These sourdough rolls with parmesan, garlic, and red pepper flakes are the perfect size for sandwiches. This recipe is inspired by the Zampanos from Cheeseboard in Berkeley which are soft sourdough rolls topped with garlic olive oil, red pepper flakes and parmesan.
These sourdough rolls taste similar to a sourdough pizza crust. I really enjoyed making them and will try more flavors soon. I hope you enjoy them too!
Notes about the dough and shaping the rolls:
For these sourdough rolls, I used a slightly modified version of my Basic Sourdough Recipe for the dough. The dough is very wet and will likely not maintain its shape well during proofing. After the final proof, my rolls were flat and sticky, but when I baked them, they puffed up beautifully in the oven. They will have a rustic look, and they will not be perfectly round. If you are looking for perfectly round sourdough rolls, this probably is not the recipe you are looking for.
I divided the dough by six to form six rolls. This size is perfect for sandwiches, but if you prefer smaller rolls, I would recommend dividing the dough by eight instead of six.
Topping the rolls with parmesan, garlic and red pepper flakes:
I added olive oil, fresh minced garlic, parmesan and red pepper flakes to these rolls right before baking. Other tasty ideas for toppings are rosemary, onion, or any other herbs. Different types of cheeses might be good too.
Notice in this video how flat the dough looks after proofing:
Baking the sourdough rolls:
Because the dough was quite wet and difficult to move around, I placed the rolls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cornmeal, proofed them, and baked them on the same baking sheet. This was much easier for me than trying to transfer the rolls onto a baking stone or into a Dutch oven.
What you’ll need:
I used Central Milling Artisan Baker’s Craft Plus flour and their white whole wheat flour for these rolls. However, any similar flours should work well.
Besides the usual flour, salt, water and sourdough starter, you’ll need:
- cornmeal
- parchment paper
- baking sheet
- olive oil
- red pepper flakes
- garlic
- parmesan
Unlike most of my other recipes, you don’t need a Dutch oven for this recipe. For a full list of my favorite baking tools, click here.
Sourdough rolls with Parmesan, Garlic and Red Pepper Flakes
Equipment
- Large container or mixing bowl
- baking sheet
- parchment paper
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Levain
- 85 g sourdough starter
- 255 g water
- 180 g bread flour
- 70 g whole wheat flour
Ingredients for the Dough
- levain (from above)
- 300 g bread flour
- 155 g water
- 8 g salt (about 1 teaspoon)
Toppings
- 6-10 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- red pepper flakes
- 2-6 tbsp grated parmesan
Instructions
Mix the levain
- Mix all the ingredients for the levain together in a large bowl or a container like one of these.
- Cover and refrigerate for about 24 hours.
Mix the Dough
- Next, mix the flour and water for the dough into the levain. Gently mix by hand until well combined.
- After about 15-30 minutes, add the salt to the dough. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined.
- Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes. Stretch and fold the dough, then cover and refrigerate the dough overnight for about 12-24 hours (depending on your schedule).
Shape the Dough
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and let it warm up to room temperature for a few hours until it is airy and bubbly. For reference, my dough was at room temperature for about 3 hours at 80°F.
- Then, remove the dough from the bowl or container onto a clean counter. Divide the dough into six pieces (or eight for smaller rolls). Shape the pieces into tight balls.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and dust it with cornmeal.
- Transfer the balls of dough onto the baking sheet. They will flatten out and not retain their shape well (see video).
- Preheat your oven to 500 °F
- Brush the tops of the rolls with olive oil, and sprinkle on the chopped garlic, parmesan and red pepper flakes.
- Bake the rolls for about 10-12 minutes at 500 °F, then decrease the oven temperature to 450 °F and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown.
- Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool.
Recipe looks Scrumptious, set in fridge for 24 hour rise and noticed None of my baking devices go up to 500 degrees. Will this work at 450 for longer time, then turn down to 400?
Hi Marie,
Yes I think it’ll work just fine at 450 degrees for a few minutes longer. I think it might rise slightly less in the oven, but will still be delicious.