How to Make Elegant Russian Lace Rolls!
October 23, 2020. Beautiful sunny autumn day. Elegant Russian Lace Rolls.
Jump to RecipeThese Russian Lace Rolls are some of the prettiest and most elegant rolls I’ve ever baked. I made a version in May and since have made tweaks and adjustments to it. The swirls and twirls make them so pretty and every roll is slightly different, which makes it “artisan”, right? Haha!
These rolls are slightly sweet and have a nice texture – it reminds me of sweet Easter bread, like the dough I used for the Butterfly Braid Bread. It’s not as fluffy as the Japanese Milk bread but nonetheless has a nice soft texture. The shaping creates lovely movements that are pleasing to the eye.
The Russian Swirl Lace Rolls are elegant enough for company and are a nice addition to your Thanksgiving and holiday bread basket or for other special occasions and celebrations.
There are 3 steps to making these rolls: first, create the dough; second, shape it into beautiful rolls; third, bake it in the oven. As with most yeasted bread, the key thing is letting the dough rest long enough before shaping. The difference with these rolls is that we apply a cream wash* instead of an eggwash before baking.
I have included lots of pictures illustrating every step of the way as well as 2 short video clips on how to shape the rolls. Without more delay, let’s bake!
Ingredients for Elegant Russian Lace Rolls
Listed roughly in the order they will be used:
⅔ cup (160 g) whole milk (or almond milk), lukewarm
2¼ tsp (10 g) active dry yeast
2¾ cup (350 g) All Purpose flour and more as needed
3 Tbs sugar + 1 tsp sugar to bloom yeast
1 tsp kosher salt
2 large egg yolks
2 tsp vanilla extract
6 Tbs (80 g) unsalted butter, cubed and softened
olive oil, for greasing bowl
cream, for brushing onto the dough
confectioner’s icing sugar, for dusting
In addition to the ingredients, you will need 12 small 3 inch tart pastry tins, a rolling pin and as always when baking, patience. 😊
Making Elegant Russian Lace Rolls
Dough
In a small bowl, mix the milk and yeast with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Stir to combine. Let the yeast bloom for about 5 to 10 minutes.
Measuring yeast Add 1tsp sugar to milk Add in the yeast
In a large bowl, add flour, sugar and salt. Whisk lightly to combine the dry ingredients. Then, add in the milk yeast mixture, eggs and vanilla extract. Mix until thoroughly combined. Next, add the pieces of butter and mix until a dough is formed.
Whisk flour, sugar & salt to combine Softened cubed butter Mix in the butter until a dough is formed
Knead for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth. Add more flour as needed. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and rest for about an hour or until the dough doubles in size.
Knead until smooth. Cover and rest. Until the dough doubles in size.
Shaping the Lace Rolls
When ready, divide the dough into 2 pieces. Put one piece back into the bowl and cover so that it doesn’t dry out. Roll out the dough and using a 2 inch (5 cm) round cookie or biscuit cutter, cut out as many rounds as you can. Repeat with the second piece of dough. You’ll need 108 rounds to make 12 large rolls.
Cut dough into 2 pieces Cut out as many rounds as possible.
Roll the bits again and repeat till you have 108 dough rounds.
To shape the rolls, place 3 rounds in a row, with the edges touching. Roll them up and then using a bench scraper or knife, cut into half. Set aside and cover with clean damp kitchen towel.
Prepare the tart tins with non stick cooking spray. Next, arrange the shaped dough in the tart tins by placing one in the middle, and then surround with 5 more. Note that the pieces should be touching but not packed too tightly. Repeat with all the other pieces.
Baking
When ready, lightly brush the shaped rolls with cream and let rest for 15 minutes.
While waiting, preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Place all the tins on a cookie sheet and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are beautifully golden brown.
Baking in oven for 20 to 25 minutes Until the rolls are golden brown
Remove from oven, let cool for a minute. Then carefully remove each individual roll from its tart tin and place on a cooling rack.
When cool, lightly dust with confectioner’s icing sugar. Your elegant Russian Lace Rolls are ready!
Notes on Elegant Russian Lace Rolls:
*I was curious what are the different washes used for baking and found this useful article by epicurious here => https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/different-egg-washes-which-one-is-the-best-article
Elegant Russian Lace Rolls
Equipment
- Rolling Pin
- 12 small 3 inch tart pastry tins
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup (160 g) whole milk, lukewarm
- 2¼ tsp (10 g) active dry yeast
- 2¾ cup (350 g) All Purpose flour, and more as needed
- 3 Tbs sugar + 1 tsp to bloom yeast
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 Tbs (80 g) unsalted butter, cubed and softened
- olive oil, for greasing bowl
- cream, for brushing onto the dough
- confectioner's icing sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients. In a small bowl, mix the milk, yeast with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Stir to combine. Let the yeast bloom for about 5 to 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl, add in flour, sugar and salt. Whisk lightly to combine the dry ingredients. Then, add in the milk yeast mixture, eggs and vanilla extract. Mix until thoroughly combined. Next, add the pieces of butter and mix until a dough is formed.
- Knead for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth. Add more flour as needed. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and rest for about an hour or until the dough doubles in size.
- When ready, divide the dough into 2 pieces. Put one piece back into the bowl and cover so that it doesn't dry out. Roll out the dough and use a 2 inch (5 cm) round cookie or biscuit cutter to cut out as many rounds as you can. Repeat with the second piece of dough. You'll need 108 rounds to make 12 large rolls.
- To shape the rolls, place 3 rounds in a row, with the edges overlapping. Roll them up and then use a bench scraper or knife, cut into half. Set aside and cover with clean damp kitchen towel.
- Prepare the tart tins with non stick cooking spray. Arrange the shaped dough in the tart tins by placing one in the middle and then surrounding it with 5 more. The pieces should be touching but not packed too tightly. Repeat with all the other pieces.
- Lightly brush the shaped rolls with cream and let rest for 15 minutes. While waiting, preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Place the tins on a cookie sheet and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are beautifully golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 1 minute. Carefully remove individual rolls from each tin and place on a cooling rack. When cool, lightly dust with confectioner's icing sugar. Your Russian Lace Rolls are ready!
Notes
Adapted from Irina Lebedeva‘s Recipe for Air Lace Buns.
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