Whole Wheat Raisin Dinner Rolls

This basic recipe came together as we wanted to create very basic, soft whole wheat rolls spiked with sweet raisins. In order to get nice and light rolls we made sure to let the dough rise a couple of times in between kneading and shaping the rolls. A combination of whole wheat flour, wheat germ and all-purpose flour is used, and the rolls have a nice wheat flavor without being too heavy and dense.

We made 16 quite small rolls, however you could divide the dough into 12 pieces in order to produce slightly larger rolls.

Starter

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon instant yeast
1 ½ tablespoons honey
1 cup water, room temperature

Dough

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup wheat germ
2 tablespoons dry milk
½ teaspoon instant yeast
1 ¼ teaspoons salt
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup raisins

Method:

1. Make the starter by combining the flour, yeast, honey and water in a medium bowl. Whisk the dough for about 3 minutes to incorporate air. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit in room temperature for 1 – 4 hours (alternatively refrigerate after one hour overnight, then make sure to take the dough out at least an hour before moving on to the next step.)

2. In a separate bowl, combine the whole wheat flour, wheat germ, dry milk and instant yeast. Whisk well, then add the salt. Add this dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir with a wooden spoon for about 3 minutes. Add the all-purpose flour to the dough and work the dough in the bowl until you have a rough dough, then knead it on a floured surface for 2 minutes, adding as little flour as possible. Cover it with an inverted bowl or oiled plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes. Knead the dough for another 5 minutes.

3. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise about 1 - 2 hours, ideally in 75 – 80 degrees. (If your kitchen is colder than that, you can put your oven on warm for a minute, then shut it off and leave the dough inside the oven for the rising period). Scrape the dough out on the floured surface and add the raisins, knead the dough well to incorporate the raisins evenly, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for about 30 minutes.

4. Cut the dough into equal pieces. This dough will make 16 quite small rolls, or 12 larger rolls. Divide the dough into the desired number. Then roll out the rolls, one at a time and set on lined baking sheets, 1-2 inches apart. Cover the sheet pan(s) with oiled plastic wrap and allow to rest until almost doubled, 1-2 hours.

5. Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees. On the lowest shelf in the oven, place a cast-iron pan or a sheet pan. Above, make sure you have two oven shelves free in case you’re utilizing two sheet pans (alternatively cook the two sheet pans in two batches).

6. Set the sheet pans in the oven. Toss ½ cup of ice cubes into the pan beneath and shut the door immediately. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown. Once the rolls are done, remove them from the oven and set them on a wire rack and let cool completely.