Herbed cheese rolls

HERBED CHEESE PASTRIES IN CRESCENTS AND SCROLLS 

I have been elbow-deep in bread dough for the past two weeks. I am taking part in a food fair at the end of the month, and am providing 300 mini buns for the event. And so I have been making, baking and freezing buns as I go along 

Now, the thing is, when I excitedly signed up to do this, I did not imagine what 300 mini buns look like. When the picture (a really big one!) finally came to my mind, I realised the enormity of the task for a home baker and a domestic oven, and so I have been making a few batches a week and freezing the buns. (And begging relatives to lend me space in their freezers!) So far, I've made 184 buns. Another seven batches to go. More on this in upcoming posts.

You would think that being immersed in bread dough for the past two weeks, I would stay away from it for my own personal consumption. But when I thought of making some cheese and herb pastries recently, I decided to go with a yeasted dough which was inspired by the Nazook from the April 2012 Daring Baker's challenge.

The original dough is made with sour cream and has a sweet filling, but for this pastry, I went with strained yoghurt and a savoury filling.

Herbed Cheese Pastries

Makes 12-16 pieces

Yoghurt Dough

200g all-purpose flour, sifted

4g active dry yeast

110g strained or Greek yoghurt

110g softened butter, at room temperature

Filling (combined)

125g grated cheddar

3-4 tbsp medium-fine chopped fresh herbs (parsley, coriander, daun saderi [celery leaves])

Wash

1 egg yolk 

Mix the sifted flour and yeast in a large bowl. Add the yoghurt and mix to form a rough dough. Set aside for 10 minutes for the flour to absorb the liquid. Spread the softened butter on the dough and knead in until well incorporated. Continue to knead for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is no longer sticky. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Divide the dough into two equal portions. Place one portion on a lightly floured work surface. If making crescents, roll or pat the dough out thinly into a 22cm circle; if making scrolls, form into a rectangle. 

For crescents, spread ½ the cheese-herb filling on the circle. Cut the circle into 8 wedges and roll up from the wide end to the point. Brush with egg wash. Repeat with the other piece of dough.

For the scrolls, spread ½ the filling over the rectangle. Roll up like a Swiss roll from one of the long sides. Pat down the roll gently to flatten slightly. Cut into short logs, 4-5cm long, on a slant. Use a crinkle cutter, if desired. Brush with egg wash. Repeat with the other piece of dough.

Place pastries on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the tops are a rich, golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.