Dinner rolls a big hit at Harvard Park

Golden-brown with a hint of garlic, onion and fresh chives, the dinner rolls at Harvard Park are a hit with residents.

“We have a couple people that want three,” said executive chef David Kimball who makes 100 of them at a time.

Despite their name, the dinner rolls are served for lunch at the retirement home on Spokane’s South Hill, where Kimball has worked for five years.

He got the recipe from his predecessor, who – Kimball believes – adapted it from a recipe he received from a resident.

“The original recipe is, I think, something like 100 years old,” he said.

It features fresh, finely chopped chives and granulated garlic and onions. When he makes them at home, Kimball, 31, also likes to brush them with butter. Sometimes, he adds cheddar, too.

The recipe isn’t particularly difficult, but it does take time. Kimball lets the dough rise at least three times: twice in the mixing bowl and once in a muffin tin or on a sheet pan, depending on how they’re being baked. He usually uses a muffin tin.

Kimball starts the dough early, around 9 a.m., in order to be done for lunch. Dinner rolls are served at 12:30 p.m. It takes about two hours for the dough to rise twice. If he starts it too early, he allows the dough to rise a third time in the mixing bowl, which he covers in plastic wrap, then punches down with the plastic wrap still on. After punching it down at least twice, Kimball rolls and cuts the dough and proofs it for 15 to 20 minutes before baking. That part only takes 10 or 12 minutes.

The result is a light, fluffy and lightly scented dinner roll best served with a pat of butter.

Garlic-Onion Dinner Rolls with Chives

From Harvard Park in Spokane

1 1/4 cups hot water, divided

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cup cold water

1/2 cup, plus 1 teaspoon sugar, divided

2 tablespoons yeast

5 cups flour (See note)

1 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1 tablespoon granulated garlic

1 tablespoon granulated onion

2 tablespoons chives, finely chopped

Cooking spray

Pour 1 cup of hot water along with the oil into the bowl of a stand mixer and set aside.

In a small mixing bowl, combine ¼ cup of hot water, cold water and 1 teaspoon sugar. Whisk in the yeast and set aside.

Meantime, add flour, ½ cup sugar, salt and egg to bowl of stand mixer. Then, add yeast mixture, garlic, onion and chives. Mix on low speed until well incorporated. Leave dough in the bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rise, punch it down and then repeat the process. (This takes about 2 hours.)

Remove wrap, lightly oil dough with cooking spray, and roll dough into a long, log shape. Use a pastry scraper to cut the dough log into 1-inch pieces. Using the palm of your hand, roll the pieces one at a time against the work surface to create dough balls.

Place the dough balls on a baking sheet that’s been sprayed with cooking spray or in a muffin tin that’s been sprayed with cooking spray. Let the dough balls proof for 15 to 20 minutes in a 100-degree oven. Or, place them on the top rack of an oven that is turned off with a pan of boiling water on the bottom rack and let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes with the oven door closed.

Bake rolls for 10 to 12 minutes at 325 degrees in a convection oven or 375 in a conventional oven until the rolls are golden brown and their internal temperature reaches 200 degrees.

Note: Chef David Kimball prefers using baker’s (also known as bread) flour instead of all-purpose flour. “If it comes out a little too loose, you can add a little flour to it. It’s pretty forgiving,” he said of this dough.

Yield: 2 dozen