German Rolls

By Lsweetnell

Used to eat this bread all the time in Germany. It is so good with fresh butter and jam.

Ingredients

• 300 grams All purpose or strong bread flour
• 5 grams◆Salt
• 4 grams◆Sugar
• 6 grams Butter
• 170 ml Lukewarm water
• 12 grams Live yeast (or dry yeast)
• 1 White sesame seeds, poppy seeds, etc +

Preparation

Step 1

Combine the ◆ ingredients together in a bowl and mix them. [If you are using a bread machine: put all the dough ingredients into the machine and run it on the dough course. Skip down to step 8.]
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Dissolve the yeast in the water, and add it to the bowl. Knead for about 5 minutes until the starts to come together. Add the butter.
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Knead for another 5 minutes. The butter should be fully incorporated into the dough, and the surface of the dough should be smooth.
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[First proofing] Gather the dough into a ball, place it in a bowl, and cover it with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm place for 40~60 minutes.
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Check the dough after 40 minutes. It should look like this.
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[Resting] Divide the dough into 8 pieces and shape them into smooth balls. Let them rest for 10 minutes. While resting, cover them with a slightly damp tea towel, so they don't dry out.
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Make sure the dough is shaped into a neat ball. use the ball of your hand to slightly flatten the ball into the proper shape for a kaiser roll. Create crown-shaped imprints in the dough using the side of a fork.
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Press sesame, poppy, or other seeds into the tops of the dough balls, if you want seeded rolls.
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[Second proofing] arrange the dough on a parchment lined baking sheet, and let the dough rise in a place that is about 38℃
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When the rolls have risen, spray them lightly damp with water, and bake them in a 200℃ oven for 15~18 minutes.
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[Advanced shaping technique] You can also shape the bread using your fingers. This method may not leave clean lines, like you see with the fork above, but I encourage you to challenge yourself and try it.