I'm sharing my mom's signature recipe: Orange Rolls! Her breads were always delicious and the grandkids didn't leave her house without a loaf. With our boys - that loaf was usually gone before we got home. Her orange rolls were the epitome of her scrumptious breads. Ask anyone in the family what their favorite bread of granny's is and the answer will be Orange Rolls! These do take some time to make (most of it waiting time), but they are well worth it. Double the recipe and freeze some to use later.
After mixing the yeast mixture, milk mixture (I actually use water because my hubby is lactose intolerant-and it's still delicious) eggs & 1 cup flour, cover & let rise till bubbly. It only takes 15 to 20 minutes.
Gradually add the rest of the flour & mix until the dough is smooth - 3 to 5 minutes. It is a soft dough and should still stick to the sides of the bowl.
Let rise until double.
Mix the orange rind, sugar & softened butter together. Mmmm.
Put dough on a floured surface. It is a soft, sticky dough so keep the flour handy. Roll out in a rectangle, about 7-8" tall. Spread the orange butter within 3/4" of the edges.
Roll up lengthwise & cut in 1" slices. Using a large pizza cutter makes cutting fast & easy.
Place on greased or parchment lined baking pan. Traditionally orange rolls are placed in muffin tins. I think my mom finally gave up on that because as the family grew, she didn't have enough muffin tins. If you do use muffin tins, you may have to cut them smaller because you don't want to fill the tin more than 2/3 full before raising. You can freeze at this point. Let rise till double then bake until light brown. Mix glaze & spread on rolls while warm. Yum!!!! Enjoy!
Granny’s Orange Rolls
1 Tbsp dry yeast 5
Tbs butter, softened
1 tsp sugar 1/3
c sugar
¼ c warm water grated
rind from 1 orange
1 c milk
1 Tbsp butter Orange Glaze:
½ c sugar 1 Tbsp butter,
melted
½ tsp salt 2 Tbsp fresh
orange juice
3 eggs, beaten 1 tsp grated rind from orange
4 c flour 1
c powdered sugar
In
small bowl, dissolve yeast &1 tsp sugar in warm water. In small pan, heat milk, 1 Tbsp butter, sugar
and salt until butter is melted. Cool to
lukewarm. In mixer beat eggs, 1 c
flour, yeast mixture & milk mixture.
Cover & let rise until bubbly – 15 to 20 minutes.
Gradually
add remaining flour and beat well for 3-5 minutes until dough is smooth. Cover & let rise until double (1 to 1-1/2
hours).
In
small bowl, mix softened butter, sugar & orange rind. Roll dough into rectangle only about 7 or 8
inches tall & 1/4'” thick. Spread
with orange butter mixture within 3/4" of edges. Roll
lengthwise like cinnamon rolls. Cut in
slices 1“ thick. Place on greased or
parchment lined baking sheets or in greased muffin tins. If using muffin tins, do not fill more than
2/3 so you may have to slice thinner. (At this point you
can freeze until solid – about 2-3 hours. Remove from pan and put in freezer zip-lock bags until
ready to use. Use within 3 months. Place on greased or
parchment lined pans and cover until they have thawed and rised until double before
cooking - about 3-4 hours.) Cover and rise until double- about 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Bake at 375° F. for 15-20 minutes or until
light brown.
Mix
Orange Glaze ingredients together in small bowl. Frost rolls while warm. Makes about 1-1/2 dozen. You can double this recipe.
There are lots of different versions of wassail. This version is my favorite. It has four spices which many other don't & the combination is not only aromatic, but also delicious. I used fresh ginger since it was what I had on hand. Usually I use crystallized ginger.
