Purple Straw Whole Wheat Potato Rolls

These were made with freshly ground soft white wheat Purple Straw grain berries which is a heritage grain. This is another unique and hard to find wheat berry from Barton Springs Mill. It is not really meant to be used in bread, but rather biscuits, pancakes, pizza etc. but I wanted to try some in rolls. From the site:

This Colonial Era wheat hasn’t been tasted in over 50 years and we’ve worked hard to revive it for you! This Colonial Era honeyed wheat is most applicable in delicate situations where you want a soft and fluffy texture and don’t need too much structure. Expect subtle notes of honey!

I also added some leftover mashed potatoes and copious amounts of softened butter and a little honey. The potatoes are about 80% water so the hydration listed on the formula is not a true reflection.

Similar to my last bake, since I’ve been trying to get more consistent results with the fresh milled grains I use for 50-100% in my bakes. Getting the fermentation down correctly so it doesn’t go over or in some cases under is tricky. So far this method based on experiments detailed at https://thesourdoughjourney.com/ have worked out pretty well. His timing charts are based on using all white flour so it’s not a perfect match when using freshly ground flour. I’m still experimenting but so far so good. Unlike my past bakes with rolls/buns I shaped them after bulk and placed them on baking sheets, and refrigerated them overnight. I baked them directly from the refrigerator after around 12 hours, but they could have stayed longer if necessary.

These turned out great and were nice and soft and perfect for burgers and sandwiches.

Formula

Levain Directions 

Mix all the levain ingredients together for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.

Let it sit at room temperature for around 6-7 hours or until the starter has almost doubled. I used my proofer set at 76 degrees so it took around 5 hours for me. Either use in the main dough immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 day before using.

 Main Dough Procedure

Note: I use an Ankarsrum Mixer so my order of mixing is slightly different than if using a Kitchenaid or other mixer. Add all your liquid to your mixing bowl except 50-80 grams. Add the levain in pieces and mix for a few seconds to break it up. Next, add all your flour to the bowl and mix on low for a minute until it forms a shaggy mass. Cover the mixing bowl and let it rest for 20 – 30 minutes.   Next add the salt, honey, and softened butter as well as the remaining water as needed and mix on medium low (about speed 3) for 12- 24 minutes. You should be able to achieve a nice windowpane.

Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl and do several stretch and folds.  Making sure the dough is as flat as possible in your bowl/container measure the dough in millimeters and take the temperature of the dough as sell. Based on the chart here, determine what % rise you need and make note. If you have a proofer decide what temperature you want to set it at and what rise you are aiming for. If the dough is fully developed you don’t need to do any stretch and folds, but if it’s not, do several sets 15-20 minutes apart.

Once the dough reaches the desired bulk rise, shape them into rolls around 135-150 grams and place them on your baking sheet. When finished shaping, cover the dough with a moistened tea towel or plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray and place them in your refrigerator. Since there is such a high percentage of whole grains in the dough I didn’t want to leave it in the refrigerator for more than 12 hours. Depending on how cold your refrigerator is you could leave it longer and have to experiment to make sure it doesn’t over ferment.

When you are ready to bake, an hour beforehand pre-heat your oven to 450 F and prepare for steam. I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.  Remove your rolls from the refrigerator when the oven is fully heated and brush them with an egg wash. Add seeds, toasted onions, etc. as desired and place in the oven along with the cup of boiling water.

Bake for around 25 – 30 minutes until the buns/rolls are nice and brown and have an internal temperature around 200-210 F. 

Take the rolls out of the oven when done and let them cool on a bakers rack for as long as you can resist.