Cooking Lesson #529: Aunt Esther’s Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls

…from the Perspectives’ Holiday Kitchen

How you doin’? My Aunt Esther was my grandfather’s sister. She grew up in New York and then one day picked up her belongings, moved to Los Angeles and married a restauranteur. At the time he owned one of the only Chinese restaurants in town.
 
Dear Aunt Esther was a wonderful baker. I don’t know where she learned her baking skills, but she could bake up a storm with the best of them. We loved to have her over for dinner at least once a week. We just needed to pick her up early enough so she would have time to let her great bread doughs proof and bake. 
 
Soft, sweet and aromatic, my Aunt Esther’s cloverleaf dinner rolls were always a family favorite at holiday times and get-togethers, and they're still as delicious as I remember. I cherish the memories I have of the sweet, yeasty aroma coming out of the kitchen… and of my dear sweet aunt.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Refrigerated proof time:  2 hours
Warm proof time:  2 hours
Bake time:  12 to 15 minutes (at 190⁰ F internal temperature)
Yield: Makes 24 Dinner Rolls
 
Ingredients 
1 cup warm water (110⁰F)
2 (1/2 ounce) envelopes active dry yeast
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
1 or two drops yellow food coloring
1 teaspoon salt
5-1/2 cups all-purpose, soft winter wheat flour (White Lily, or see note)
 
Directions

1. Fill the steel bowl of your stand mixer with warm water to warm the bowl while you get ingredients together; place an instant read thermometer in the water. 
2. When you see the temperature is between 110-115⁰F, drain off all but 1 cup of the water.
3. Sprinkle the yeast over the remaining water and lightly mix.
4. Add the room temperature melted butter, sugar, room temperature eggs and salt.
5. Use the dough hook attachment and run mixer on low, adding the flour 1/2 cup at a time until dough comes together, adjusting the amount of flour, if necessary.
6. Run the mixer until dough is fairly smooth. The dough should not crumble.  It should be a little bit tacky, but should come together completely. Since humidity and other factors can change the texture of the dough, you may need to adjust by adding a little flour a tablespoon at a time by sprinkling over the dough, or even adding a little water the same way, dunking your fingers into warm water and flicking it at the dough until it comes together nicely.
7. Hand knead for about 5 minutes and roll into a ball.
8. Turn the dough out into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
9. Butter a muffin pan.
10. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half, then each half into 4 pieces, then each piece into thirds.
11. Roll each piece into a log and cut into three more pieces and roll in between lightly oiled hands into smooth balls.
12. Place three balls into each cup of the muffin pan. Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and let sit in a draft-free, warm place for two hours or until doubled in size. (You can put a heating pad underneath the muffin pan and turn it on low if the room seems too cool).
13. Preheat your oven to 375⁰.
14. Bake at 375⁰ F for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

ChefSecret:

• You can use Swans Down Cake Flour or King Arthur’s Guinevere Cake flour. 
• To make your own softer flour: for every cup of all-purpose flour remove 3 tablespoons of the flour and replace it with either corn starch or potato starch.
• When you are using yeast, mind the water temperature.  If it’s too cold the yeast will not eat sugar and if it is too hot it will kill off the yeast. Keep the water temperature at 110⁰ F.

Quip of the Day: “We all gain weight as we get older, because there's a lot more information in our heads. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.”
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross. Happy Holidays!
 
#ThanksgivingRecipes #Thanksgiving #SideDish #DinnerRolls #YeastRolls #HolidayRecipes #Holidays2022 #BeThankful #QuarantineKitchen #RedCross #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

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