Tiger Bread

In a search to find a recipe for alligator rolls, I decided to try another tiger bread recipe.  The roll of these was fantastic.  The only change I made was I used bread flour (3.5 cups) instead of all purpose.  I really wasn't that crazy about the topping on these.  It needed to be a little bit sweeter.  I made the dough in the bread machine so I didn't necessarily follow the directions for mixing the dough.

Tiger Bread
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/221802350370844146/

Ingredients

Soft White Rolls
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
• 3 1/2 - 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
Dutch Crunch Topping
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 - 1 cup rice flour*

            

Instructions

1. Combine the milk and butter in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for about 1 minute, until the milk is warm and the butter has melted. Stir together, and set aside to cool until lukewarm.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together 3 1/2 cups flour with yeast, sugar and salt. Add the lukewarm milk and butter mixture and fold in with a spatula until everything is combined in a somewhat sticky dough. If it is very sticky, add a bit more flour. Otherwise, turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead, incorporating the remaining 1/2 cup flour only as needed, until the dough is elastic, tacky, and smooth.
3. Shape the dough into a ball with a smooth top surface and place in a greased bowl roughly double its size. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise until doubled in size (for me this took about 2 hours).
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Punch down the dough and divide it into 6 equal pieces**. Shape each piece into a ball by tucking the outer edges underneath and pinching them together as you would a twist-tie. Place the balls of dough pinch-side down on the prepared baking sheet, spaced apart from each other. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise for another 30-45 minutes, until puffy.
5. Preheat oven to 425°F. Prepare the dutch crunch topping by combining the yeast, warm water, sugar, vegetable oil, salt, and 3/4 cup rice flour in a medium bowl. Beat together well to form a smooth, thick "batter" that drips off your whisk in thick clumps. Add up to another 1/4 cup rice flour if needed to achieve the desired consistancy. Let the mixture sit for 15 minutes.
6. Spoon the topping in equal amounts over the fully risen rolls. As you do so, it will start rolling over the sides of the rolls. Once you've used it all up (it will seem like a lot, but use it all), scoop up any excess topping that has dripped onto the baking sheet and use it to cover any areas of the rolls left exposed.
7. Bake the rolls in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, until golden-brown on top. Cool briefly before serving.