Spray two cookie sheets with vegetable oil spray.
Yield: 14 rolls
Dissolve yeast in water, add 1 tsp. sugar and let the mixture sit for 1 minute to become creamy.
Put flour, 3 T. oil, sugar, salt, and 3 eggs in the workbowl of a food processor fitted with the plastic blade.
With the motor running, add the yeast/water mixture.
Continue kneading in the processor until the dough is smooth and elastic, the texture of your earlobe.
Grease a large bowl with 1 T. oil; put the dough in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, let rise for 1 1/2 hours or until the dough is doubled
in size.
Meanwhile, heat 2 T. oil with 2 T. water in a small saucepan. Add the chopped onions, and cook slowly for 2 minutes until the onions are just begining to appear translucent. Cover the pan, and remove it from the heat. By the time the rolls are ready to bake, the onions will be perfect.
Punch down the dough; divide into 14 pieces. Form smooth balls of dough and place on greased cookie sheets. With your fist, make indentations first in one direction, then turned 90°. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and let rise 20 min. With your fist, make the indentations again; fill the indentations with the cooked onions; brush with beaten egg; sprinkle with seeds.
Put a shallow pan with cold water on the bottom rack of the oven; turn the temperature down to 375°F., and bake rolls for 20-25 minutes.
You probably won't have room for both cookie sheets on the upper rack of your oven. If you don't have two ovens, you can bake these in succession in the same oven, or if you can fit a small container of water on the bottom of the oven, you can bake two sheets in the same oven, but rotate them midway through the baking. Cool 15-20 minutes on a rack before serving.