Wine food and words

Garlic rolls

These are more ball-y than roll-y, but if I write ‘Garlic balls’ I’ll giggle. Never too old to be immature.

Anyhow.

Garlic. Probably up there as one of my favourite things on this earth. You know, along with the boyfriend, friends, family and wine. Is there anything better than the smell of garlic and onions in a frying pan? Nope. But you don’t get that with this recipe. Soz.

I first discovered this recipe on one of my favourite blogs, and adapted them ever so slightly to make them even more brilliant (and perhaps a little more fatty, a side effect you’ll forgive once you taste these balls of deliciousness). Balls.

I made these for the first time in mid-December, and they’ve been on high rotate ever since. First I made them in a normal muffin tin, but nowadays it’s mini all the way. Because if they’re smaller, they’re not as bad for you. Fact. It doesn’t matter that you’ll eat three times as many, because they’re mini and cute. The calories simply don’t count.

How to make the goodness:

1 ¼ cups warm water
2 T sugar
1 T yeast
1 T oil
3 cups flour (you might need more – add extra a little bit at a time until the dough isn’t so sticky)
1 t salt
2 t baking powder
3 big fat cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped to tiny little bits - don’t use a garlic press because it just doesn’t taste the same. 
50g butter
Italian parsley, chopped
Rock salt

First step is to make the dough (which, as an aside is a brilliant pizza dough, especially if you have a pizza stone. If you don’t have a pizza stone, get one. I use half the dough to make a thinner based pizza, and freeze the rest).

Put the warm water in a bowl, add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Once dissolved, add the yeast and oil. Stir gently for a few seconds then wait five minutes or so until it’s all good and foamy and bubbly. Sift in the flour, salt and baking powder and mix with a knife until it’s coming away from the sides. If you’re so inclined, flour the bench and knead a few times. It’s soothing.

Cut up the dough into the number of garlic rolls you’ll be eating – it’s a perfect amount for 12 normal muffin tins, and I found it was slightly too much for my 24 mini muffin tin.

Soften half the butter and mix in the garlic to make a delicious garlic butter. Roll out the dough sections and butter the insides.

Roll them up, squish them up, do whatever you want, so long as the butter’s on the inside. Mmmm. Oil your muffin tin and shove the garlic rolls in there.

Bake for 15 minutes or so, until they’re golden and your house smells like deliciousness. I used to drizzle with oil and a few extra bits of garlic, but I think it’s all better on the insides so don’t do that now. Whatevs.

Melt the remaining butter and put in a big bowl along with salt and chopped parsley. Put the still hot from the oven rolls in there, and mix it all up so they’re covered in the buttery herby yumminess.

They’re ready now, so eat them, enjoy them, and maybe do a few lunges to help counter the effects of them. Then make another batch, because they’re just that good.

You’re welcome.