Sweet Crescent Rolls

These rolls have been part of our Thanksgiving dinner for the last couple of years.  I love the texture and flavor when they are made with part white whole wheat flour, part all-purpose.  Since this makes quite a large batch it's nice to know these can be frozen either baked or unbaked.  It's been great to pull out unbaked frozen roll dough already shaped into cute little crescents on Thanksgiving morning and let them calmly hang out on the counter to thaw and rise while we work on other parts of the turkey day feast.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm water
2 scant tablespoons yeast
1 1/2 cups milk, lukewarm
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), very soft
6 1/2-7 cups flour (I like 4 cups white whole wheat, 2 1/2-3 cups all-purpose)
2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten, optional
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:
1. Mix water and yeast in large mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer.  Stir until dissolved.  Add milk, sugar, salt, eggs, butter, 4 cups of flour and the vital wheat gluten, if using.  Mix until smooth.

2. Add additional flour until "tacky" to the touch.  Knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes).  Transfer to a large greased bowl and cover.  Let rise until double in size (about 1 1/2 hours).

3.  Gently punch down to deflate.  Divide dough into 5 equal portions.  Roll each portion into a circle about 8 inches in diameter.  Cut into 8 wedges.  Brush with melted butter, then roll up each wedge into a crescent shape.

4.  Optional Freezing instructions: At this point the unbaked crescents can be put on a baking sheet lined with parchment, covered with a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of foil, and frozen.  When rolls are completely frozen, transfer to a large freezer bag.  About three hours before you want to bake the rolls, remove them from the freezer.  Place rolls on baking sheets (either greased or lined with parchment paper or silicone liners), cover with greased plastic wrap and allow to thaw and rise until about double.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

5. Baking instructions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Place on baking sheets (greased or lined with parchment paper or silicone lines) and cover with greased plastic wrap.  Allow to rise until double in size (about 45 minutes to 1 hour).  Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Source: adapted slightly from food.com via my friend, Sandy B.