Description
Pillowy soft rolls with a long, slow ferment.
A delicious fusion of Yemenite bread and Tartines techniques.
Ingredients
Units
- 25 g (1 oz) sourdough starter
- 100 g (3 oz) warm water
- 50 g (2 oz) all purpose flour
- 50 g (2 oz) whole wheat flour
Dough
- 350 g (12 oz) warm water
- 400 g (1 lbs) bread flour
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 egg white (save yolk)
- Seed mix (for instance poppy, caraway and fennel)
Instructions
- Pre-ferment the dough. The night before, mix 25 g (1 oz) sourdough starter with 100 g (3 oz) warm water, 50 g (2 oz) all purpose flour, and 50 g (2 oz) whole wheat flour. Mix and seal in a small container overnight. The goal is a bubbly brew of yeast, water and air.
- Make the dough. In a medium bowl, add the pre-ferment mixture from above. Pour in 350 g (12 oz) of warm water. Add 400 g (1 lbs) of bread flour. Add 2 tbsp sugar, one egg, and one egg white. Reserve the yolk for egg wash. Mix thoroughly until a shaggy, then smoother ball emerges. The desired outcome is a very wet dough with a super elastic form. Pour the mixture into a medium-sized plastic container with a lid.
- Employ Tartine’s “mix and fold” method to aerate the dough. Every half hour, dip your wet hands into the bottom of the container and scoop and fold the dough three times. Do this four times for a total of two hours. The idea is to grow the dough slowly but steadily by gently folding it onto itself in the container.
- Let the dough rise without folding for another two hours. This is the bulk fermentation. Afterward, pour the dough mass onto a work surface and use a bench scraper and/or floured hands to gently shape it into a ball. Cut the ball into sixteen smaller balls and flour them to prevent sticking. You want lots of fluffy baby dough balls that will grow and puff up when baked.
- Gently flatten the baby dough balls and roll them up two or three times to resemble a mini croissant. Arrange the tiny rolls in a greased spring form pan (one or two layers, depending on size). Brush the rolls with the egg yolk wash and sprinkle with the seed mix of choice — poppy, caraway and fennel seeds work well. Let the rolls rest and grow slowly over time in a warm spot, out of direct heat or sunlight. Aim for an incremental, steady rise over 4 to 6 hours.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake pan for 40 minutes or until brown and crusty on top. Remove pan and let cool on a rack with the spring form latch released. Like a good sourdough loaf, the rolls should start to bend and crack with fissures between them. The finished bread has the airiness of challah with the chew of a mature sourdough. Enjoy!
Notes
- For optimal rise, ensure your starter is active and bubbly before beginning.
- To achieve a deeper flavor, use a mix of freshly milled whole wheat and bread flour.
- Brush the baked loaf with the reserved egg yolk for a rich, glossy finish.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Baking
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Yemenite
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 roll
- Calories: 200
- Sugar: 5
- Sodium: 150
- Fat: 8
- Saturated Fat: 2
- Unsaturated Fat: 5
- Carbohydrates: 30
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 4
- Cholesterol: 20