Oatmeal Dinner Rolls (A failure)

Now that I did a little more research as to where this recipe came from, and actually found pictures of what it was SUPPOSED to look like, I realized I must have screwed the whole thing up.

But although for me these weren't particularly visually stunning, which is why I didn't end up taking too many pictures of them, they weren't too too bad. They smelled like oatmeal and didn't expand into "rolls", more like just drop biscuits or scones. They tasted strongly of oatmeal, which with any other dinner might have been just too annoying, but paired with last Tuesday's Turkey Spinach Lasagna, it was excellent to soak up the marinara sauce left behind.

I probably wouldn't make them again because I don't know what I did wrong (most other reviewers had good results, but some described rolls that sound similar to mine), but they weren't a complete dud. I baked these for five or ten minutes longer than the recipe calls for, because I thought they weren't baking properly.

Oatmeal Dinner Rolls
Recipe from Southern Living

2 cups water
1 cup quick-cooking oats
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
1 tablespoon sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Bring 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan; stir in oats and butter. Boil, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Remove from heat; let cool to 110°.

Stir together yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, and 1 tablespoon sugar in a 2-cup measuring cup; let stand 5 minutes.

Beat oat mixture, yeast mixture, flour, salt, and brown sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes). Place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top.

Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until dough is doubled in bulk.

Punch dough down, and divide in half; shape each portion into 16 (1 1/2-inch) balls. Place evenly into 2 lightly greased 9- x 1 3/4-inch round cakepans.

Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 30 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.