I have to admit that I hate calling them dinner rolls -- I'm a Georgia Peach and we call it "supper" not "dinner". But "supper rolls" just doesn't have the same ring to it. Anyway, I am so pleased to be able to share with you an easy, palatable recipe for whatever-you-call-that-meal rolls that you can enjoy while following the autoimmune paleo protocol (AIP).
I did my time on the AIP. I know how it can affect you mentally. It is really hard to have to eat such a restricted diet. It can make you feel like an alien weirdo sometimes when you are around other people who are eating the SAD (standard American diet) who simply cannot fathom why you are excluding so many food items.
To be quite honest with you, I found myself purposefully isolating myself from most social gatherings with my non-paleo family and friends (Rachel at South Beach Primal obviously excepted!) while I was in the middle of the AIP. It wasn't worth the mental exertion and emotional drain to have to try to explain what I was doing with my diet, what I couldn't eat or drink, and why I was doing it. It isn't fun getting looked at like you've got 3 heads when discussing the AIP with a Muggle (my husband's light-hearted term for anybody unenlightened about food).
So, I have to say it.
No, this recipe is not nutrient-dense.
But, this recipe will nourish you.
What the heck does that mean?? Well, you can't just focus on nutrition when you are embarking on any type of healing journey. Nutrition is important, but it is not enough. This was the biggest mistake I made when I started my journey 4 years ago. I focused so intensely on nutrition that I ignored the other areas of my life.
Nourishment certainly encompasses nutrition, but it takes it a step further and looks at how food affects your emotions, your mood, your psyche, your soul.
I am talking about how the ritual of food preparation and consumption taps into something really deep in our minds and our genetic history to make us feel like we are a part of the tribe. Breaking bread isn't considered such a sacred act of bonding with other people for no reason -- the work and care involved in preparing a fine bread make it something special to share with the people you care about (in the traditional sense, of course, when bread-making was a multi-day process -- Wonder Bread is definitely not what I'm referring to here).
Working the dough, baking, and eating these rolls will make you feel like a normal person again.
I want you to give yourself permission to eat foods that not only give your body the nutrition that it needs, but that also nourish your soul. It is OK to eat foods like this on occasion while you are devoting yourself to healing.
I feel so lucky to have stumbled upon the combination of yuca flour + coconut flour + gelatin when I first created my autoimmune paleo pizza crust. It was from that recipe that I was able to create these rolls as well as a variety of other bread items, like breadsticks, hamburger buns, savory muffins, and more.
Of course, I know that the overall aim of the autoimmune protocol is to give your body the tools (i.e. micronutrients) that it needs to heal itself while removing the things that could potentially aggravate your immune system.
What this recipe lacks in micronutrients, it makes up for tenfold in its nourishing properties. Especially at this time of year, when you will be "breaking bread" with your family, friends, and loved ones for joyous holiday meals.
Relish the experience this year of being able to soak up the gravy (yep, you can make it AIP!) with warm rolls!
A few important notes about this recipe:
• Yuca flour/starch and tapioca flour/starch are the same thing. Don't be confused by the different names for the same item!
• Be certain to measure your ingredients exactly (especially the gelatin). I scoop it out and use a knife to even out the measurement (holding the spoon over a clean bowl so I can add the extra gelatin back in to my canister of Great Lakes).
• There is no oil in the dough. I experimented a lot with this and found that if there is no oil in the dough, surprisingly, the rolls turn out more moist and chewy. I guess that's the qualities of the gelatin shining through. I tried a version with oil (and some other small modifications) and the rolls turned out with a drier texture that reminds me of a traditional biscuit -- I'm going to experiment more with that and hopefully come up with a distinct biscuit recipe to publish separately.
• If the dough is too sticky, let it rest a few minutes. If it is still sticky, dust it with extra yuca flour and work on a surface also dusted with flour.
• When you roll out the balls from the dough, they should hold their shape and not fall flat. If they do fall, that means the dough is too wet. Sprinkle in additional yuca flour and work with the dough until it firms up. If for some reason you end up needing to add a lot of yuca flour (say, 2+ Tbsp), add a bit of coconut flour, too (about 1 heaping tsp for every 2 Tbsp yuca flour). The added flours + a few minutes extra resting time should make the dough get to the right consistency.
• Don't overcook them. Overcooking will result in a very hard/crunchy texture, not a light, fluffy one as shown in the photos.
• Don't forget to brush the rolls with oil while cooking. I did it once every 10 minutes.
• These taste their absolute best when eaten fresh out of the oven. You can eat them cold or reheat them, but the texture does change and you may not like it as much. If you can, I strongly suggest planning your dinner so that you can bake these right before it's time to eat.
• Altitude and humidity may affect gelatin baking more than regular baking. I wish I could help you troubleshoot if you live in a different climate than me, but I developed this recipe in Florida at near sea-level and where the humidity averages 70%, but can get as high as 90%.
UPDATE (Nov 2015):
This recipe has been remastered into a NEW AND IMPROVED version that is MUCH EASIER to work with and requires NO GELATIN - making it vegan.
Get it here: The Allergy-Free Holiday Table
This special recipe is ONLY available in The Allergy-Free Holiday Table - get it today and serve these warm, fluffy, EASY TO MAKE dinner rolls with your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner!
Autoimmune Paleo Dinner Rolls
Feel like a normal person again this holiday season with these AIP (autoimmune paleo) friendly dinner rolls. Nothing like soaking up gravy with one of these!
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 25-30 minutes
Total time: 35-45 minutes
Yield: 8 rolls
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/4 cups tapioca starch (not cassava flour!)
- 1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted before measuring
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp unrefined finely ground salt
- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp gelatin (green Vital Proteins -- Collagen will NOT work)
- 2/3 cup filtered water
- 2 tsp raw apple cider vinegar
- about 2-3 Tbsp olive oil, for brushing roll tops
Cooking Directions
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Measure dry ingredients (tapioca starch, SIFTED coconut flour, baking soda, salt, and garlic powder) into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine evenly.
- Add water to a small saucepan and slowly sprinkle gelatin on top to "bloom" it. Do not let the dry gelatin clump as you do this. Once all gelatin has is wet, heat over medium low until all gelatin is dissolved, stirring as needed.
- Pour gelatin and apple cider vinegar into the dry ingredients and stir to form the dough. Let the dough cool for a few minutes.
- If the dough is too sticky after cooling, sprinkle 1 Tbsp of yuca flour on the outside of the dough. You can also dust your hands with some flour, too.
- Knead and work the dough for just a minute before forming your rolls. This will also help work in any extra yuca flour that you added to the outside.
- Divide dough into 8 equal-sized pieces and roll them into balls. Optional: score the tops of the rolls with an "X" shape using a sharp knife. NOTE: balls should hold their shape without collapsing. If they do not, see notes about working with the dough above the recipe.
- Place rolls on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and brush the tops generously with olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes, then brush with olive oil again. Bake an additional 10 minutes, then brush one more time with oil. Return to the oven for about 5 more minutes, or until the rolls are golden and color and offer some resistance when pressed in the middle.
- Best enjoyed immediately out of the oven, but may be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days after cooking. Reheat in a 350F oven for several minutes until warmed though. Enjoy!
Recommended Ingredients
These are the ingredients that I use in my kitchen, and I think you'll like them to! You can pick them up from my affiliate partner, Amazon:
This recipe is shared in the Autoimmune Paleo Roundtable #52 here. Check it out for more great AIP recipes!
