Breaking Bread: Corn and Jalapeño Rolls

Corn and Jalapeño Rolls

Like magic...  serendipity.... I stumbled upon this blog post about a new blogging group, the Bread Baking Society. This group was started by the authors of Foodwanderings, Cake Duchess, and Cooking with Books, three talented bloggers. I immediately invited myself to the party.

Each month they introduce a bread recipe, and then encourage fellow bloggers to make it theirs. This is the second month of the Society.

I decided to follow the Food Wanderings recipe because I had just brought home a bunch of jalapeños.

I made my rolls hamburger bun-sized and used them for sandwiches. These rolls are somewhat on the sweet side. While they are a yeast bread, they taste a lot like corn bread. I think they would be great in a smaller size served with chili. Go here to see the many variations of this recipe and find out how to join "the Society." And there is no secret handshake!





This recipe was originally adapted with permission from the book, Artisan Breads at Home by Eric Kastel of the Culinary Institute of America.

Corn and Jalapeño Rolls

I made 16 rolls from this recipe.

Corn soaker:
5.3 ounces cornmeal
22.7 ounces whole milk

Final dough:
Corn soaker
2.2 oz honey
3 T. vegetable oil, divided (1 T. to saute the jalapeño)
1 1/2 t. diastic malt powder
16.1 oz bread flour (I used King Arthur Flour)
4 oz. corn flour (I used Maseca)
1 t. instant yeast
4 oz corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 large jalapeño, diced
.7 oz salt
 1 egg and water for egg wash
Additional corn meal to garnish the rolls

For the soaker:
Place cornmeal in a bowl.
Heat 1/2 of the milk to boiling. Add the hot milk to the cornmeal. Let it sit for a couple of minutes, whisking occasionally. Add the rest of the milk and whisk. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

For the dough:
Remove the corn soaker from the refrigerator and place it in a warm water bath to bring it to 85 degrees or so.

Saute the jalapeño in 1 T vegetable oil until soft.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the soaker, honey, 2 T oil, and malt. Mix for 1 minute. Add the flour, Maseca, yeast, corn, jalapeño, and salt. Knead with dough hook at low speed for 6 minutes. Knead for 4 minutes more at medium speed for 4 minutes more. Dough should be tacky but not sticky.

This means that it sticks to your hand when you touch it but doesn't leave any dough behind on your hand as you pull your hand away. If the dough is too sticky, drop flour by tablespoons into the mixer until it reaches the right consistency. Be careful not to add too much.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bucket or bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it rise for 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces (or more if you want smaller rolls) and form into balls. Sprinkle a parchment lined baking sheet with corn meal and evenly place the balls on the baking sheet. Mist with spray oil and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit for 45 minutes to an hour.

Brush the rolls with the egg wash and sprinkle with corn meal.

Bake the rolls for 15 to 30 minutes until they are golden and reach 190 to 200 degrees internally. Cool on the baking pan.

  

   Submitted to Yeastspotting.