Overnight Rolls

We have a winner! I had a hankering for fresh rolls on a Saturday morning, but certainly wasn't going to slave away in the kitchen for two or three hours after waking up. So I found a bread recipe that requires a long rise. All I had to do in the morning was shape the rolls and let them rise while my oven pre-heated, and bake them while I brewed myself a nice cup of tea. The best part? One bite and I knew this dough is what Chinese bakeries use as the base for most of their savory creations. So look out for hot dog green onion rolls, shredded dried pork buns, and so on!

INGREDIENTS (I halved this but would do the whole batch in the future)

• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm milk (about 110 degrees Farenheit, or very warm but not steaming)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten (plus one for glazing, if you wish)
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, mix together yeast, milk and sugar. Let stand for 30 minutes.
Mix eggs, butter and salt into yeast mixture. Mix in flour, 2 cups at a time. Cover loosely and let stand at room temperature overnight. I put the bowl in my oven with the door cracked open since it was quite chilly.

In the morning, preheat the oven to 375 F. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a 9 inch round circle. Cut each round into 12 pie shaped wedges. Roll up each wedge starting from wide end to the tip. Place on parchment lined (or greased) baking sheet and let rise for ten minutes or until puffed up. NOTES: you can create one large circle with all of the dough if you want croissant sized crescents. Alternatively, you can roll the dough into a rectangle, cut it into strips, and make big bread knots. Or, as I plan to, you can form the dough into balls the size of small oranges and fill or top with meats. This time, my only variation was to sprinkle half the dough with chopped green onions. It made the kitchen smell amazing.

Brush the rolls with an egg wash if you want a shiny glazed top, then bake them for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown. Shave two minutes off if you plan to freeze the rolls and reheat them in a toaster oven. Add two minutes if you've added toppings that contain some moisture.

This is a VERY easy recipe; give it a try! J liked the green onion crescents enough that he ate five in one sitting. And he is no bread fiend, usually.