Applesauce Dinner Rolls

brown basket with a red and white linen full of dinner rolls with a cake plate full of applesauce rolls behind it

These Applesauce Dinner Rolls are so soft, fluffy, and taste wonderful served warm with a pat of butter or slathered with some apple butter.

Prep Time20

Cook Time15

Rise Time2 30

Total Time3 5

Servings: rolls

Author: Miranda Couse

Ingredients

Starter

⅓ cup bread flour
½ cup water
½ cup whole milk

Dinner Rolls

½ cup warm water 110 degrees F
1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar
4 ½ teaspoons dry-active yeast instant yeast will work
1 cup whole milk
½ cup shortening
1 cup applesauce sweetened or unsweetened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
5 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour all-purpose flour will work
3 tablespoons melted butter for brushing

Instructions

Starter

In a medium saucepan, add in the ⅓ cup bread flour, ½ cup water, and ½ cup whole milk. Whisk until combined.
Place over medium heat and cook until it reaches a thick, pudding-like texture. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Dinner Rolls

In a small bowl, add the ½ cup warm water, 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar, and 4 ½ teaspoons dry-active yeast. Stir until combined. Let the mixture sit for 5 to 10 minutes until foamy.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, add 1 cup whole milk and ½ cup shortening. Microwave in 30-second increments until warm, about 110 degrees F, but not hot as it will kill the yeast. The shortening will be somewhat melted, but not completely liquid.
Pour the milk and shortening into the stand mixer bowl or large mixing bowl.
Add the 1 cup applesauce, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 3 large eggs, and starter. Whisk until just combined.
Add the yeast mixture to the mixing bowl.
In a separate bowl, add the 5 cups bread flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour. Whisk until incorporated.
Add 1/3 of the flour to the mixing bowl and mix with the dough hook just until worked in. You can also stir it in if you’re not using a stand mixer.
Now add the remaining flour and knead for approximately five minutes with the dough hook or 5 to 8 minutes by hand, adding more flour as needed. Dough will be soft but not overly sticky.
Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a large greased bowl, turning it over to grease top. Loosely cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 1½ hours.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly coat with nonstick baking spray.
Punch down dough to release the air and divide the dough into 36 pieces. I do this by dividing the dough into 6 equally sized large dough balls and then divide each large ball into 6 similar sized pieces.
Then shape each piece into rolls by pulling the dough from the top to under the roll and pinching until the top is smooth.
Place the rolls on the prepared baking sheet about ½ inch apart.
Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a tea towel and allow to rise again until doubled, about 30 minutes.
Place the rolls into the preheated oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until rolls are a light golden brown. You can check for doneness by gently pulling one of the rolls in the center and if it still appears doughy, they need to be baked longer.
Once the rolls are done, brush the tops of the rolls with the 3 tablespoons melted butter. Let cool before serving.

Notes

You can substitute the whole wheat flour to 3/4 to 1 cup of bread flour. Start with less and add more if needed.

Storage: Once the rolls are cooled to room temperature, place them in in an airtight container or wrap them individually in plastic wrap and then place the wrapped rolls in a storage bag.

Freezing: To freeze the dough before baking, shape the dough into rolls and freeze them on a baking pan. Once frozen, place the frozen dough in a freezer bag and freeze for up to a month. To bake, place the frozen rolls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Let the rolls thaw in the fridge for 24 hours then bake as directed in the recipe.

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