By Early June. The factory line reopened Monday June first as scheduled. The first shift was four hours instead of eight, then ramping up across the week to a five-day six-hour schedule by Friday. The new line layout has the workstations spaced six feet apart with small plexiglass dividers, the same way Mama’s Dollar General has the registers set up. The first paycheck since March hit my account Thursday afternoon. I sat at the kitchen table at four-fifteen looking at the deposit notification for about three minutes before I told Mama.
Sunday I made cornmeal dinner rolls because the rolls are what Carol’s 1982 box card called cornmeal rolls — for company, and Sunday had Mama’s Aunt Tammy driving down from Tulsa with two of her own grandchildren in the back of her Camry for the first family-side visit since lockdown started. Six people at the kitchen table for the first time in twelve weeks: Mama, Aunt Tammy, Aunt Tammy’s grandkids (Jaxon and Brooklyn, ages nine and seven), Dustin, and me.
The rolls: soft yeast roll dough with a quarter-cup of fine-grind stone-ground cornmeal substituted for a quarter-cup of the all-purpose flour. The cornmeal contributes a slight grainy texture and a corn-sweet bottom note. The rolls bake at three-seventy-five for eighteen minutes. Twelve rolls per pan. I made three pans. Thirty-six rolls total. Twenty-seven of them got eaten across the Sunday dinner. The remaining nine went home with Aunt Tammy in a small foil packet.
Cornmeal Dinner Rolls
Prep Time: 20 min + 1 hr 30 min rise | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 2 hr 10 min | Servings: 16 rolls
Ingredients
- 1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water (110–115°F)
- 1 cup warm whole milk
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus a pinch for the yeast
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
- 3 to 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted (for brushing)
Instructions
- Activate the yeast. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and a pinch of sugar in warm water. Let stand 5–10 minutes until foamy and fragrant.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, combine warm milk, sugar, softened butter, egg, and salt. Stir in the yeast mixture until combined.
- Add the cornmeal and flour. Stir in the cornmeal, then add flour one cup at a time, mixing until a soft dough forms. You may not need the full 3-1/2 cups — stop when the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead the dough. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 6–8 minutes until smooth and elastic. The cornmeal will give it a pleasant, slightly textured feel.
- First rise. Place dough in a greased bowl, turn once to coat, and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- Shape the rolls. Punch the dough down. Divide into 16 equal pieces and roll each into a smooth ball. Arrange in a greased 9x13-inch baking pan.
- Second rise. Cover and let rolls rise 30 minutes until puffy and touching.
- Bake. Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake rolls for 18–20 minutes, until deep golden on top. Brush immediately with melted butter.
- Serve warm. Pull apart and serve alongside biscuits and gravy, soup, or anything that deserves real bread on the table.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 175 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 5g | Carbs: 28g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 175mg