MY FAVORITE DINNER ROLLS

There's nothing like a good, home baked hot dinner roll with a refreshing salad and some fruit on these hot summer days!  I've had this recipe for about 35 years.  I got it from my mother-in-law, and have changed it a bit.  What I like about this moist, heavy, sweet, dinner roll is that the dough is so forgiving; you can use it as a refrigerator dough, or even miss it's initial rising period, and the rolls still turn out wonderful!   They also freeze very well.  The key to making good bread is not to use too much flour; add just enough flour to make a soft, but not sticky, dough.   It should be soft and very pliable. Use a flour that is designated as a bread making flour.  I buy mine in 50-lb bags from a local mill.  It's a bleached white flour--Golden Loaf--from Big J Mills in Brigham City. It is the flour that bakeries use.  Also, be sure you knead it well.  I have a Bosh bread mixer, and it's so easy to let the machine do all the kneading.  (I remember having to set the minute-minder for 10 minutes when I was young and Mother was making bread.  Kneading the dough for 10 minutes by hand seemed like an hour!)  So, it's nice to let the Bosh do the kneading for me.  You only have to knead it for a minute or two with the bread mixer.  It's a professional, heavy-duty mixer.  Some I have seen are too light to knead a 6-loaf batch of bread, which I always make, or 4 dozen rolls.  I've had mine well over 20 years, and it's still like new!  Another tip to remember is to cut the dough when dividing into rolls--stretching and pulling the dough breaks up the glucose, and your bread won't be as good.  I think you'll like this recipe--  it's My Favorite Roll Recipe!

Combine and let work:     3 Tbls yeast

                                        1/3 C warm water

                                        1 Tbls sugar

Combine in another bowl: 1/2 C  melted butter

                                        2 C warm water

                                        3 eggs, beaten

                                        10 Tbsl instant dry milk

                                        1 tsp salt

                                        1 C sugar

                                        Enough white flour to make a

                                              soft, but not sticky, dough

Add softened yeast to mixture with everything and about 4 C flour.  Mix well.  Keep adding flour, 1 cup at a time, until you have a soft, but not sticky, dough.  Knead well.  Let rise 1 hour.  Punch down. and form into 4 dozen rolls of your desired form.  (I usually just form into balls).  Place on 2 greased, big, heavy cookie sheets, 24 on each sheet.  Cover loosely with a towel and let rise until double in size, usually about 1 1/2 hours.  Bake at 325 until golden brown, usually about 20 minutes.  If desired, brush tops with butter after finished baking.  Remove from pans and cool on racks.  NOTE:  If using as a refrigerator dough, place in a sealed, Tupperware-like bowl and place in refrigerator.  Can store in refrigerator for a couple of days.  Check on it periodically, and when it needs to be punched down, do so.  When ready to use, form into desired roll shape, let rise until double, and bake as directed. (Rise time will be longer).  Yield:  4 dozen