My Scandinavian mother was a great cook. She pulled out all the stops for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. For these holidays, she believed there were two basic food groups: cream and butter. Beyond that, everything else was a side dish. But boy, could she work wonders with cream and butter. Spritz cookies. “Died And Gone To Heaven” scalloped potatoes. I couldn’t get enough of it as a kid.

And it wasn’t just Mom. Once, the son of my parents’ dentist, Dr Bonbright, dropped by our home to say “Hi” at Christmas. He opined that “White is a basic food group at Christmas. You know,” he continued, “whipped cream. Mashed potatoes. Frosting. Powdered sugar. All basic food groups.” How can you argue with that logic? Mom certainly wouldn’t have.

But my personal favorite is Mom’s Potato Refrigerator Rolls. After more than 40 years, I still have the 3×5 card that I copied her recipe onto with my barely legible scrawl. I dig it out three times a year to make rolls for our Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter family feasts. The pillowy rolls are wonderful slathered with a generous helping of butter and jam. And then, for Christmas morning, the dough does double duty for Pecan Cinnamon Sweet rolls which, if anything, are even better.

Compared with many scratch made breads, this recipe is very forgiving. It can be easily doubled or tripled-which I often do so that extra dinners rolls can be sent home with guests. And so we’ll have enough for freshly baked cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

Potato Refrigerator Dough Recipe

• Two packages active dry yeast (1 1/2 table spoons)
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tea spoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter (1 cube) melted
• 1 beaten egg
• 1 cup warm mashed potatoes (substitute mashed sweet potato to give rolls a faint, festive orange color-although this does mess with the idea that “white” is a basic Christmas food group)
• 7-7 1/2 cups flour

Step 1: In a large bowl (I recommend stainless steel) stir together first 3 ingredients. Proof the yeast until it “blooms” and bubbles are forming on the surface of the combined liquids. At that point, stir in the salt, butter, egg and potatoes.
Step 2: Gradually stir in flour. Keep adding until the dough becomes too stiff to stir. At that point, continue adding flour and begin kneading the mixture. I do all the kneading in the bowl to keep my counter from becoming a mess. Continue adding flour and kneading until you have a soft dough that is no longer sticking to your hand and the bowl. Knead for about 5 minutes or until your arm wears out. I don’t so much measure the flour as go by how the dough feels. As I said, this is a forgiving recipe.
Step 3: When the dough is no longer sticky, turn it out on the counter. It shouldn’t make a mess on the counter by now, even if you haven’t dusted it with flour. Wash and dry the bowl and then spray it with Pam cooking spray. Put the dough back in the bowl and then flip the dough so that both sides have Pam on them. Tightly cover all with a clean plastic trash bag and put it in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. Punch down the dough through the plastic at least once or you may find that the “monster” has completely taken over your ‘frig.
Step 4: (For dinner rolls) Generously dust your counter with flour and turn out the dough. Roll out the dough and use a biscuit cutter to make 3 inch rounds. Score the rounds, fold in half and and put them in a greased/buttered baking pan. Let them rise again in a warm oven til doubled. Take them out (carefully!), pre-heat the oven to 375°, and bake for 20 minutes. Take rolls out of pan and let cool on a wire rack. They look beautiful!
For pecan cinnamon rolls: You’re on your own here, but there are tons of good looking recipes on-line for which this dough can form the basis.

Just Magical Thinking?

Sure, this dough makes wonderful rolls. And, invariably, they’re a hit with the crowd. But now, I’m really attached to the recipe (and that stained old 3×5 card) because of the wonderful memories and traditions. In my mind’s eye, I can still picture mom stooping over to pull the rolls out of the oven, their aroma spilling out to fill the kitchen. And now, that memory echos down though the decades as I’ve reenacted that scene countless times in my own right.

Of course, I know that Christmas can be a stressful time of year. We overeat. We annoy one another. It doesn’t live up to the impossibly high expectations we load on it. And, especially in this season of COVID induced social distancing, profound sadness and depression might be the uninvited guest around the dinner table rather than Yuletide joy. Nonetheless, I’m sure I’ll make the rolls again this year. And nothing’s going to persuade me that it’s just magical thinking to believe that the anticipation and process itself are about as good an anti-depressant of which I know.

So, even if it only means that our family, masks on, briefly rendezvous in a parking lot somewhere to exchange food and gifts, I’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that I’ll come bearing a gift of my own.

God Bless Us, Everyone!