Pretty much the only thing that's been keeping me from trying out small crusty dinner rolls is that I have no idea how to load them into the oven. A cornmeal-ed peel alone is definitely not an option since the rolls would slide into one another, but I also can imagine how parchment paper might have the same issue. It doesn't help the fact that I don't have a real pizza peel at the moment; it's a charcuterie board that's roughly the shape of a pizza peel but much thicker. It works fine for a pizza but individual rolls might be tricky. My oven is also placed at chest level and is quite small. When used with a steaming setup, the baking stone is positioned just below shoulder level, making loading an uncomfortable business for just about any loaf. I've had my fair share of baguettes flip upside down because I simply don't have the range of motion necessary to load them properly (thank god for Dutch ovens...).
Is it even worth it in my case to try and load rolls or other delicate shapes directly onto the stone or should I just leave them on a baking sheet and place that over the stone?
Just put them on small squares of parchment and place them individually with a spatula. reposition with tongs if needed.
just leaving them on a thin baking sheet is ok too, i think. with the small mass, the heat transfer from the stone through the sheet should be fine
That...is actually genius. I'd never thought to put them on individually. I'll do some experimenting with that, thanks!!!