I got a bit to optimistic when I tried the first version of this bread. Adding a big portion of very ripe pâte fermentée was not the best of my ideas, as this brings to much enzymes in the dough and has the same effect like adding sourdough. After 24 hours proofing time the dough was still stable, but the resulting bread lacked volume. A sure sign that the gluten network already started to decline.
And so I put the recipe back on my worktable and sat down to write a better version. This time it is a straight dough which develops its flavour during the long fermenting time. Yoghurt and good portion of whole grain flour adds another aromatic notes to the loaf. In this combination, the dough is stable over the course of 24 hours and the breads have a nice volume. Which can be seen in their crumb, too. It is soft and fluffy and can be toasted very well, too! A perfect bread for breakfasts and lunch boxes!
When I bake these buns the first time I wrote down “Taste and crumb are perfekt, but the crust shows cracks. Maybe proofing was to short –> Problems with yeast? Try again!” When baking the buns for a second time with a fresh yeast batch I realized that it was no problem with yeast but the rolls just need their time. And the baker needs patients. And so I elongated proofing time considerably and baked the rolls when fully proofed. And then the rolls are perfect: Fluffy crumb, tender crust and delicous flavour with notes of potato and butter. 
Already with the first recipe for my new “work day breads” there was the wish for recipes with some sourdough. Using a sourdough with a long, cold fermentation can cause problems with both the increasing acidity and the increasing enzyme activity. This can result in a weaker gluten network and a bread with less volume but with very chewy crumb.
A sweet treat which seems to be perfect for Easter Sunday breakfast is the traditional Aachener Streuselbrötchen (Streusel rolls from Aachen). They stem – as the name suggested – from Aachen and are not known above the city borders. And that is a pity, as they are so delicious, especially if you are a devoted streusel lover like I am. So I try today to get these rolls the national (or even international) attention they should have.
