Could someone please provide a description of what this dough should feel like or behave in the bowl? I mixed this up last night and the dough was very tacky/sticky and was really clinging to the side of my mixing bowl… I mixed in my Kitchen Aid the required 15 minutes
Overnight, it did almost nothing. …I could see small bubbles in the dough…but nothing like I would have expected… I know it’s not my starter which is active… I went ahead and shaped after 14 hours bulk fermentation … they have proofed now for nearly six hours and have not “expanded” nor are they touching each other.
I suspect this all has to do with the original dough texture. … can someone please describe what I should have expected to see?
Your rolls look good, even though I agree that your dough seemed too wet/sticky.
How big is that pan? Could it just be on the large side?
Also did you use the whole grain flour or all refined flour?
Hello, I followed the recipe as written…using 50g of spelt as suggested in the headnotes… .and that’s a 9x 13 Pan… I baked them off and they expanded a bit but were, heavy, leaden and all the sugar baked out leaving behind gummy, chalky glumpy rolls… which are now in the trash.
Should the final dough be so sticky and heavy? I suspect that is the actual issue… I should say I’m enjoying this book very much. The cranberry walnut was amazing.
The dough should come together, be a little shiny but not super-sticky. I’ll try the recipe, with spelt, in the next few days and report back with photos, timing, and temp.
For people who don’t have the Sourdough Cookbook for Beginners, the recipe in the book is quite similar to our website recipe for Whole Grain Date Rolls. The key differences are that this recipe has 450g refined flour and 50g whole grain flour, 10g less sugar, 4g more salt, and of course, a cinnamon filling as opposed to dates.
My bulk fermentation took 20 hours. The first 10 hours showed no expansion of the dough, 58’F kitchen overnight (near a window, so possibly colder). The second 10 hours, the dough doubled in my lit oven in the mid (even high) 80s.
The hydration was almost on the dry side for me. So many factors come into play here, from flour brand and milling approach to egg size, so I made a short video so you could see the target consistency. One-handed fast video lol
More notes: home-milled whole grain spelt and bread flour, maybe 10g extra milk from reckless pouring, butter was cold, no scalding of milk (for no good reason).
Here are some more process pics. The dough is proofing now.
This was incredibly helpful! Thank you! I think I was worried about going that long on the bulk ferment. I’m an experienced baker but my sourdough experience is limited. I very much appreciate you taking the time to do this.
You’re welcome. I’m always happy to have an excuse to eat an enriched sourdough : )
I find before and after photos of the bulk and final proof to be so helpful. Eric and I wish the book had them for every recipe!
I forgot to mention above that taking the levain build farther, to almost tripling, will speed up the bulk (along with temps in the 80s). I was a bit rushed to get the dough mixed. And I can’t believe I was worried about the dough overfermenting overnight and purposefully put the bucket somewhere cool
Now that you mention it, my levain was kinda sluggish as well… I will definitely try everything you have suggested and I’m inclined to go with the walnut filling as I gave had my eye on that walnut roll as well!
Does anyone have a recipe for cinnamon rolls made with yeast not the sourdough, as I like to try making them?. I found my sourdough cinnamon rolls, they were Ok but would like to try something else? thanks
FOR THE FILLING: Combine brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt in bowl. Stir in melted butter and vanilla until mixture resembles wet sand; set aside.
FOR THE DOUGH: Grease dark 9-inch round cake pan, line with parchment paper, and grease parchment. Pour ¼ cup milk in small bowl and microwave until 110 degrees, 15 to 20 seconds. Stir in yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar and let sit until mixture is bubbly, about 5 minutes.
Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 5 teaspoons sugar together in large bowl. Stir in 2 tablespoons butter, yeast mixture, and remaining 1 cup milk until dough forms (dough will be sticky). Transfer dough to well-floured counter and knead until smooth ball forms, about 2 minutes.
Roll dough into 12 by 9-inch rectangle, with long side parallel to counter edge. Brush dough all over with 2 tablespoons butter, leaving ½-inch border on far edge. Sprinkle dough evenly with filling, then press filling firmly into dough. Using bench scraper or metal spatula, loosen dough from counter. Roll dough away from you into tight log and pinch seam to seal.
Roll log seam side down and cut into 8 equal pieces. Stand buns on end and gently re-form ends that were pinched during cutting. Place 1 bun in center of prepared pan and others around perimeter of pan, seam sides facing in. Brush tops of buns with remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Cover buns loosely with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
Discard plastic and bake buns until edges are well browned, 23 to 25 minutes. Loosen buns from sides of pan with paring knife and let cool for 5 minutes. Invert large plate over cake pan. Using potholders, flip plate and pan upside down; remove pan and parchment. Reinvert buns onto wire rack, set wire rack inside parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet, and let cool for 5 minutes.
FOR THE GLAZE: Place cream cheese in large bowl and whisk in butter, milk, vanilla, and salt until smooth. Whisk in sugar until smooth. Pour glaze evenly over tops of buns, spreading with spatula to cover. Serve.
