Garlic Herb Rolls

Oregon is a gorgeous state with pockets of beauty that will take your breathe away. Bob and I actively seek them out. It starts when one of us sees an obscure marker that veers off the beaten path. A glance, a nodding assent and then a sharp turn takes us onto the road less travelled. The hope is we'll find a place so beautiful that it will reveal the world as it should be. Naive? Perhaps, but we've found some transcendentally beautiful places.
If you blink you'll miss the marker that points the way to Loon Lake. Fortunately, we didn't blink and found this rainbow at its end. It's an isolated, fir-fragrant, untouched piece of yesterday. Folks who know this spot are its caretakers. The grounds are beautifully kept and it's a family kind of place. We love to show it to the unsuspecting and it's become our favorite picnic spot. It's the place where we had our first picnic of the year. Rather than pack a finished hamper, we grilled ribs in the campground and served them with Asian noodles and these wonderful Italian herb rolls. We'll talk about the ribs in a few weeks. My recipe today is for the rolls. They are extremely easy to do and packed with flavor. They have the texture of a bread and won't crush or flatten, so they're perfect picnic fare. They also freeze well. This is a good recipe for beginners. Oh, about Loon Lake...I'd tell you but...

Garlic Herb Rolls

Ingredients:
12 large garlic cloves, peeled
1-1/2 cups milk + milk for glazing
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon table salt
2-1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1-1/2 teaspoons dried, crushed Italian herb seasoning
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Coarse sea salt

Directions:
1) Place garlic cloves and milk in a 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Place in a blender jar and pulse to puree garlic. Set aside.
2) Place flour, salt, yeast and herbs in a large bowl. Whisk to combine.
3) Add milk, oil and egg to dry ingredients. Mix with hands or a wooden spoon to form a dough.
4) Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until soft and smooth, about 3 minutes.
5) Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover, let rise in a warm place until double in volume, about 1 hour.
6) Coat a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
7) Turn dough onto a work surface. Knead gently for a minute or two. Form into 8 rolls. Place on prepared baking. Lightly score top of rolls with a knife. Cover and let rise for 15 to 30 minutes. Brush rolls with reserved milk. Sprinkle with sea salt.
8) Bake until rolls are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. Cool. Yield: 8 rolls.

I'm sending this recipe to Cindy Star who is hosting Bread Baking Day #19. BBD is a popular food-blog event that was started by Zorra of Kochtopf.