Rye and Oat Rolls

I decided that I wanted at least a bit of wholegrain bread in my life, from time to time, so I decided to put some whole grain rye flour and oats together with (mostly) white flour. I cannot lie, DH won’t eat it if it’s too whole grain and I wanted it to be light enough to pass muster. What I developed has this great texture, especially due to the oats, that is reminiscent of English muffins but is yet a roll. This has a lovely chew to it and when toasted is just so delicious that I’ve been making them again and again. It’s a straightforward dough and easy to work with so let’s gather the ingredients and get crackin’.

As you may note above, I used demerara sugar here for a light caramel note. K. Put the yeast, sugar and 1/2 cup of luke water in the mixer or breadmaker and let proof together for about 5 minutes or so.

It’ll bubble more than that, the above pic is when it’s just starting to get feisty. K. Now you simply add the flours, oats, salt and oil and start mixing together with the yeast mixture and slowly add the water, waiting with that last 1/4 cup to see if needed if mixture looks a bit dry. This is true of either the breadmaker or mixer.

I specifically wanted you to see what “a little dry” looks like. Now mind you it can get sticky quickly so really add the water slowly and let it absorb into the mass. In either machine, give it a bit of time to mix in and then you will see if more liquid is needed. Oatmeal tends to “drink” down liquid so keep an eye on it. Generally, I find with a mixer that it works best if you start mixing with a paddle beater and then switch to a dough hook. K.

Here you see the dough is a bit sticky but has formed a nice mass and has the right consistency. Knead away! Then cover and let rise till doubled in bulk.

As you can also see, the texture is nice and smooth looking. Now I simply take handfuls of the dough and form balls of more or less equal size (this way they bake evenly) by rounding them and tucking them in and under till smooth.

Form all the rolls and place on two parchment lined rimmed baking sheet and let rise till doubled, approximately 30 minutes or so depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

Preheat your oven to 400 F/200 C. Place baking sheet in oven and bake for 22-25 minutes or till rolls are nicely browned and baked through. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. These make fab sandwiches, toast awesomely and freeze beautifully.

Rye and Oat Rolls

yields between 16-18 rolls depending on how large you make them

2 tablespoons instant dry yeast

2 tablespoons Demerara sugar or light brown sugar

1 cup (100 grams) whole grain rye flour

7 cups (900 grams) white flour

1 cup (80 grams) quick oats

1 tablespoon salt

1/4 (60 ml) cup canola oil

3 -3 1/4 cups (710-768 ml) lukewarm water

Directions:

Proof the yeast with the sugar and half a cup of the water for about 5 minutes or till yeast starts to bubble nicely. Add the flours, oats, and salt, oil and another 2 cups of water and watch as dough comes together, adding water as needed till dough is a bit sticky and forms a nice mass. You might not use the larger amount of liquid, it depends how the oats and flour absorb it. Okay. Let knead about ten minutes in mixer and in bread machine on dough cycle. Let rise covered till doubled in bulk in a warm environment about an hour or so. Cover two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and snag handfuls of dough, smoothing and tucking under to form balls and place on parchment papered sheets. Preheat the oven to 400 F/200 C. Let rolls rise about 30 minutes or till puffy and bake for 22-25 minutes or till browned. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Toasts and freezes beautifully.