5/14/08

Want to see my bee-witching buns?

Here they are. Rejoice!



...the things I'll do for this blog.

I've been making these Honey Rolls for several decades, and to this day, their aroma -while baking- still makes me swoon. I found the original recipe in an old cookbook, which I misplaced long ago, but -thankfully- typed and saved the recipe before the book disappeared. However, I distinctly remember the aforementioned was written by men, for men.
Imagine that. There were actually men out there who not only cooked, but (successfully) managed to rise to the occasion in the kitchen. For the record, I'm still talking about bread. Focus people.



This dough is very easy to work with, and similar to the eggy Brioche, although not as rich. But these rolls are hardly lacking. They're full-flavored and light as a feather. Not to mention, your arteries will thank you.

They're ideal for breakfast, snack time, or any time you need a little indulgence. Served slathered with, what else, Honey Butter (1 stick [4 ounces] of softened butter, combined with 1 tablespoon honey). This dough also makes incredible Hamburger Buns.

Here they are, before going into the oven...



...and this is how they emerge. Haaaallelujah!



Honey Rolls

1 cup milk
½ cup honey
½ cup (4 ounces) butter
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 packets (about 4½ teaspoons) dry yeast
½ cup warm water, 110°F -115°F
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour

In a 2-cup measure, melt the butter, add milk and honey. In a large mixing bowl, combine the water, yeast and sugar. Allow yeast to dissolve 7-8 minutes. Add milk mixture to yeast mixture, stir. Add eggs. Beat in 4 cups flour and salt until combined. Add just enough of the remaining flour to make a soft, but not sticky dough. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Place dough in large, greased bowl, turning to coat both sides. Cover and allow to rise about 1 hour. Punch down. Let dough rise again, about 1 hour. Knead briefly. Shape into rolls* and place rolls (almost touching) in a greased 9" x 13" pan.
Allow to rise 1 hour more, or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake Honey Rolls 25 minutes or until golden. Makes 27-30 rolls.

These are soft rolls, so to keep the crust that way, make sure to brush the tops with butter as soon as they come out of the oven.


*To keep rolls uniform in size, I use a medium ice cream scoop (#24 makes a standard size roll). For hamburger buns, you could use a larger-size ice cream scoop, although, I usually eyeball it.



All together now: Awww.

29 comments:

  1. Those buns looks so warm and yummy!

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  2. Great buns ;D
    Saving this recipe!

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  3. Anonymous15/5/08

    Marysol,these look great! I really love shiny looking rolls:)I just printed the recipe. Really want to give it a try. Your pics are great too!

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  4. Anonymous15/5/08

    found this post through Tastespotting. i'm drooling right now! :) i have two questions, though. do you think the recipe can be halved, and what size pan did you use?

    thanks! i'm off to peruse your archives.

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  5. Also came through Tastespotting. These are beauties! It's hard to imagine men making honey buns, but I'd be happy if my husband were to take on this endeavor.

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  6. Thank you S & S! Yes, these are wonderful; carbs be dammed.

    Why, thanks Indigo!
    And what's really shameful is I'm not even blushing ;-)


    Farida! I hope you'll try it; I know your babies will love them.


    Anon, thank you! In regards to the recipe, I've never halved it. Instead, I recommend you bake the entire batch, wrap tightly and freeze them. Btw, the pan I used was a 9"x13" pan.

    Sharon, sadly, that makes two of us. Sigh.

    Thank you for dropping by everyone! Enjoy the buns! [G]

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  7. Anonymous15/5/08

    Checking out tastespotting and there were your buns! Nice buns, Sol :)

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  8. These made me salivate on tastespotting, my eyes are always drawn to the carb-y looking goodies. I would totally make them right now if they didn't shut off the water in my building today.

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  9. These look un-bee-lievable! Sorry, I can't turn down my chance at a bad pun. I'm bookmarking these buns! Thanks for sharing.

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  10. I am afraid that if I made those, nothing else would accompany them. They probably wouldn’t make it to the table, we would just hang around the oven until they were gone! lol! Great job, they are just beautiful.

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  11. Anonymous15/5/08

    Beautiful buns! I'd love to try them. Have you ever tried halving the recipe? There's only two of us in our household so 27 buns is a lot to split between us. :p

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  12. Anonymous15/5/08

    Looks amazing! Perfect for kids' b-day parties. They love honey buns: portable, sweet and delicious. How big is the tray?

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  13. These look super amazing. I am definitely going to make these. One question Is it bread flour you are using?

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  14. Anonymous15/5/08

    I came directly..Did not pass Go..did not Tastespot here:)

    Love the buns and the Bee..
    Beecause they are all perfectly beeautiful:)

    Monique

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  15. Marysol, these buns look tender, delicious and beautiful. And the little bear is so adorable, too!
    Great photos!

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  16. Carol, you found me!
    And I'm especially thankful for the kudos on my buns because I know you wouldn't say that to just any CFer ;-).


    Jessica, I have the same carb issues, just can't live without it. Sorry your water was shut off. That's another thing I cannot live without...and I know it ain't just me, right?



    Phemom, will you beehive?
    Ok, now that was a bad pun.

    Toonz, you pretty much described a typical baking day in our household.


    Joy, I'd love to give you the go-ahead, but I've never halved this recipe, so I can't -in good faith- recommend it. But, I do know these freeze beautifully.

    Shoplittlegifts, funny you should mention that. I actually made mini sandwiches for my daughter's first birthday party (looooong ago) using this same dough. In fact, all the food served at the party was lilliputian. And all kids (big and small) enjoyed them.

    Rhylesgranny, I used all-purpose flour. Thank you for bringing it up. I'll fix that next.


    Monique! Messy bird coop. Le nounours {Je fais mes études à l'université de Walmart} is almost as cute as your fairies.


    Patricia. Now, I'm blushing.

    Thank you all for your visit, as well as all the lovely comments on my buns.
    I feel touched ... in a good way.

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  17. Those look so homey and delicious, I must say. I'm saving this recipe for sure!! Thanks for a great post!

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  18. You're welcome Sarah. I hope you'll try it! Thank you for dropping by.

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  19. Anonymous20/5/08

    They look great. I'm trying to make these right now! Where do the eggs come into play? Are they for egg wash purposes or do they go in before?

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  20. Anonymous, hope I'm not too late. The eggs go in the recipe and are added right along with the milk/honey mixture. Enjoy.

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  21. Anonymous21/5/08

    wow. the perfect rolls!

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  22. I was going to make these and then half way through making them I decided to make them into bread loaves. Holy crap the best bread I have ever made. If you don't think you will be able to use 24-30 rolls then split it into 2 loaves of bread and bake them at the same degrees but for a little bit longer.

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  23. Glad you liked them Lee!
    And great idea on the loaves. Thank you.

    Btw, this dough also makes darn good cinnamon rolls.

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  24. These look wonderful, Marysol. They look like the perfect breakfast bun. Does it make me immature that I can't say "buns" without tittering? Or "tittering" without tittering? Ha! And a double awww for your honey pot bear :-)

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  25. Cakespy, we belong to the same club! Could you make a little room in that sandbox for me? :-)

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  26. Anonymous12/6/08

    I tried making these last weekend when the power went out in southeast Michigan. They're the first bread I've ever tried to make from scratch and we ended up having to barbecue them (so the bottoms were really charred and the tops weren't browned enough), but they ended up great. Thanks for the recipe!

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  27. Kin, you are a rebel! I've never thought of, nor have I ever heard of anyone barbecuing these buns, but I'm so tickled they turned out great.

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  28. Anonymous17/9/08

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  29. Your Honey Rolls are beautiful! I love the 4th picture!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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