August 1st Milk Rolls (Erster August-Weggli)
Grüezi, I’m Kristie!
My brother and I are extremely excited about this post because not only is it our FIRST post, but it is also August 1st — the Swiss National Day! So we’re kicking off this blog with a delicious recipe to show you how Swiss folks start their national day partying with piping hot, buttery Erster August-Weggli.
Ennis asks: What the heck is an Erster August–weggli?
As you can see, my little brother needs a little practice with his Swiss German, as maybe a lot of you readers do too. So here’s a quick explanation.
Weggli means milk roll and depending on where you live in Switzerland it can also be called semmeli. No matter what the name, they are sweet breakfast rolls that go great with jam and butter. Also, if you like chocolate, you can add some and have a schoggi-weggli.
Make mine with chocolate chunks — lots of them! — Ennis
Stimmt, bro! We’ll show everyone how to make them both ways, and they’re equally delicious!
Ennis says: Hey wait, if weggli are just milk rolls, why can’t we make them in other months besides August?
Well, the good news is you can bake them and eat them any time of the year. What sets an August weggli apart from a normal weggli is that around this time of year, we cut Swiss crosses into the dough as a decoration.
My first memory of eating a schoggi–weggli is me sitting in a little seat on the back of my dad’s bike when he took me to school. We used to buy them at the Sutter Bakery in Basel, Switzerland, which was right down the block from our place. On the First of August, bakeries all over Switzerland sell wegglis decorated with small Swiss flags mounted on toothpicks.
So now I hope you can make lots of nice memories with your family baking and eating these awesome little breads!
The first thing we are going to do is mix the flour and the salt. Make a well in the center.
Next, measure the milk and warm part of it in the microwave. Sprinkle the yeast on top and then add the sugar.
Now take a fork and froth the yeast mixture. Let it rise for about 5 minutes, or until it becomes foamy.
While you wait for the yeast to rise, cut the butter and place it around the flour, then pour the risen yeast into the well as shown.
Mix the dough in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook at the lowest setting, or you can mix it by hand.
Now add the rest of the milk, but only a little at a time. You may not need all of it. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky, but you should be able to knead it easily and it should not stick to the side of the bowl.
Raise the speed to the second setting and continue kneading the dough until it is smooth and stretchy. If you are kneading this in a stand mixer, take the dough out of the bowl and knead it a few times with your hand. If you are mixing this by hand, you can skip this step.
Now put the dough back into the bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Let it sit for 1 hour, or until it is doubled.
Preheat the oven to 400° degrees. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured work surface and divide the dough into ten pieces.
If you are adding chocolate, I recommend using chocolate chunks. I also wouldn’t add too many as you want a nice balance of flavor between the bread and the chocolate. No matter what sort of chocolate or how much you use, you can knead it in at this point.
To shape the rolls, make a disc out of each piece of dough, then fold the edges to the bottom, pinching them together until it holds a round form. The important thing is to make sure the surface is smooth.
If you’re putting chocolate in your weggli, then take a sharp knife and cut a cross into the top. Don’t cut it too deep or it will separate too much, and don’t cut it too shallow it won’t separate at all.
You can do the same thing with the plain rolls, or you can cut a raised Swiss cross design into them, which is actually a lot easier than it looks!
All you need is a pair of scissors to cut a shape like this:
The only thing left to do is to flatten the little tips created by the cutting. Wasn’t that easy?
Gently arrange the weggli on a baking sheet about an inch apart from each other.
Prepare some eggwash and brush it over the weggli, making sure to get it into all the cracks.
Bake the weggli for 15 minutes until they are golden brown. You can test for doneness by tapping on the bottom of a roll, and if it sounds hollow its completely cooked.
When they are done baking, let them cool, then serve with some butter and jam. Or just eat them like that!
We really hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do, and maybe it will become a new tradition in your family whether or not you’re Swiss.
Happy 1st of August everyone!
— Kristie & Ennis, Double Lecker Team
First of August Rolls (Erster August-Weggli)
Ingredients
- 3 cups unbleached flour
- 1/2 cup spelt flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup milk
- 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tbs sugar
- 4 tbs butter
- chocolate chunks (optional)
Instructions
- Combine the flour, spelt, and salt in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center.
- Measure the milk and warm about half of it in the microwave for 35-40 seconds, then sprinkle the yeast and sugar on top. Use a fork to stir the mixture. Let it rise for about 5 minutes, or until becomes foamy.
- While the yeast is rising, cut the butter and place it around the well you made in the flour.
- When the yeast is ready, pour it into the well in the flour. If you are using a stand mixer, run it at its lowest setting until it is combined.If you are making the dough by hand, stir with a large spoon or spatula until combined.The mixture should look dry and crumbly at this point, and should not hold together.
- Slowly add the rest of the milk a little at a time. Don't add it all at once because you may not need all of it. If you are using a stand mixer, you can increase the speed to the second or third setting while adding the milk.If making the dough by hand, add a little milk, knead, add milk, knead, and so forth.Stop adding milk when the dough is soft and slightly sticky. It should knead easily but should not stick to the side of the bowl.
- Continue kneading the dough until it is smooth and elastic.
- If you're using a stand mixer, remove the dough from the bowl and knead it a few times with your hands. This ensures everything is thoroughly combined.
- When you are done, cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 hour, or until doubled.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400° Fahrenheit (205° Celsius).
- Once the dough is risen, divide it into 10 parts. If you want to add chocolate chunks, gently knead the desired amount into the individual rolls.
- Shape and cut the rolls as described above.
- Brush the rolls with eggwash and bake for 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown and sound hollow when you tap on the bottom.