Amish Dinner Rolls

Step 1: Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.

Step 2: To make the dough: Mix and knead all of the ingredients together by hand, mixer, or bread machine set on the dough cycle - to make a smooth, soft dough.

Step 3: Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise until it's doubled in bulk, about 90 minutes. If you're using a bread machine, allow the machine to complete its cycle, then leave the dough in the machine until it's doubled in bulk, perhaps an additional 30 minutes or so.

Step 4: Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 16 large balls, or 24 smaller balls. Round each ball into a smooth roll.

Step 5: Place the rolls in a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan (refer to the Baking Tip, below). Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap, and let them rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until they're quite puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Step 6: Bake the rolls for 20 - 25 minutes, until they're golden brown and feel set. Remove them from the oven, and turn them out of the pan onto a rack. Brush with melted butter, if desired.

Step 7: Makes 16 - 24 rolls. Serve rolls warm, or at room temperature. Store rolls, well wrapped in plastic, for several days at room temperature; freeze for longer storage.

BAKING TIP: These rolls have the characteristic golden brown, rounded, smooth top of a classic dinner roll; it's preferred to bake them rather tightly spaced, in a 9" x 13" pan, so that they crowd each other and become pull-apart rolls, with unbrowned sides, as they're baking. For round rolls that are browned all over, place them in a larger pan, farther apart, so that they won't touch one another while they're baking.