Made cinnamon rolls yesterday, came out good, hubby complained that it didn't require butter to be spread on it (rolling eyes).
The problem we had is, I don't really have anything to roll dough out on. I have a marble board, but it is only 12 by 15. Bamboo cutting board, some silicone baking mats, but you can't cut on them and I find I don't like baking on them.
Suggestions? I wish price didn't matter but it does, but I am willing to pay a fair, good price to get something that I can use to roll dough out on and also cut on. I'm guessing a good size would be around 16 by 20? 15 x 18? I have no clue as to what is needed. Making candies, jams and jellies, I never had to worry about that type of measuring.
I do have to worry about weight, was told to not pick up anything heavier than 20 pounds, less is better. So hubby gets to do the lifting of my marble board.
In my country we make potica - a yeasted roll, traditionaly filled with a walnut filling. It is made in a similar manner to cinnamon rolls. I never saw a board to be used for rolling and I can't imagine using it - we always use a large cloth. We liberaly dust the cloth with flour, roll the dough, spread it and roll. If there is no concern for air pockets forming between layers, like with strudel or burek, we just lift the edge of the cloth closest to us and the dough rolls on itself. With yeasted dough we begin by rolling by hand for 2/3 of the dough and then roll by lifting the cloth. We also cut the roll directly on the cloth and I have never seen the knife cutting through it.
The cloth is cheap, you can store it easily and cleanup is easy - I just throw it in the washing machine after use. My mother however just goes outside and dusts the flour off on the lawn, but she is better at keeping the filling where it is supposed to be =D
This is how the rolled out dough with filling is rolled into a log shape:
I use a fair number of couches and looked into the ones marketed by SFBI and other. They were expensive and at the time they didn't have the size I needed.
When I was growing up all the bakers around me used pastry cloths. As I looked into it more I found out that the cloths were made from something called cotton drill. It is mid-weight between linen and canvas, and the local fabric stores usually have bolts of drill in stock. I purchased it by the yard, cut the fabric to my specs, seamed the edges and made my own couches.
It takes a while to break them in but that only means that you have to dust with a bit more flour until the weave closes up a bit. From then on they perform like a non-stick skillet, comparatively-speaking.
I am sure you can find pastry cloths at your nearby kitchen supply store. If you are handy with a sewing machine you can easily make your own.
For my cinnamon rolls, I use a cutting board. I used a remnant of butcher block counter (solid wood from IKEA) that I sealed with mineral oil and cut to fit my counters. It works really great and helps to maintain the flour mess to a minimum.
Alternatively, you could simply use a silicone baking mat. They make them in all sorts of sizes, and many have helpful rulers along the edges. Similar to the couche/cloth ideas above, but even easier and more versatile IMO. They store neatly wherever you can fit them.
Thanks for the suggestions.
I have some silicone baking mats that I have used for cookies and such, but I find I don't really care for them and they are too small to roll our for such items as pizza dough to a size 12, 14 or bigger for a family pizza. The bamboo cutting blocks are too small also; at the time I was just thinking of cutting up some meat, not making anything on them. I wouldn't think of using them for both, so I would still need something else. The marble block that I have is too small, also.
I have a sewing machine, I could make something. Hubby wants to take some Plexiglas that he has and cut it to a square size to use. I'm not sure how I feel about it.
We have discussed going to the mall to check out a store there that sells kitchen items. It is a 40 minute drive so I hesitate, health issues, but I would love to look at some kitchen items, I think I need something other than a steak knife to slash the bread with. And maybe a couple of other things.
We live in a small village, there is no bakery, deli, or any type of store that sells such items except Walmart, which I hate shopping in (gave our son wrong medication, neurological damage, going to college to be a doctor, now on disability), Pop is less than 3,000 and that is spread out, several small farms. Come to think of it, there isn't even a red light, just stop signs.
Thanks for the feedback
I'm finding my 20? year-old 18 x 18 marble board is too small at times. I was about to look for a larger piece to lie under it. I have a small kitchen and my hands can't always lift the marble, so it stays on the counter. Did some reading here and decided I'd rather have wood for the slight texture and ability to use no flour (or less than marble requires) for rolling some items. Never thought to use my couche (Brotform, 26 x 35", from Amazon, affordable. Edges are hemmed, very durable). Did 5 baguettes on it today, could have done 6 or 7. Covered with cotton "bread towels" that never dry dishes). Couldn't find the appropriate cloth in our 2 fabric stores. Good luck!