Morning Buns
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Morning buns rely on a complicated croissantlike dough that requires both substantial
effort and time. For an easier path, we switched to a quick dough closer to puff pastry.
Instead of rolling the butter into the dry ingredients on the counter, we moved it
all to a zipper-lock bag and rolled everything right in the bag. To produce multiple
layers in this rich pastry, we rolled the dough into a rectangle, then into a cylinder,
and gently patted it flat. A blend of brown and white sugar added a subtle molasses
flavor to the filling, while orange zest instilled it with bright citrus notes. See
the sidebar that follows the recipe.
MAKES 12 BUNS
If the dough becomes too soft to work with at any point, refrigerate it until it’s firm enough to easily handle.
|
DOUGH |
|
|
3 |
cups (15 ounces) all-purpose flour |
|
1 |
tablespoon sugar |
|
2¼ |
teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast |
|
¾ |
teaspoon salt |
|
24 |
tablespoons (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices and chilled |
|
1 |
cup sour cream, chilled |
|
¼ |
cup orange juice, chilled |
|
3 |
tablespoons ice water |
|
1 |
large egg yolk |
|
FILLING |
|
|
½ |
cup (3½ ounces) granulated sugar |
|
½ |
cup packed (3½ ounces) light brown sugar |
|
1 |
tablespoon grated orange zest |
|
2 |
teaspoons ground cinnamon |
|
1 |
teaspoon vanilla extract |
1. FOR THE DOUGH: Combine flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in large zipper-lock bag. Add butter to bag, seal, and shake to coat. Press air out of bag and reseal. Roll over bag several times with rolling pin, shaking bag after each roll, until butter is pressed into large flakes. Transfer mixture to large bowl and stir in sour cream, orange juice, water, and egg yolk until combined.
2. Turn dough onto floured counter and knead briefly to form smooth, cohesive ball. Roll dough into 20 by 12-inch rectangle. Starting with short edge, roll dough into tight cylinder. Pat cylinder flat to 12 by 4-inch rectangle and transfer to parchment paper–lined rimmed baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes.
3. FOR THE FILLING: Line 12-cup muffin tin with paper or foil liners and spray with vegetable oil spray. Combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, orange zest, cinnamon, and vanilla in medium bowl. Remove dough from freezer and place on lightly floured counter. Roll dough into 20 by 12-inch rectangle and sprinkle evenly with filling, leaving ½-inch border around edges. Starting at long edge, roll dough into tight cylinder and pinch lightly to seal seam. Trim ½ inch dough from each end and discard. Cut dough into 12 pieces and transfer, cut side up, to prepared tin. Cover loosely with plastic and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 1 day.
4. Adjust oven rack to middle position and place loaf or cake pan on bottom of oven. Remove plastic from buns and place in oven. Pour 3 cups boiling water into loaf pan in oven, close oven door, and let buns rise until puffed and doubled in size, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove buns and water pan from oven and heat oven to 425 degrees. Bake until buns begin to rise, about 5 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake until deep golden brown, 40 to 50 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Let buns cool in muffin tin on wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and discard liners. Serve warm.
TO MAKE AHEAD: Follow recipe through step 3, skipping step of refrigerating buns. Freeze buns, in muffin tin, until firm, about 30 minutes. Transfer buns, with liners, to zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. To bake, return buns to muffin tin, cover with plastic, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or up to 1 day. Proceed with step 4.