White Dinner Rolls can be made using a cup of sourdough starter, or with my Shortcut Sourdough Start recipe. The rolls bake up light and airy with a refreshing sourdough tang. Be sure to eat them hot!
Course: Bread
Keyword: yeast bread
Servings: 16rolls
Author: Beth Cato
Equipment
kitchen scale
basting brush
2 cake pans or rimmed baking sheet
Ingredients
Dough
2 1/4teaspoonsinstant yeast
2Tablespoonswhite sugar
2/3cupmilk or half & half warmed (no higher than 110-degrees)
4Tablespoonsunsalted butter(half stick) melted and cooled
2teaspoonssalt
1cupsourdough discardabout 8 oz
2Tablespoonscornstarch
2 1/2cupsall-purpose flour plus more if needed
Top
olive oil
1Tablespoonunsalted butter melted
Instructions
In a large bowl, mix together yeast, sugar and warm milk and let sit for a few minutes to activate. Add the cooled-down melted butter followed by the sourdough discard, salt, and cornstarch. If using a stand mixer, switch to a bread hook as the flour is added, a cup at a time, adding more as necessary to reach a soft, workable consistency. The dough should no longer be super-sticky and pull away from the sides of the bowl. Continue to knead for another 5 minutes using a mixer, or up to 10 minutes by hand.
Add some olive oil to the bowl. Rolls the dough to coat it completely. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a towel to let rise until doubled, 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours; this will take longer if the starter was cold.
Cut parchment to fit in two 9-inch cake pans or for a rimmed baking rim. Apply nonstick spray on pan and paper.
Turn out the dough onto the counter and punch it down. Use a kitchen scale to weigh the dough, then divide it into 16 equal portions. Keep a saucer with some water in it nearby to dab in fingers to smooth the dough into a round--the dough may be sticky! Set in prepared pans, giving each roll some space to rise again.
Cover rolls and set in a warm place for the 2nd rise for about an hour, until doubled in size.
Preheat at 350-degrees. Bake for 11 minutes, rotate pans, then bake for another 11 to 15 minutes. The tops should be golden; a digital thermometer discreetly plunged into a middle roll should be over 190-degrees.
Immediately brush melted butter over the tops. Let cool at least 10 minutes before eating. Leftover rolls keep well sealed at room temperature or in the freezer, but they must be eaten hot.