Crispy White Rolls

I wanted to try a different kind of roll for dinner last night (and therefore, for lunches today). This recipe is adapted from my Bread Cookbook written by Farmer's Wives, purchased at a used book store quite some years ago. The rolls had a nice, crunchy crust, despite the fact that I blatantly disregarded the instruction to brush the tops of them with egg white, and the insides were soft and tasty.

CRISPY WHITE ROLLS

1-1/4 cups warm water (approx 100F)
1 tbsp or 2 tbsp yeast
4 cups flour
4 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp margarine, softened and cut into small pieces
2 egg whites, beaten stiff

Pour the water into your bread machine container or mixing bowl, and sprinkle the yeast over it (use 2 tbsp if you need the rolls to be done very quickly, or 1 tbsp if you have more time to let them rise). Add the flour, sugar, salt and margarine, and begin mixing together. When the ingredients are just combined, add the egg whites; let the bread machine go through its mixing cycle, or knead by hand or using a Kitchenaid for about 10 minutes. Let rise 10 to 20 minutes, punch down and turn onto a floured surface. Divide into 16 pieces, form into balls, place on greased baking sheets, and flatten each with your palm. Brush the surfaces with water or egg white, if desired, and let rise until approximately doubled in size. Bake at 375F or 350F in a convection oven for 14 to 18 minutes, until the desired degree of brownness is achieved. Serve warm.

They make great sandwiches, too, and are good toasted under the broiler. These rolls are a little salty, because they contain relatively little sugar, but not overly so. Note that the recipe calls for shortening, but I used margarine. You need fat to make the rolls tender, but milk products, including butter, would make the crust softer. Ah, the chemistry of bread!

Happy Weekending, everyone!