Rosemary Sourdough Dinner Rolls

Makes about 24 rolls.

I’ve been maintaining my sourdough culture for about 2 years now, and I just love the thing.  I had always been hesitant to maintain a culture because of how much “work” I assumed it would be…regular feedings, complex calculations.  It turns out that sourdough is FAR less picky than its reputation suggests.  I’ve left my starter in the back of my fridge without feeding for up to 2 months at a time, and then made a perfect loaf of bread from it.  I never schedule feedings anymore, I just feed it when I’m using it and it starts to get low.  Sourdough has become every bit as simple as making yeast bread now!

But since I have starter at all times, I’ve been experimenting with other ways to use it, like in pancakes, biscuits, and rolls, and this is my current go-to recipe for making dinner rolls.  The rosemary is a great touch, and I have it growing in the yard so it’s always available and free, but you can easily leave it out for basic dinner rolls.  As always with sourdough, you gotta give it time if you want it to be light, airy, and flavorful.  So you should always plan on starting ANY sourdough product the day BEFORE you intend on baking it.

In the largest bowl you have, combine:

12oz sourdough starter
12oz filtered/bottled water (NOT tap water)
14oz buttermilk
1/2 c chopped rosemary
1 stick (4oz) unsalted butter, melted

Stir to combine, then add:

2 pounds bread flour
1 1/2oz kosher salt (NOT iodized!)

Stir until everything is fairly uniform in texture.  You’ll have a stiff batter, definitely not firm enough to knead.  Then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit on your countertop for 12-24 hours.  It will expand significantly, so make sure you have room in the bowl.  Divide it into 2 bowls if necessary to prevent spill-overs.

3-4 hours before you’re ready to eat, spray two 12-cup muffin pans with cooking spray.  Using an ice cream scoop (about 1/4 cup capacity) sprayed with cooking spray, scoop the batter into the muffin pan.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit on the counter for about 3 hours to rise.

Preheat the oven to 400F and place the rack in the center.  When you’re ready to bake, place the muffin tins into the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 375F.  Bake for 30-40 minutes until the sides of the rolls are browned.  The tops won’t brown very much because the batter is acidic.  (To increase browning on the tops, spray the batter with a baking soda solution before baking.)