Light Wheat Rolls

Light Wheat Rolls

I can't have made these rolls in over two years. I keep thinking about making them because they are so, so good, but as with most yeast rolls, I am usually the one who ends up eating most of them because my husband likes sweets and my one son is super picky (and shouldn't be eating much wheat/gluten anyway). These freeze really well, so that's a good reason to make them too. So I'm making them now. Mostly to blog about them, but also to take to a family at church who just had a new baby. Mom is still eating for two, you know.
The title is really true: these are surprisingly light wheat rolls. With all the butter, they taste fantastic--the butter brushed on top before and after baking really give these an amazing crust. They're crisp, chewy, salty and buttery on the outside, soft and tender on the inside. The spiral is what makes them super special to me, so don't skip that step. I noticed that some people skipped it on Allrecipes.com where I got the recipe, but they just don't look as good.
These are not rolls that you can make up and let rise overnight in the refrigerator, by the way. I tried that with icky results. If you want to make them ahead of time. Bake them, cool, and then freeze. They warm up in the oven nicely after having been frozen. I can't give exact instructions on reheating, as I think I do it differently every time. Just keep your oven between 300 & 350 degrees and check on them every 10 minutes or so.

Light Wheat Rolls

    --Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

•  2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
•  1 3/4 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
•  1/4 cup white sugar
•  1 teaspoon salt
•  1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
•  1 egg, beaten
•  2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
•  2 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
•  1/4 cup butter, melted 

Instructions:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

Mix sugar, salt, 1/4 cup melted butter, egg, and whole wheat flour into yeast mixture. Stir in all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Turn dough out onto a well floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place dough in bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Punch down dough, cover, and let rise in warm place until doubled again, about 30 minutes.

Butter 2 dozen muffin cups. Punch down dough, and divide into two equal portions. Roll each into a 6x14 inch rectangle, and cut rectangle into twelve 7x1 inch strips. Roll strips up into spirals, and place into muffin cups. Brush tops with melted butter. Let rise uncovered in a warm place 40 minutes, or until doubled in bulk.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven, and brush again with melted butter.

Makes 24 rolls

I think these look so cute all rolled up and ready to rise.