Instructions: Warm a large bowl with warm water. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water in this bowl. Add the sugar, salt, egg and shortening and stir.

Slowly add the flour, stirring after each addition to fully incorporate the flour. Add the flour until the dough forms a ball. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let the dough rise in a warm, draft free place until it doubles in volume, or about 2 hours. Punch the dough down with your fist and turn it out onto a lightly floured board. The dough will be light and sticky. Knead the dough and add an extra cup of flour as needed. Knead until blisters form on the dough. Roll out or pat to 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with a biscuit cutter. Fold with a piece of butter inserted in the fold. Place rolls in a well-buttered pan approximately 2 hours before baking and let rise. Bake in a preheated 375 oven. When the rools are just firm on top, brush with melted butter and continue baking until brown. Total cooking time should be about 15 minutes.

Yield: 3 dozen rolls.

Important variation: After kneading the dough, you may return dough to a well-greased or buttered bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and keep in the refrigerator until ready to be made out into rolls. If you do this, you will probably have to lightly knead the dough again when you turn it out of the bowl. Use a light touch when rolling out.

WATER VALLEY, MS

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.