Do you remember a few weeks ago when I said I'd post a bierock recipe made with rode kool? And I said I'd do it soon? Hee hee. About that soon thing.
I don't where to push the blame: perhaps on laundry, on having a social life, on being mired in two radio membership drives at once. Since I can't fit my blogging laziness on one particular thing, I'll just sweep it under the rug and we won't speak of it again.
So bierocks! The first time I got my hot little hand on one, I remember thinking, "There's a hamburger inside this roll? Suh-sweet!" My mom got the 4-1-1 on a tiny drive-thru in Wichita that served delectable, Yoder Mennonite-style bierocks, and she sweetly shared her discovery with my sister Kira and me. That place--M&M Bierock if you're in the area--serves Nu Way-style crumbly spiced beef, beef & cheese, ham & cheese, and veggie bierocks in a pillowy-soft dough, to-go only. Swoon.
Since my M&M Bierock indoctrination, I've been worshiping at the alter of St. Sandwich-in-Dough every chance I get. I've found great bierocks at farmer's markets, at church suppers, in bakeries and at bake sales, but I've never tried to make my own. In fact, I've been a little intimidated by the process.
However, I soon found courage and inspiration to try them online. Susan, a Mennonite blogger for Kneping the Zweiback, breaks the process down into small, easy-to-accomplish steps, keeping her good humor the entire time. I cracked open my trusty copy of Melting Pot of Mennonite to find ideas for a traditional filling.
After spending an afternoon up to my elbows in flour rolling out bierocks, I found a few things to mention about this recipe:
- unless you really crimp together the ends of the dough after filling each bierock, you run the risk of some filling oozing out of the roll in the oven. Line your baking sheets with aluminum foil to catch any oozes.
- Set aside a few hours to prepare, bake, and wrap the bierocks. I kept a half-dozen in the fridge and stored the rest, individually wrapped in plastic, in the freezer.
- Bierocks make a classy work lunch. Toss a few wrapped bierocks in a zip-lock bag and keep them in the office freezer.
Bierocks
makes 3 dozen snack-size rolls or 2 dozen dinner-sized rolls
adapted Kneping the Zweiback
Dough
- 2 tablespoons yeast
- 2 3/4 cups warm water, divided
- 1/3 cup powdered milk
- 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2/3 cup butter
- 2/3 cup mashed potatoes
- 1 egg
- 2 -3 cups whole-wheat flour
- 3 - 4 cups all-purpose flour, or enough to make a firm dough
Heat the remaining water, sugar, and butter in a saucepan until the butter is completely melted. Beat the egg and add it to the butter mixture. Whisk in the powdered milk, salt, and mashed potatoes. (The mashes potato gives the finished dough a silky-smooth texture.)
Transfer the butter mixture into a large stand mixer bowl. Mix in three-to-four cups of flour until the batter is smooth. Use the largest bowl you have and, if you're working with a hand mixer, be sure to carefully scrape the sides of the bowl as you go. Keep adding flour until you get a springy-smooth dough. Turn it out onto a floured work surface.
Knead the dough until it's smooth, which could take between 8 and 15 minutes, depending on how wet the dough is when you start, how much flour you add as you knead, and the gluten already present in the dough. Once you've kneaded it smooth, grease a large bowl. Set the dough in the bowl and set it in a warm spot to rise.
While it's rising, make the filling.
Filling
- 1/2 cup sweet & hot mustard
- 2 medium onions, slap chopped to death
- 2 pounds of ground beef
- 1 tsp. ground pepper
- 1 tsp. salt, more of each to taste
- sauerkraut, sauteed green cabbage, or cinnamon rode kool
Brown the hamburger, rinse. Add the onion, mustard and seasonings. (If using fresh cabbage, saute it with the onion. If you're using sauerkraut or rode kool, skip this step.) Simmer until the onion is tender.
Once the dough is ready, punch it down and divide into two or three sections, depending on how much you want to work with at a time. Roll each section out to a 1/4" thickness and cut out 4" circles for each bierock. (You'll want 5" diameter circles for "dinner-sized" bierocks.)
Place 1/3 cup filling and 1/4 cup sauerkraut/ sauteed cabbage/rode kool in the middle of each bierock. Fold the dough edges up over the center of the filling and pinch together the dough ends. Make sure there are no holes for filling to escape in the oven.
Bake the bierocks on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
If you liked this post, you might also enjoy:
Red Cabbage Candy(rode kool)
Turkey pot pie
Kefir pasta with sausage
