Onion Rolls

So far I’ve been pretty successful in meeting one of my goals for 2004: learning to bake yeast breads and rolls. Many of the successful recipes have been posted here and I have been been baking 2 out of every 3 weeks on average. I hadn’t tried anything new recently, instead cycling between flatbreads, rolls (sweet and savory), and so on, practicing and refining my techniques.

Today was time for a change, and I discovered a dough that should work great for making empanada’s (a moment of silence for the late, lamented Jose’s in Palo Alto, famous for empanadas and bbq sauce pizza). Here then is the link to the recipe for King Arthur Onion Rolls. The rolls are crunchy on the outside and moist and flavorful on the inside, thanks to the onions. Besides making empanadas with this dough, variations of the onion roll could be made, using different fillings, and perhaps flavoring the dough with herbs. Hmmm …

I used to link to the recipe on the King Arthur site. Then I discovered it’s impossible to provide persistent links to their recipes. Plus, their search engine simply doesn’t work. Herewith, then, the recipe:

Onion Rolls

Sponge
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1/2 cup (4 ounces) lukewarm water
2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) sugar
1 cup (4 1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

Dough
1/2 cup (4 ounces) milk
1 egg
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 to 2 1/2 cups (8 1/2 to 10 5/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

Filling
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) butter or margarine
2 cups chopped onions (2 medium-to-large onions, 12 ounces unpeeled, 10 ounces peeled and chopped)
1 tablespoon poppy seeds (optional)

Topping
melted butter
poppy seeds (optional)*

Sponge: In a large bowl, or in the bucket of a bread machine, mix together the yeast, lukewarm water, sugar and 1 cup of the flour. Let sit till bubbly, about 30 minutes.

Manual/Mixer Method: Place all of the remaining dough ingredients into the bowl with the sponge. Mix and knead until you’ve formed a smooth dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover it, and let it rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until it’s almost doubled in bulk.

Bread Machine Method: Place all of the dough ingredients into the pan of your bread machine, along with the sponge; program the machine for manual or dough, and press Start. Check the dough about 10 minutes before the end of the final kneading cycle; it should be perhaps a bit “gnarly,” but still nice and soft and workable.

Filling: While the dough is rising, prepare the onions. Melt the butter in a large frying pan and add the onions. Saute them over low-to-medium heat until they’re soft and barely golden, about 20 minutes. Remove them from the heat and set them aside. Stir in 1 tablespoon poppy seeds, if desired.

Shaping: Gently deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured or oiled work surface. Divide it into eight pieces. Flatten each piece into a rough rectangle approximately 4 inches wide by 7 inches long. Spoon 1/8 of the onion mixture in a strip down the “short center” of each dough rectangle (i.e., spoon filling the short way across the dough, not the long way). Fold both sides of dough over the onions and pinch together to seal all around, making eight rolls which are each approximately 4 inches long by 2 1/2 inches wide. If you happen to have a crimping sealer, run it all around the border of the dough; it’ll do a really nice job.

Place the rolls, about an inch apart, on a lightly greased (or parchment-lined) baking sheet. Set them in a warm place to rise until puffy, about 1 hour.

Preheat your oven to 500