Zucchini Yeast Rolls and Freezing Bread

When I was reading through the numerous food blogs I read everyday I came across this post on Today's Menu Take It or Leave It. I still had a lot of zucchini in the fridge so this looked like a great option.

(This batch was par-baked, frozen & then finished on the day we wanted to eat them.)

What a great way to use zucchini. Really other than a little green in the rolls you won't know they had vegetables in them. The rolls were a little heavier than a white roll but not too heavy. They have a nice slightly sweet flavor. I think they would we perfect with a soup or stew. I did have a problem with the recipe in the amount of flour is called for. I could not get it to form a smooth, elastic dough without adding almost twice the amount of flour. I think the zucchini has so much water in it but can also vary from zucchini to zucchini so that was probably part of the issue. To that end though I have halved the amount of water the recipe calls for.

I also thought it would be a good chance to try different ways of freezing bread to prepare later. After the first rise, when the dough was rolled into 2.5 oz balls, I put half the balls on a greased cookie sheet & then into the freezer. After they were frozen I put them into a freezer bag & wrote cooking directions on it. The night before I want to use these I take the number I want out & leave them in the fridge to thaw. On baking day, they would be place them on a greased baking sheet & let rise until doubled & then bake as normal.

(This batch was frozen after the first rise.)

For the other half of the batch, I parbaked them liked the take & bake breads you get at the grocery store. I followed the recipe through the second rise & then only baked them for 15 minutes. I let the rolls cool to room temperature and then froze them. On the day I want to make them I'lI take the number I want out & bake them at 400 F for 8 - 10 minutes. They won't don't even need to be thawed.

Both methods worked well for freezing bread dough & having fresh baked rolls at a later time but the par-baked method was really the winner. Since the rolls could be baked right from frozen the only lead time needed was the time to preheat the oven & bake them. The other method worked fine but you have to take the extra time to thaw them & let them rise, though they took less time to bake than they did fresh.

Zucchini Yeast Rolls
(adapted from Simply In Season)

2 - 3 c zucchini, grated
1 /2 c water
1/2 c sugar
3 T olive oil
2 t salt
1 c bread flour
1 c whole wheat flour
1/3 c powdered milk
2 T yeast
1 3/4 - 2 1/2 c bread flour (I actually ended up using close to 5)

Combine the zucchini, water, sugar, oil & salt in a microwave safe bowl. Heat for about 2 minutes until warm (no hotter than 110 F).

In a large mixing bowl combine the 1 cup bread flour, wheat flour, milk & yeast. Stir in the warm wet ingredients until smooth. Stir in more bread flour until you get a soft dough (mine was still pretty sticky). Knead for about 10 minutes until you get a smooth, elastic dough. Place the dough in an oiled bowl. Turn to coat with oil. Cover & let rise for 10 minutes.

Divide the dough into 2.5 oz balls. Place on a baking pan that is either greased or covered with a silicon pad. Cover & let rise until about double (I let mine rise for 2 hours).

Preheat oven to 350 F. Brush the rolls with milk for a soft crust or an egg wash for a shine crust. Bake the rolls for 25 - 30 minutes until brown.

Makes 20 rolls.

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