These delicious, flaky whole wheat dinner rolls have the texture of croissants but with much less fat and sugar.
2 tbsp honey (or sugar)
2 ¼ tsp dry active yeast
1 cup warm milk
3 cups whole wheat flour
¾ tsp salt
2 tbsp butter, softened
oil for brushing rolls
Dissolve the honey and yeast in warm milk. Keep aside to prove.
Measure out 2 ¾ cups of flour by lightly spooning into the cup and leveling with a knife. Put this flour, salt and the yeast-milk mixture into the food processor bowl. Process till a sticky dough forms. You can do this by hand if you prefer.
Put the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead, adding as much of the remaining flour as necessary, till the dough is smooth and elastic. The dough should be slightly sticky. Cover the dough and aloe to rest for 10 minutes.
Roll the dough into a 12” by 10” rectangle, lightly dusting with flour to prevent the dough from sticking. Now spread the softened butter over the rectangle. Starting from the long side, fold one third of the dough over the butter. Fold one third from the opposite side to have a folded rectangle which is 12” by 3”. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 10 to 20 minutes.
Take the dough out of the freezer and roll the dough out again into a 12” by 10” rectangle, using a little four if necessary. Folding from the long side, fold again as explained above. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 10 to 20 minutes.
Remove from the freezer and roll the dough, using a little flour if needed, into a 12” by 8” rectangle. Starting with the long side, roll the dough (as for a jelly/ swiss roll) and pinch at the seam. Do not seal the ends of the roll.
Cut the roll into 12 equal pieces and place each in a greased muffin cup, cut sides up. Brush the tops of the rolls with oil, cover, and allow them to rise until almost double in size (about 30 to 45 minutes).
You can also cut the dough into 10 triangles and roll each triangle into a croissant/ butterhorn shaped roll.
Bake at 190C for 20 to 25 minutes, till golden brown. Remove from the pans and cool slightly on a rack. These rolls are truly flaky and soft and best eaten when warm. If serving later, warm the rolls before serving.
