Crunchy crust, soft and fluffy interior with a rich, cheesy, buttery flavour. Mmmm, yes please!

We are carboholics around here. Bread, pasta, potatoes, pastry, pizza… In fact, my kids could happily live on pasta and pizza entirely. Okay, we do eat our share of salads and low carb meals, but it just doesn’t feel right to have a bowl of soup without something to dip in it. And it’s not just the carb factor, but the taste and texture contrast that makes bread so good with soup, whether it be a dinner roll, a piece of toast or a grilled cheese sandwich.

These rolls are kind of a bread roll – grilled cheese love-child.  😉

Makes 12 dinner rolls
Preparation – 40 minutes active time and about 3 hours resting
Baking – 30 minutes

Ingredients

300g (10 1/2 oz or 2 2/5 cups) all-purpose (plain) flour
1 tsp instant yeast (or 8 1/2g fresh or 1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast)
12g (1 Tbsp) granulated (white) sugar
3g (1/2 tsp) fine salt
125g (4 1/2 oz) grated asiago cheese
100ml (3 1/3 fl oz) tepid milk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
115g (1 stick or 1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash

Directions

Note: If using fresh or active dry yeast instead of instant, activate it in the milk first, then proceed with the recipe.

Put the flour, yeast, sugar and salt into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and whisk together. Toss through the grated cheese with a fork.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Add to flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon or on low speed for about 3 minutes, until completely combined.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a plastic spatula as needed, increase to kneading speed and mix for about 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth.

Scrape down the bowl again and, with the mixer running at low speed or as you stir, add the butter a teaspoon at a time. It will look very buttery at first, and will take about 10 minutes for the butter to be completely incorporated by machine, longer by hand.

When the butter is all incorporated, increase the speed and knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is very smooth and comes away from the bowl. Scrape down the dough hook and bowl a couple of times as needed while kneading.

Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about two hours, until the dough has doubled in size.

At this point, the dough can be refrigerated overnight in an airtight container if desired.

Knock the dough back by folding it over two or three times with a bowl scraper.

Butter a 12 hole muffin tin.

Scrape dough out onto work surface, knead gently together and cut into 12 equal sized pieces. Roll the dough pieces into balls, arrange seam side down in muffin tin and brush lightly with egg wash.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise for about 1 hour (2 hours if the dough was refrigerated), until doubled in sized.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F).

Brush the rolls lightly again with egg wash. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 180°C (360°F) and bake for a further 20 minutes.

Turn rolls out onto a wire rack and allow to cool a little before serving warm.