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Thursday, November 24, 2011

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Rolls

Bread is another integral part of our Thanksgiving feast.  That's probably no different from anybody else.  The thing is, growing up, it was more of an afterthought.  Albeit a necessary afterthought.  I remember mom or grandma assigning somebody to "bring the rolls".  Other than the cranberry cylinder person, this person had the easiest assignment.  They would go to the nearest market and grab at least four packs of brown-n-serve...or something similar...rolls.  Easter was Hawaiian Rolls, Thanksgiving was brown-n-serve.  Unlike the aforementioned cylinder, I never took issue with the rolls.  Warm bread is good.  Period.  I was always the girl who dove happily into the bread basket at the restaurant...and answered in the affirmative when asked if we wanted more.  And then a funny thing happened a few years ago.  I conquered my completely irrational fear of yeast.  And in turn, rolls are no longer an afterthought.  As much thought and planning goes into the bread as the rest of the meal.  I pick two or three types I want to include and add them to the flow-chart.  Yes, I make a flow-chart...which I blame on two things: my slightly obsessive need for organization and my ever-flourishing scatterbrain (it's genetics...thanks, mom).  And when I employ my trusty bread machine to do the mixing and first rise for me, it's barely any more work than running to the store in the midst of holiday madness to pick up a few packs of brown-n-serves.*
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Rolls
from the kitchen of girlichef
yield: 16 rolls

½ c. milk, lukewarm
¼ c. water, lukewarm
2 oz. salted butter, melted
½ c. pumpkin puree
⅓ c. honey
1 tsp. sea salt
1½ c. whole wheat flour
1½ c. bread flour
2½ tsp. instant yeast
Place all ingredients in order listed in a bread machine.  Select dough cycle and let run.  (Yes, you can mix everything by hand or in a stand mixer...then place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size.)

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or so.  Divide into 16 even pieces.  Form each piece into a ball and place side by side in a 9" square pan that has been greased.  Cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let sit in a warm spot until doubled in size, ~1-1½ hours.  Preheat oven to 350° F during last 15 minutes of rise time.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until nice and golden orange.  Let cool for a bit on a wire rack and then gently flip the rolls out to finish cooling out of the pan.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

You can freeze the dough after you roll it into balls by lining it up on a sheet tray and freezing.  Once frozen, transfer to a freezer bag.  Placed in a greased pan and cover, in refrigerator the night before you want to bake them.  Remove from fridge and let rise on counter until risen and puffy, 3-4 hours...then bake as usual.
*disclaimer: I still have a soft spot for brown-n-serves. I didn't want the bread fairies to get the wrong idea. I have no qualms with turning to them in a pinch ...or a spot of laziness.

Wishing you and yours a happy and safe Thanksgiving weekend!

I am sharing this post with:
Yeastspotting
BBD #44: Autumn Flavors hosted at Winged Snail
BBD #44 BYOB-badge Miz- Helen-Badge-ALT5 foodfriday

Would you like to comment?

  1. Hi Heather,
    I did the same as your Mom, I assigned some people rolls, and guess what, next year I am just emailing them your recipe and saying make these please. I can't wait to make them myself they look so good with that pumpkin. Hope you are having a great holiday week end.  Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and hope you will come back soon!
    Miz Helen

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  2. I love the way you served it, so fancy :)

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  3.  Your rolls look so delicious! I want to try this recipe over the weekend. Thank you for sharing with me. I hope you are having a relaxing weekend with family and good food. Many blessings this week, my friend!

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  4. Pretty looking rolls. I bookmarked this. Thanks!

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  5. Homemade bread at Thanksgiving (or any day of the week) is definitely a favorite! I made pumpkin rolls last year but these look so fluffy and so hearty that I think I need to give them a go!

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  6. love the shots...so tempting, makes me want to grab one of those rolls! 

    thank you so much for sharing over at Food Friday, Heather
    Happy Thanksgiving!

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  7. Pily...Muchas gracias. Siempre esperamos recibir sus comentarios. Sé exactamente lo que quieredecir. Hay tantas diferentes alimentos y recetas que quiero hacer y probar, pero probablementenunca tendré el tiempo para probar cada uno. Sus amables palabras siempre ponen una sonrisaen mi cara. Gracias por los buenos deseos! Besos =)

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  8. I hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving. ;-) These rolls look delicious--love the pumpkin and whole wheat combination. Such a pretty color too for a holiday table.

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  9. OOH!  These look awesome! I've been loving everything pumpkin! I think I should just have pumpkin month!  :-)

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  10. I made pumpkin bread for the first time this year and loved its warm color and its flavor. Your rolls look beautiful! Happy Thanksgiving

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  11. Happy thanksgiving to u and ur family, whole wheat pumpkin rolls looks super prefect and fabulous..

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  12. Beautiful rolls!
    Happy Thanksgiving!

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  13. Qué lindura! qué hermosos! y los panecitos de pupy seed wow!! quiero decirte algo muy sinceramente: me gustan mucho tus recetas... pero me falta tiempo para hacerlas, debo proponérmelo porque me gustan mucho!!! y digo que te lo digo sinceramente porque a veces pensamos que se nos dice por compromiso, por mi parte es verdad!!
    Gracias...preparando todo para el Thank´s giving :D, comeremos rico!! y daremos muchas gracias a Dios por tantas bendiciones inmerecidas!!
    Saludos

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  14. If I could grab a roll out of the screen I'd grab them all - they look very tempting.

    Wonderful rolls!!I wish you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving!

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  15. josé manuel martín fernándezDecember 22, 2011 at 9:35 AM

    Que maravilla, me encanta como te ha quedado. Saludos

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  16.  
    perfect bread totaly even and a nice orangy colore, they looks gorgeous!

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  17. You have been a baking machine lately Heather. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!

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  18. Wow.  Just...wow.  I am trying to picture how these will taste.  I see there's only a slight bit of honey so I assume they aren't too sweet?  I love Hawaiian rolls, though we don't usually have them for holiday dinners, we have always been brown n'serve people.  But I will give this recipe to my catering friend, I am sure she would love to try it...and I'd love to try them after she makes them for me!

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  19. Can you use regular flour instead of bread flour and can you substitute something for the honey, sugar or brown sugar maybe? Thank-you

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