Nine-grain Bread Rolls (Chatty Version)

 This recipe makes 12 large rolls or 20 small rolls.

If you only want the recipe follow this link

https://retired-maths-teacher.blogspot.com/2021/02/nine-grain-bread-rolls-tldr-version.html

If you want the videos

Part 1: Making the dough https://youtu.be/yK_0mvVsgzs

Part 2: Forming the rolls and baking https://youtu.be/tmHqgmllWUs

First ingredients, in order	Notes
45 ml cooking oil	Lam Soon’s Naturel Canola with omega 3
190 ml of whole milk (about 3/4 of a cup)	Any long life carton milk will do.
90 ml of water (about 3/8 of a cup)	Filtered tap water
3-5 ml of salt	I use sea salt.  More salt (5 ml) gives more flavour but inhibits the yeast so I use less.
35 ml brown sugar	I tend to use organic brown sugar.
25 ml of yeast	LeSaffre yeast
50 grams of rye flour	Organic rye flour from Germany, sourced from HOI.  (If I could, I would buy Canadian rye.) House of Ingredients (Concept Store) - Google Maps
400 grams of high gluten white flour	I like the Singaporean unbleached bread flour from Prima Flour, sourced from Bake with Yen.  Bake With Yen Kota Damansara- Google Maps                                      Alternatively, I use the ‘Japan Super High Gluten’ flour from HOI.

You can use a sturdy spoon to stir the first five ingredients. plus about half of the white flour.  After that, you must switch to kneading as you complete adding the flour. See the videos

Cover the bowl of dough with a tea towel and place it in the refrigerator for about 8 hours, i.e., overnight.  By morning the dough should have doubled (or more) in size.

Before:

After:

Wake up early (or not), finish the recipe, and get ready to enjoy breakfast.  You will need cooking oil, more brown sugar and your package of 9-grains.

Use a cooking brush to paint your roll pan with cooking oil.  Be generous: paint all the wells and the flat surface between the wells.  Do not omit this step.  I recommend Ikea’s made in Italy stainless steel pan with a plastic serving lid.  I distrust non-stick / plastic / silicon rubber pans.

Second ingredients, have ready	Notes
10 ml brown sugar
30 ml of Made in Canada Nine Grain	The 9-grains are sourced from HOI.  The grains are brown flax, Anthograin, rye, trititcale, barley, sesame, spelt, quinoa (technically, not a grain), and millet.  1) I like the Oxford comma.  2) I generally store these grains in the refrigerator, as one pack can last a few months.

                             

Coat your palms with cooking oil; either the left-overs from the brush or get some more.  Lift up the dough and sprinkle both of the ingredients on the bottom of the bowl.  Knead into the dough for about 3-5 minutes. The dough will collapse to its original size.  This is normal- do not panic.   Break off 12 pieces from the dough and roll them, one at a time.  The oil on your palms should prevent the dough from sticking.  If necessary,  use more oil.  Place each round ball in a well.  If you have more wells than rolls add a little water (20-30 ml) to the empty wells.  Or, if you have more dough than wells, you can make a small loaf of bread together with your rolls. Paint the top of each roll with cooking oil then set aside at room temperature for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Unless it is raining I go for a walk in the nearby park.  Remember to set your oven temperature to 190 C (equivalent to 375 F) and ensure the baking rack is in the top position of the oven.  If you do not have an oven, you might use an air fryer or toaster oven instead.  Results will vary.

The rolls must at least double in size and spread out from the wells onto the flat surface before they are ready for baking.  You will recall that, in addition to the wells, the flat surface of the pan should be painted. 

When the rolls have risen and the oven is hot enough, bake for about 20 minutes. The exact time will depend on your oven.  My oven heats more strongly at the back so after 10 minutes I rotate the pan.  Be quick so only a little heat escapes.  After 18 minutes I change the oven setting from bake (bottom heating element) to grill (top element) and increase the temperature to 220 C (or 430 F).  At the 19 minute mark have a look at the rolls.  If they are nicely golden on top they are done.  Otherwise, rotate the pan again and wait another minute.  

 Place on a rack to cool.   

            

Make a cup of tea or coffee as you wait.  My favourite way to eat the rolls is to dip them in the gravy from a chicken curry.  Warm lightly salted butter is also excellent.  Children might prefer peanut or hazelnut butter.  

Serving suggestions

 

A note about measuring  

I tend to use teaspoons and measuring cups.  This sort of measuring is imprecise. Are the ingredients in the spoon rounded?  Or flat?  If you are a fussy chef, you can weigh out all the ingredients instead.  There are conversion sites on the internet between capacity measures (ml) and weights (grams).  When I helped to make moon cakes I was so impressed with the precision weighing of every cake that I bought an electronic scale for myself.  Six months later, I must admit to myself it was quite likely a wasted investment.  Instead, I think of my grandmother, and judge the size of each roll by eye- which means they are all different sizes.  I like to think Nan was never fussy about measuring, yet she was recognised throughout the parish for her homemade bread.