Fun Fridays: Low-fat Sub Rolls

I love a good sub. Doesn't everybody? It's even one of those meals that everyone will eat without complaining. Amazing, but true. And I can't figure it out, really. I can make them a sandwich with the exact same toppings and they complain. I make them a sub and I'm "mom of the year". They don't even notice they're having sandwiches for dinner!

This particular batch of sub rolls were made with all white flour because I had run out of wheat and hadn't gotten around to grinding more - much to the delight of the younger members of the Peanut Gallery. It can be made with a white-wheat mixture of flour as well, however I don't recommend whole wheat for this recipe. It doesn't have any oil in it, so the only fat comes from the egg yolk. They are really good the day they are made, decent the next day. Beyond that, they don't really keep all that well because they dry out more quickly. Not a problem for our household, because it's not like sub rolls actually last all that long around here.


Low-fat Sub Rolls
(Makes 6 sub rolls of 220 calories each)

1 c. warm water
2 tsp. active dry yeast (or 1 pkg)
1 tsp. sugar or honey
1 tsp. salt
1 egg
2 1/2 to 3 c. flour, white or white-wheat
1 egg white
1 Tbsp. cold water

Combine warm water, yeast, and sugar in a medium bowl. Let sit for about 5-10 minutes to dissolve the yeast and give it a chance to start reacting with the sugar. It'll start to look all foamy, like this:

Stir in salt, egg, and 1 1/2 cups of flour. Beat on medium for about 3 minutes. Stir or and knead in as much of the remaining flour as needed to make the dough elastic yet still soft. Knead the dough lightly and let it rest on a floured service for about 10 minutes.

Roll dough out into a long rectangle, about 6 inches tall by 12 inches long. I had a hard time getting "rectangle" and ended up with more of an "oblong". Don't worry about it. Just make sure it's as tall as you want your sub rolls to be long.

Using a pizza cutter, cut dough into strips about 2 inches wide. As you can see, I had to cut off two smaller strips on the end because of the whole "oblong" thing. I then shaped those smaller pieces into one sub roll, as you will see in later pictures.

Place dough strips on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper or sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cover and let rise about 40-45 minutes.

Just before the bread dough is finished rising, whisk together one egg white and 1 Tbsp cold water with a fork.

Brush this egg mixture on top of the sub rolls, and bake at 375 for about 20-25 minutes. (See the hand-shaped sub roll on the left? Not as pretty as the others, but it'll do!)

Bake at 375 degrees for about 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Let cool, then cut and make your subs!