Village rolls
An approximation of the village rolls from Balthazar Bakery in New Jersey
Servings 6 rolls
Calories 345kcal
Ingredients
- 454 grams Bread flour
- 345 ml lukewarm water
- 6 grams kosher salt
- 2 grams instant yeast
- additional flour for surface
- cornmeal
Instructions
- Combine flour, salt, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Pour in water while mixing with the dough hook on low speed. Continue mixing with dough hook on low speed for 6 minutes
- Remove dough hook from dough and scrape down. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough develop for 3 hours at room temperature.
- After 3 hours, drop a freshly-cleaned dough hook into the dough and run the mixer on low speed for 5 seconds. Pull hook back out, scrape dough back into the bowl, re-cover, and let sit for 20 minutes. Repeat twice more, then rest the dough for 2 more hours.
- The dough should be supple now but will still be quite sticky. Flour part of the surface where you will be working enough to keep the bulk of the dough from sticking, but leave an unfloured spot for shaping. Divide the dough into 6 pieces of roughly 132 grams each.
- Roll each piece of dough into a tight-ish ball, using the floured side to keep it from sticking to your hand but the sticky side against the table to help shape it.
- Scatter cornmeal onto a piece of parchment. Put each rolled ball onto the parchment as you complete shaping it. Once all 6 are finished, spritz them with water and sprinkle more cornmeal on the tops and sides of the rolls. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and proof for 1 hour at room temperature.
- 30 minutes before the end of the hour, preheat the oven to 460° F and place a baking stone or steel onto the middle rack. Place a cast-iron pan onto the lower rack.
- Have 12 ounces or so of boiling water ready before adding the rolls to the oven. Using a peel, deposit the rolls, parchment and all, onto the stone. Pour the boiling water into the cast iron pan to provide steam. Bake for 18 minutes or so, until the rolls are nicely browned.