Winter squash dinner rolls

I'm behind this year.... It's week 3 of 12 Weeks of Winter Squash, one of my favorite food blogger events... But I missed the first two weeks this time. This year our event is hosted by LeAndra at Love & Flour. Last year I actually made a recipe for each of the 12 weeks! It was a goal of mine since we had so many winter squash and many varieties. I think this is my third year participating in this event and I'm going to try to hit as many weeks as I can. You'd think I'd run out of new ways to use winter squash, but it hasn't happened yet!

This recipe infuses winter squash puree into light and fluffy dinner rolls. There's still time to add these to your Thanksgiving dinner menu. They make a perfect bread to accompany your meal with their light orange color. They don't taste overwhelmingly of squash, especially with the bit of whole wheat flour, but you can detect it. Keep this recipe around to go with your soups and chilis as well all through the winter. I used butternut squash puree, but pumpkin, acorn, kabocha, or any thick winter squash puree will work. This recipe will make about 9 dinner rolls, depending on how much flour your dough takes up.

Winter squash dinner rolls
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm milk (I used 2%)
1 tablespoon honey
1 cup winter squash puree (flesh that has been cooked and pureed until smooth)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for greasing
1 cup whole wheat flour
about 2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, optional

In a large bowl, stir together the yeast, milk, and honey and let sit for 5 minutes (until it foams a bit).

Stir in the squash puree, salt, and olive oil. Then stir in the whole wheat flour.

Begin to stir in the all-purpose flour about 1/4 cup at a time. You want the dough to come together and be just slightly tacky. At this point, I begin using my hand to incorporate the flour.

Knead the dough for about 5 minutes on a lightly floured surface (adding more as needed), until it becomes smooth and elastic. Shape into a tight ball. Lightly oil a bowl and then place the dough in the bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place for one hour.

Lightly oil an 8" x 8" baking dish. Gently push down the dough and divide it into individual balls, about 1/3-1/2 cup in size. Place the dough balls into the baking dish so that they are close to one another. Cover and let rise again for about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Uncover the rolls and bake them until they are golden and sound hollow when tapped, about 25 minutes. If desired, when the rolls are almost finished, brush them with melted butter and return to the oven for 2-3 minutes. Let the rolls cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

What was I cooking one year ago?: apple-cheddar-thyme quick bread
Two years ago?: pumpkin gingerbread cookies
Three?: maple pecan pie
Four?: ginger-clementine cranberry sauce
5?: sour cream & onion dip