My 17th experiment: Cheese and ham rolls

The first time I tasted the pizza rolls from Pizza-hut, I was so fascinated. Some day I'd like to be able to make that. This motivates me to a new experiment on stuffed bread.

Recipe: Mozzarella ham rolls (make 8)

Ingredients:
Pre-ferment
- 2 cups grocery store brand unbleached flour
- 1 tp active dry yeast
- 11/12 cup warm water
Final dough
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 TB sugar/honey powder
- 1/2 tp salt
- 2 tp pesto sauce
- 1/2 cup unbleached flour for dusting and final kneading
- 5 oz part-skim mozzarella cheese cut to 1/2" thick tubes
- 2 oz ham, cut to pieces

Procedure:
Day 1: Mix the ingredients of the ferment and allow to rest in the fridge overnight.
Day 2: Punch the dough down once. Allow it to continue to rest in the fridge.
Day 3:
1. Take the pre-ferment out of the fridge and leave out on the counter for 5 hours.
2. Add wheat flour, sugar, salt into the pre-ferment. Mix well to form a homogenous dough. Then add pesto sauce and work the oil into the dough to make a smooth dough.
3. Allow dough to rest for 2-3 minutes. Then stretch it out on a counter dusted with flour.
4. Cut into 8 pieces. If the dough does not break when stretched, then it is strong enough to hold the fillings. If not, add extra flour and knead each piece of dough until it's strong enough. Then stretch the dough into a sheet, place mozzarella and ham in it. Wrap it up. Dust the surface with extra flour. Then set on parchment paper.
5. Preheat oven to 450F. Bake the rolls at 400F for 15 minutes.

Results:

Day 1: Pre-ferment just made

Day 2: Pre-ferment in the fridge:

Day 2: Pre-ferment punched down again:

Day 3, 8:31am, Pre-ferment out of the fridge:

Day 3, 3:42pm, Pre-ferment warmed for half a day:

Day 3, 3:56pm, final dough all mixed:

Day 3, 4:05pm, final dough stretched:

Day 3, 4:06pm, final dough cut with a pizza slicer:

Day 3, 4:17pm, final dough, toughened with extra flour, then stuffed:

Day 3, 4:24pm, rolls ready to bake:

Day 3, 4:46pm, rolls just out of the oven (the cheese oozes out of the rolls in the middle of baking, so I scoop it back onto the top of each roll):

Day 3, 4:47pm, top of a freshly baked roll:

Observations:
1. The dough does not seem to be thick enough to hold the cheese during baking. The dough bursts and cheese oozes out in the middle of the baking.
2. The bread has a rich characteristic of long fermentation. However, it may be short of salt. More salt is needed next time. The amount of sugar used seems to be just good.