These dinner rolls replicate the soft, mildly sweet, deep chocolate-colored rolls served at various chain restaurants (particularly steakhouses) around the country. The taste-testers here at King Arthur Flour raved about them, so even if they're not an exact match for those restaurant rolls, we're sure you'll find them tasty.

We made these rolls about twice as large as the typical dinner roll, shaping them into little logs before baking. Now, close your eyes and imagine each roll on its own on a serving board, complete with a tiny ramekin of whipped butter. Conjure up a salad bar. There! You;re dining out without ever leaving the house.

To Prepare the Dough:
Combine all the dough ingredients, and mix and knead them -- by hand, by mixer, or bread machine -- until you have a medium soft, smooth dough. Cover and allow the dough to rise until it's quite puffy, though probably not doubled in bulk, 1 to 2 hours.

Lightly grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

To Shape the Rolls:
Gently deflate the dough, and transfer it to a lightly greased work surface. Divide the dough into 10 even pieces (about 4 ounces each), and shape the pieces into 5 X 2-inch oval rolls. Place the rolls on the prepared baking sheet, and allow them to rise, covered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. They won't have doubled in size, but will appear puffy; when you gently press your finger into one, the indentation will rebound quite slowly. Toward the end of the rise, preheat the oven to 350°F.

To Bake the Rolls:
Uncover and Bake the rolls until the bottoms appear slightly browned (you'll have to carefully pick one up to look) or until an instant read thermometer inserted in the center of a roll reads about 200°F, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the rolls from the oven, and cool them on a rack.

Nutritional Information per Serving (1/2 Roll, 52G): 13g whole grains; 141 calories; 3g fat; 4g protein; 20g complex carbohydrates; 6g sugar; 2g dietary fiber; 6mg cholesterol; 189mg sodium; 99mg potassium; 20RE vitamin A; 1mg vitamin C; 1mg iron; 9mg calcium; 71mg phosphorus.