Bread - Rolls

My Grandmother Lillian’s Favorite Luncheon Rolls

Ingredients:
Pkg. yeast dissolved in ¼ Cup lukewarm milk
1 Pint lukewarm milk
1tsp salt
1/3 C sugar
½ Cup melted butter or other shortening
4 eggs well beaten
8 Cup flour

Dissolve the salt and sugar in the milk, add some of the flour, mix and add the risen yeast, beat well. Add shortening and eggs; beat 5 minutes. Add rest of flour to the medium soft dough; let rise in warm place; punch down and make into rolls or loaves. Let rise and bake at 350⁰ F for 20 minutes. Brush tops with melted butter.

Science
Warm milk is used as a catalyst to speed up the action of the yeast. If the milk is too hot, it will kill the yeast and the bread will not rise.
Sugar is a necessary for the yeast to make CO2.
Milk also has sugar and gives the bread a nice flavor.
Yeast, in the production of baked goods, is a key ingredient and serves three primary
functions:
1) Production of carbon dioxide: Carbon dioxide is generated by the yeast as a result of the breakdown of fermentable sugars in the dough. The evolution of carbon dioxide causes expansion of the dough as it is trapped within the protein matrix of the dough.
2) Causes dough maturation: This is accomplished by the chemical reaction of yeast produced alcohols and acids on protein of the flour and by the physical stretching of the protein by carbon dioxide gas. Resulting in the light, airy physical structure associated with yeast leavened products
3) Development of fermentation flavor: Yeast imparts the characteristic flavor of bread and other yeast leavened products. During dough fermentation, yeast produce many secondary metabolites such as ketones, higher alcohols, organic acids, aldehydes and esters. Some of these, alcohols for example, escape during baking. Others react with each other and with other compounds found in the dough to form new and more complex flavor compounds. These reactions occur primarily in the crust and the resultant flavor diffuses into the crumb of the baked bread.
http://www.dakotayeast.com/yeast_functions.html