Daring Bakers: Tiger Rolls

Sara and Erica of Baking Jds were our March 2012 Daring Baker hostesses! Sara and Erica challenged us to make Dutch Crunch bread, a delicious sandwich bread with a unique, crunchy topping. Sara and Erica also challenged us to create a one of a kind sandwich with our bread.

This bread tastes as good as it looks. The pattern on the top is supposed to resemble that of a tiger, maybe it does on a loaf of bread, on these rolls it is closer to a giraffe pattern. This type of bread is very popular in the Bay Area of Northern California. Technically Dutch Crunch is not the type of bread but the topping. In Dutch, it is called Tijgerbrood or "tiger bread". After it comes out of the oven you get the lovely pattern on top. The topping gives these rolls a slightly sweet and crunchy finish.

I decided to use the finished rolls to make spicy ancho seasoned burgers, using leftover sweet and spicy ancho seasoning paste. If you make these for burgers, you may want to try dividing the dough up into 8 rolls. My dad felt they were a bit too big for his tastes. The bread would taste delicious with sliced turkey, cheese and avocado too. The rolls can also be made without the topping, but the topping is very straightforward to make. The roll itself is moist, slightly dense and delicious. 


xo


April


Adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Bread Bible

Soft White Rolls
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (lukewarm to hot to the touch)
1 cup warm skim milk (lukewarm to hot to the touch)
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 to 4 cups all purpose flour (I used about 3 1/2 cups)

Instructions:

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the yeast, water, milk and sugar, stirring to dissolve and combine. Let it stand for 5 minutes. The mixture should become foamy and smell yeasty.
2. Add the vegetable oil, salt and 2 cups flour into the mixer.Using the dough hook attachment, mix at medium speed until everything is well combined. It should be very wet and sticky.
3. Add the remaining flour a 1/4 cup at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Stop adding flour at this point and continue to knead in the machine for 4 minutes at medium speed. Place the dough in a greased bowl, covered with plastic wrap. Let it rise for 1 hour or until it has doubled. 
4. Preheat the oven to 375F before you form the rolls. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, dividing the dough into 6 balls and placing them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Try not to work with the dough too much at this point. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 15 minutes while you make the Dutch Crunch Topping.
5. Generously coat the top of each roll, using a spoon, with the topping. Place the rolls into the oven and bake for 15-25 minutes (I baked mine for the recommended 25 minutes and the bottoms got a little to done)

Dutch Crunch Topping
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup rice flour (brown or white)

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, beating vigorously with a whisk. It should be the consistency of royal icing and drip off the whisk slowly. Let stand for 15 minutes, while the rolls are rising.