Sundried Tomato Cheese Rolls

These buns freeze great and are wonderful to adapt by adding bacon, veggies, changing the dressing/cheese/spices, whatever you can dream up. They cna easily be portable meals and are also a great way to use up last night's leftover mashed potatoes.

Lately it seems that I've been really into experimenting with different additions to dough, for example: No-yeast Cottage Cheese Dough for tangy and quick Orange Rolls or Rice "Foccacia" Bread made with leftover rice.

Today I'm adding potatoes! According to King Arthur Flour, potato in the dough gives bread a soft, moist, creamy texture; the starch in the potato attracts and holds liquid, meaning breads baked with potato will not only be soft and moist initially, but will stay that way longer. So tender and fluffy when baked and a dream to roll out and shape. The recipe was very heavily adapted from Cooks Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen



Sundried Tomato Cheese Rolls
20 rolls (or 2-9" pizzas) | dough adapted from Cooks Illustrated

Deep-Dish Potato Dough
1 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
8 to 10 oz. russet potato, peeled, cooked and grated (about 2 cups, or use 1 1/2 cups mashed potatoes)
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour, approximately
1 3/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp olive oil, plus 2 tbsp for coating pan (or use oil from sundried tomato can)

Filling for Spirals
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 tbsp mixed garlic powder/onion powder/basil/oregano or whatever spices you like
1 cup drained sundried tomatoed, diced
1/2 cup ranch dressing (or jalapeno ranch)
1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced (optional)

1. In mixer bowl combine yeast, sugar and water and let stand 5 minutes, until foamy. Stir in 6 tbsp olive oil. Using dough hook, add in 2 cups flour, all the potato, and salt. Gradually add in more flour as needed until the dough is smooth and slightly sticky. Transfer to a lightly oiled medium bowl, turn to coat with oil. Cover and let stand until doubled in size, about 45-60 minutes.

2. Now you can either use the dough to make spirals like I did or for pizza.

Spirals: Oil the bottom of an 11 x 16 inch pan with 2 tbsp oil. It seems like a lot of oil, but the oil is what browns the crust. Reserve 1/2 cup cheese. Toss remaining grated cheese with spices and jalapeno if using. Deflate and roll dough to about 1/4" thick. Spread ranch evenly over dough and sprinkle with cheese mixture. Roll up jelly roll style and cut into 20 even pieces using a sharp serrated knife. Place in prepared pan. Cover and let rise overnight in fridge or at room temperature for about 45 minutes or until almost doubled. Sprinkle tops with reserved cheese before baking. Bake at 425 degrees F on middle rack for 25-35 minutes, until golden brown and dough is cooked through. I like using a glass baking dish so I can see the bottom of the buns. Cool slightly before serving.

Pizza: Oil the bottom of two 9" deep-dish pizza pans with remaining 1 tbsp each of oil. Gently punch down dough, pat each half into a 10-inch round and transfer to the pan. Pull it into the edges and up the sides of the pan to form a 1" lip. If dough resists, let it sit for 10 minutes, covered, to relax. Let rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about 30 minutes, until about doubled.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Uncover and pierce dough surface generously with a fork. Bake until the crust is dry and lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Add desired toppings and return to the oven for 10-15 minutes. Move the pizza to the top rack and bake until the cheese is golden brown in spots, about 5 minutes longer.