Silvia's favorite rolls

Ingredients for 12 servings:

• 400 g flour, type 405
• 200 g flour, type 550
• 420 ml milk 3.5%, 20°
• 32 g yeast, fresh
• 13 g salt
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil, with butter flavor
• 1 tsp beet syrup
• 30 ml milk
• 1 pinch of salt
• Poppy or other seeds

Instructions

Working time approx. 25 minutes; Rest time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 22 minutes; Total time approx. 3 hours 17 minutes

airy and tender inside – crispy outside

Mix the yeast with about 80 ml of the specified amount of milk and the sugar beet syrup until smooth. Mix the two flours in a large bowl, make a well in the center, and pour in the yeast mixture. Mix in a little flour from the edges to form a slurry, then lightly cover the dough with flour and let it rise for about 15-30 minutes. The pre-dough will show noticeable cracks in the flour when it’s ready. Sprinkle the salt over the edge of the flour and knead with the remaining milk for 5-7 minutes. If the flour needs more milk (depending on the type of flour), carefully add a little more milk, a little at a time. I used exactly 420 ml. Mix with the rapeseed oil until you have a homogeneous, silky dough for about another 5-7 minutes. Cover the dough ball with plastic wrap (or a fresh garbage bag), and let it rise in a lightly oiled large bowl until it has doubled in size. This can take up to 60-75 minutes. Now very gently (without tearing) tip the risen dough onto the work surface and then gently fold it once (stretch & fold) and then form it into a ball again without kneading vigorously. From the still light and supple dough ball, cut out 12 dough pieces, approx. 88g, and roll them into balls. Place on a baking sheet lined with baking paper, either individually or in pairs. If placing in pairs, leave 1mm of air between the two dough pieces, but space each pair well apart as they will still rise well. Cover with covering film/plastic wrap (this lightly greased) and let rise for a good 30-45 minutes until they have doubled in size. In the meantime, mix the milk with the salt and add poppy seeds or other seeds if desired. Preheat oven to 250°C (480°F) top/bottom heat. Brush the risen dough pieces with the milk and sprinkle with seeds if desired and place immediately in the oven (middle rack). Steam the rolls vigorously twice in the first 10 minutes. Once they’re well browned, release the moisture by briefly opening the oven door and then reduce the oven temperature to 230°C. Bake for another 15 minutes. The baking time is 22-25 minutes in total (varies depending on the oven), but keep an eye on the temperature and remove the rolls from the oven earlier if necessary. It’s important that they have a nice dark color all over and the base is nice and firm. Let them cool on a wire rack. Tips: The milk should only be 20°C for processing, as the dough temperature rises during kneading. I only let the dough rise at room temperature, around 20°C, max. 23°C. We have time. The baking temperature is important for the browning and crispness of the crust, so be sure to have a baking thermometer in the oven to check. After various attempts, I found that the baking temperature on my oven display is not the same as the baking thermometer. If the rolls have sides that are too light, they were sitting too close together on the baking tray. Next time, either divide the dough between two baking sheets and bake them at 220°C using a fan oven, then finish baking at 200°C after 10 minutes. Or bake the two baking sheets one after the other. Just before the end of the baking time, you can brush them with milk again. The stretch & fold concept is very helpful for baking bread and rolls and is explained here in the relevant forums by some good, experienced amateur bakers. If the rolls are to be frozen, bake them for 5 minutes less and then bake them for 11 minutes at 210°C.