When you're baking a dish that has several steps you need to be present and know what you need to do right now, such as with these Gemberbolus - Dutch Ginger Rolls which look and sound more complicated than they are to make.
Being present, ever present no matter what's going on around you is an art form in this world where we are taught from an early age to look and live in the future. That mindfulness of what tomorrow brings instead of how to enjoy today is something that we all have to deal with.
One of the best things about travel is that reality is suspended, being present is one of the most natural results of being out of your normal environment. All troubles and worries of everyday life are kept somewhere else and going back home usually involves returning to whatever you were dealing with when you stepped on board that train, plane or automobile.
Leaving, is so much easier that it's something society has dealt with for thousands of years. People dream of it every day and books revolving travelers help people in regular lives escape for as much time as pages are read.
Returning has been on my mind, maybe because three weeks isn't a very long time to be away adventuring. Living in a fictional world of complete freedom and lack of fear to travel alone has meant that most of my trips in my twenties have been for about a month or more at a time without thought of tomorrow's worries.
It has kept my head above water when reality is making me sink and it has kept my passion for life alive. This, however, cannot go on forever and in a decade life will surely be different in many ways as the road keeps winding on.
Who knows where the road will take, but while the road may become ever more overgrown with complications there will come a day where this won't be reality and to learn to enjoy the present is one art form that comes and goes and as the days get ever closer to my departure I'm trying to live in the present and block out the noise a little.
Living in the present also means enjoying the warmish weather while it's still here because in a month we'll surely be wrapping ourselves up. Which is why I made this very recipe, which looks rather daunting and complicated. Which I've done my best to simplify and break down each step to make it easy to follow so you can make these rolls. The warm buttery syrup with the ginger filling and the lashings of cinnamon throughout the dough make this recipe perfect for fall.
How to prepare Gemberbolus - Dutch Ginger Rolls
- Create the ginger syrup: Place the water and ginger in a saucepan until soft and drain, keeping both the ginger and water aside.
- Time for some dough: Place the milk and yeast into a bowl and allow to sit until bubbly.
- Add dry ingredients: The flour, sugar and salt is added and stirred through.
- Egg and butter: The egg and melted butter is added to the dough and it is all kneaded until well formed and smooth. Set that baby aside to rise.
- Ginger puree: With the cooled and drained ginger syrup from earlier you place all the ginger puree ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Butter sauce: More ginger syrup water is placed into a saucepan alongside the other ingredients for the syrup and this is simmered until thick. Set aside.
- Sugar sand: The easiest part, combine the two sugar sand ingredients and set aside.
- Divide: Once your dough has risen sufficiently, divide into 12 equal portions, shaping into balls.
- Roll and fill: Sprinkle a litter sugar sand onto your surface and roll one of the dough balls out to an oblong shape and in the center, spoon a little of the ginger puree.
- Fold and fold and roll: Fold the lower third of the dough away from you and the top third towards you covering the ginger. Roll into a scroll and place into your muffin tin.
- Repeat: Continue with the remaining pieces of dough until you have 12 scrolls all tightly in your muffin pan.
- Rest and bake: Allow the ginger rolls to rest and then spoon over a little butter syrup just prior to baking. Bake until golden.
- More syrup: Spoon more syrup over the rolls whilst hot and set aside to cool.
- Serve: Serve these sticky rolls warm alongside your favorite hot drink.
Tips for the best Gemberbolus - Dutch Ginger Rolls
Making these ginger rolls: If you simply look at the ingredients list and all the different components these rolls can seem complicated and overwhelming, however, the same ingredients are used in several places and once the dough is made the rest is pretty simple and these are fragrant and a beautiful ode to ginger which is not often enough recognised as a great ingredient to be the star of a dish.
Preparation: The ginger puree and butter syrup are best made while the dough is rising and set aside.
More recipes you'll enjoy
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Burnt Sugar Steam Pudding
Kletskoppen – Dutch Almond Lace Biscuits
How to make:
Lightly grease a medium muffin tin, set aside.
For the ginger syrup, place the crystallized ginger and water in a saucepan on high heat until boiling than turn the heat down to a low simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool, draining and saving both the ginger and the water.
To make the dough, place the lukewarm milk into a bowl and add the yeast, allowing to sit for 10 minutes until bubbly on top.
Add the flour, salt, sugar and cinnamon and stir together with the milk.
Add the egg and melted butter and knead until the dough has formed and is soft.
Pour a little flavorless (I used sunflower) into a bowl and add the dough. Place in a warm place to rise 1 ½ times it's size.
For the ginger puree, place the ginger, 2 tablespoons of the ginger water, sugar and vanilla extract in a blender and combine until smooth, spoon into a small bowl and set aside.
To make the butter sauce, add 62 milliters or ¼ cup of the ginger water, the sugar and butter into a saucepan on medium high heat until boiling, lower the heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for a further 10 minutes where it should be glossy and slightly thickened. Remove and allow to cool.
For the sugar sand, combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350F.
Once your dough has risen, knead and divide equally into 12 pieces and roll each dough portion into balls.
Sprinkle a teaspoon amount of the sugar sand onto your working surface and roll one of the balls out into an oblong shape and ¼ inch thickness.
Spread a tablespoon amount of the ginger puree in the center of the rolls and then fold the low away from you towards the center and the top half towards you into the center, covering the center fully.
From one end of your thin rectangle roll like you would a cinnamon roll until it's a tight scroll.
Place the ginger roll into a muffin tin and continue with the remaining dough until you have 12 scrolls.
Allow to rest for 15 minutes than pour 1 tablespoon of the butter syrup over the top of each.
Place in the oven and bake until lightly golden, approximately 15 minutes.
Whilst hot out of the oven, brush one more tablespoon of syrup and allow to cool fully.
Warm these sticky scrolls with a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy.
Print
Gemberbolus – Dutch Ginger Rolls
- Prep Time: 90 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 12
- Cuisine: Dutch
Description
Layers of sweet ginger are folded through every bite of these Dutch Ginger rolls that have a syrup coating to make them the perfect warm dish when colder days come visiting.
Ingredients
Ginger mixture
¾ cup + 2 tablespoons crystallized ginger, roughly chopped
250 milliliters / 1 cup water
Dough
¾ + 3 tablespoons milk
7 grams / 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
480 grams / 3 cups flour
1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
14 grams / 1 tablespoon superfine/caster sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 egg, room temperature
30 grams / 2 tablespoons butter, melted
Ginger puree
30 grams / 2 tablespoons superfine/caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Butter syrup
50 grams / ¼ cup superfine/caster sugar
60 grams / 2.10 ounces butter
Sugar sand
40 grams / 3 tablespoons superfine/caster sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Lightly grease a medium muffin tin, set aside.
- For the ginger syrup, place the crystallized ginger and water in a saucepan on high heat until boiling than turn the heat down to a low simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool, draining and saving both the ginger and the water.
- To make the dough, place the lukewarm milk into a bowl and add the yeast, allowing to sit for 10 minutes until bubbly on top.
- Add the flour, salt, sugar and cinnamon and stir together with the milk.
- Add the egg and melted butter and knead until the dough has formed and is soft.
- Pour a little flavorless (I used sunflower) into a bowl and add the dough. Place in a warm place to rise 1 ½ times it's size.
- For the ginger puree, place the ginger, 2 tablespoons of the ginger water, sugar and vanilla extract in a blender and combine until smooth, spoon into a small bowl and set aside.
- To make the butter sauce, add 62 milliters or ¼ cup of the ginger water, the sugar and butter into a saucepan on medium high heat until boiling, lower the heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for a further 10 minutes where it should be glossy and slightly thickened. Remove and allow to cool.
- For the sugar sand, combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.
- Lightly grease a medium muffin tin, set aside. and preheat the oven to 180°C/350F.
- Once your dough has risen, knead and divide equally into 12 pieces and roll each dough portion into balls.
- Sprinkle a teaspoon amount of the sugar sand onto your working surface and roll one of the balls out into an rectangle shape and ¼ inch thickness.
- Spread a tablespoon amount of the ginger puree in the center of the rolls and then fold the low half into the center and the top half into the center.
- From one end of your thin rectangle roll like you would a cinnamon roll until it's a tight scroll.
- Place the ginger roll into a muffin tin and continue with the remaining dough until you have 12 scrolls.
- Allow to rest for 15 minutes than pour 1 tablespoon of the butter syrup over the top of each.
- Place in the oven and bake until lightly golden, approximately 15 minutes.
- Whilst hot out of the oven, brush one more tablespoon of syrup and allow to cool fully.
- Warm these sticky scrolls with a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy.
Notes
Making these ginger rolls: If you simply look at the ingredients list and all the different components these rolls can seem complicated and overwhelming, however, the same ingredients are used in several places and once the dough is made the rest is pretty simple and these are fragrant and a beautiful ode to ginger which is not often enough recognised as a great ingredient to be the star of a dish.
Preparation: The ginger puree and butter syrup are best made while the dough is rising and set aside.
Adapted from The Dutch Table
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