How can I adjust the schedule on this recipe?
I'm making rolls for thanksgiving and have settled on this recipe:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/golden-pull-apart-butter-buns-recipe
I'm taking these to my inlaws which is a 30 min drive. I help out with the rest of the cooking so I'm there hours before. But we'll be busy making other things so I don't want to tie up the kitchen with the rolls. It'd be nice if I could make the dough the day before and perhaps keep them in the fridge. That would mean they could be in the fridge up to 24 hours before we bake.
I could bake them a day ahead but there's nothing like fresh baked bread with melted butter over them.
I thought about going up to the point of forming the rolls and then freezing them. Then, we can keep them out to thaw and rise all day maybe? Kind of like the yeast rolls you buy at the frozen section?
Does anyone have suggestions?
And if they should be fully risen before we're ready to bake them, should I just pop them in the fridge?
I would bake them and hope dinner was not too far off. I think refrigerating the dough at that point is not going to prevent over proofing. There are many variables in play….room temperature, rolls size, etc. You do the best you can, bake and serve your dinner rolls, and I bet no one at the table will complain. : )
I was looking over the Thanksgiving suggestions on the King Arthur Flour site and read about freezing rolls as dough….mix, knead, shape, freeze as individual balls, and wrap well after the dough is solidly frozen. The yeast will keep enough "punch" for up to two weeks, but three weeks is pushing its limits. (commercial frozen dough must have additives that give the yeast more viability)
Tonight I made up a small batch of soft roll dough (enriched) and froze it as directed. Tomorrow I will take it out in the afternoon, give it 4 to 5 hours to thaw and rise, then bake it as a "test drive." The KAF website write up on this roll method has lots of site user comments and it seems lots of folks make this work. Happy Baking….and Happy Thanksgiving!
Quick update…I took the pan of frozen shaped roll dough out of the freezer (just 18 hours frozen) and it took just 3.75 hours to defrost and fully rise in my 70 degree F kitchen. The rolls baked up light and wonderful…simple soft dinner rolls, pure comfort food. I will make some changes in the white bread dough I made as a test, but, for me, this is the answer to oven-fresh rolls on the Thanksgiving table. Mine will not have to be transported, but a 30 minute to 2 hour car ride should not cause a problem. Thanks to the folks at KAF for testing and posting this method on their Thanksgiving tips page.
Sammie1
Bringing rolls to bake for the party is something I do one way or another 3 or 4 times a year and certainly, now 'tis the season.
I checked out the recipe link you provided and this is one I would definitely do late the day before. I think that given the generous amount of yeast in the formula, I would follow the recipe as recommended, but once the rolls are formed and in the pan, I would place them (within plastic bags, or clingwrap) right in the fridge without any proofing beyond that point.
The next day, out of the fridge and into the car to get to the party. If you are arriving 3 hours before dinner, at some point before then, the rolls will be begging to be baked. I would expect about 2 hours more or less out of the fridge to bake.
If you need to slow the proof down at any point, just put them in the fridge (or out on the cool patio) on site. Just read the timing of the meal as it unfolds (or unravels, as the case may be).
Even with turkey in the oven, the top rack can usually be cleared for fresh bread.
In fact, once the turkey is out of the oven, it usually needs a good 20-30 minutes to rest, which by itself, leaves enough time to bake those rolls while the gravy is being made and mayhem reigns before the calm.
It will all work out. After all, it's fresh bread and most everyone will forgive any errors that might occur along the way as long as they get some in the end.
Enjoy the holiday.
dobie
I've been reading the KAF suggestion for freezing. The recipe I want to use has two rises. If I'm going to freeze, does it mean I'll just mix and knead the dough, shape into balls and freeze without letting the dough rise at all? Or do I let it do the first rise then shape them into balls and freeze immediately?
Thanks for everyone's help.
Edit: nevermind. I figured it out.