Delicious, soft rolls, filled with Asiago cheese and dotted with black pepper. These rolls freeze beautifully. You can freeze any extras, so you can grab a couple of rolls whenever you like.
In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, pepper and sugar together. (Tip: If measuring your flour in cups, without a scale, hold back 1 cup to add as needed later).
In a large measuring cup or bowl, combine the water and buttermilk and whisk in the yeast until dissolved. Add this mixture, along with the melted butter, to the dry ingredients. Mix by hand or in a stand mixer with a dough hook, until the mixture is combined, about 2 minutes. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.
Continue mixing the dough, adding more flour or water, as needed, until the dough becomes soft, smooth and tacky, but not sticky.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes, then form dough into a ball. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and either refrigerate for up to 4 days, or allow to sit at room temperature until doubled in size (about 60-90 minutes).
Place dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle approximately 10 inches wide and 12 inches long.
Spread the Asiago cheese evenly over the surface of the dough and top with a generous amount of freshly ground pepper. Starting with the longest side, roll the dough up jelly-roll style, pulling it slightly towards you after each roll.
Grease 12 muffin cups
Using a sharp knife, cut the roll of dough into 12 equal slices (about 1-inch wide) and place into greased muffin cups, with the cut sides facing upward. Cover with a greased piece of plastic wrap and allow to rise until dough looks puffy, about 30-40 minutes. Before baking, sprinkle additional Asiago cheese over the tops of the rolls.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Bake for about 30 minutes or until well browned. Bread should reach about 185° F. internal temperature in the centre.
Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for a couple of minutes. Remove the rolls to a cooling rack.