Sugar Buns Recipes

SUGARED PORK BUNS

Steps:

• For the roast pork: Combine the honey, hoisin, soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil, ginger, five-spice powder and garlic in a nonreactive baking dish large enough to hold the pork snugly. Whisk until smooth and season with pepper. Cut the pork against the grain into 1-inch-thick slices. Add to the marinade and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours and up to 8 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place a rack on top.
• Drain the meat from the marinade (reserving the marinade) and place on the rack. Roast until the top is lightly caramelized, about 25 minutes. Flip the pieces and roast until the second side is lightly caramelized, about 25 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, pour a few tablespoons of the marinade into a small bowl. Add the cornstarch and whisk until smooth with no lumps. Add 2 cups of the marinade to a small saucepan (discard the rest) and heat over medium. Add the cornstarch mixture to the saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.
• Let the pork cool, then chop into small pieces for the filling and put in a medium bowl. Add the thickened, cooled marinade and stir to coat.
• For the dough: Combine the yeast, 1/2 cup warm water (90 to 110 degrees F) and a pinch of sugar in a large spouted measuring cup. Let sit until foamy, about 3 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, granulated sugar and salt in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Whisk the milk, vegetable oil and egg into the yeast mixture. Add to the flour mixture and mix with the paddle to make a cohesive dough. Switch to the dough hook and knead, adding a little more flour or water if needed, to make a dough that cleans the sides of the bowl. Knead until the dough is very smooth and springy, 4 to 5 minutes. Knead the dough on a floured counter to bring the dough together. Oil a large bowl and turn the dough to coat in the oil. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Punch the dough down and divide into 2 pieces. Roll each piece to about a scant 1/4 inch thickness and use a 4-inch ring cutter to cut as many circles as possible. Reroll the dough to cut out 9 to 12 circles total. Fill the center of each with about 1 tablespoon of the filling. Pinch the dough to enclose the filling and make a ball. Put the balls pinched-side down on the baking sheets. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the topping: Combine the flour, confectioners' sugar, baking powder and salt in the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and process until crumbly. Add the egg and egg white and process to make a very smooth paste. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a medium plain tip.
• Once the buns have risen, pipe a spiral of topping on each bun. Bake until the buns and topping are golden, 20 to 22 minutes. Serve warm.

SUGAR BUNS

Steps:

• Generously grease one 12-cup muffin tin with softened butter. Set aside. In medium bowl, combine sugar, cinnamon, and salt, and mix until well blended. Set aside.
• Turn yeast dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll into an 18-by-10-inch rectangle. Brush dough with 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and liberally sprinkle with one-third of the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
• Beginning with the long side facing you, tightly roll dough away from you into a log; pinch edge of dough to seal. Cut dough crosswise into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Place each cross-sectional piece into prepared muffin cup and lightly cover with plastic wrap. Place muffin tins in warm place until buns double in size, about 45 to 60 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Once dough has doubled in size, remove plastic wrap and place on middle rack in oven. Bake until golden and puffed, about 22 to 24 minutes.
• Remove from oven and cool slightly on wire rack. In the meantime, melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove buns from muffin tins. Brush liberally with melted butter and gently roll in remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture. Serve warm.

TASTY BUNS

Steps:

• Stir together 2 cups flour and the yeast. In a separate bowl, heat milk, water, oil, sugar and salt to lukewarm in microwave. Add all at once to the flour mixture, and beat until smooth, about 3 minutes.
• Mix in enough flour to make a soft dough, 2 to 3 cups. Mix well. Dust a flat surface with flour, turn dough out onto floured surface, and let rest under bowl for about 10 minutes.
• Shape dough into 12 slightly flat balls, and place on greased baking sheet to rise until doubled in size.
• Bake in a preheated 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

STICKY BUNS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• Combine the yeast mixture with the buttermilk, eggs, 2 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 cup softened butter, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt; stir well to combine. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Dough should remain soft and slightly sticky. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• Divide dough in half and roll each half into a 12x7 inch rectangle. Spread each half with 1 tablespoon softened butter and sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Roll up halves, beginning at wide side. Seal well by pinching the seams. Cut each roll into 12 slices.
• Coat two 9 inch round cake pans each with 1/4 cup melted butter, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons raisins and 1/2 cup chopped pecans. Place 12 dough slices in each pan, leaving a small space between slices. Cover and let rise until doubled.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Bake in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes. Invert pans onto plates and serve.

SUGAR BUNS

Steps:

• Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 15-by-12-inch rectangle, about 3/8 inch thick. Using a ruler and pizza wheel or pastry cutter, cut dough into twenty 3-inch squares.
• Transfer the Pastry Cream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip (such as an Ateco #806). Pipe 1 tablespoon into the center of each square. Brush the edges of each square with the beaten egg. Gather the edges around Pastry Cream, pinching the seams together, making sure the bun is completely sealed.
• On a piece of parchment paper, gently roll each bun with floured hands, keeping it seam side down, to form a compact ball. Repeat with remaining dough. Place shaped balls, smooth side up, on the prepared sheet, about 3 inches apart. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Brush gently with the beaten egg. Bake, rotating sheet halfway through, until buns are golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Brush the butter over the top of the buns. Place sugar in a wide bowl; dip buttered side of buns into sugar to coat. Serve at room temperature. These buns are best eaten the day they are made.
• A dollop of Pastry Cream is piped into the center of each dough square. The corners of the dough are pinched together to seal in the cream.
• The filled dough balls are rolled gently back and forth to seal the seam.

BROWN SUGAR BUNS OR ROLLS

Steps:

• Lightly grease a 12 cup muffin tin (I've used cooking spray and shortening with equal success).
• Cream together butter and brown sugar in small bowl and place a generous teaspoon of mixture in each muffin cup. Set the rest aside.
• In a large bown mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Using a pastry blender, 2 knives or a fork incorporate shortening into flour until they're fully combined.
• Make a well in the center and gradually add milk, stirring with a fork until a moist dough forms.
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface and with a floured rolling pin roll as close as possible to a 30 x 30 cm (12 X 12 inch) square. Trim to form a square.
• Spread reserved brown sugar and butter mixture over top, reaching all 4 sides. An offset spatula works really well for this!
• Roll dough towards you and reposition seam side down. Slice in half, and then into quarters. Cut each quarter into 3 pinwheels, approx 1 inch each.
• Place 1 roll in each muffin cup, with the filling up.
• Bake in a preheated 425 oven for 12 minutes. I find they come out better when I turn my convection off so you may want to try that as well, if it applies. Keep an eye on them for the last couple of minutes -- you want to remove them from the oven while the sugar is still bubbling.
• Use a spoon to remove them to a rack to cool right away, before the sugar cools. I put waxed paper under the rack to make clean up easier.
• Enjoy!