Ube Bun (紫薯包)

Similar to the Hot Dog Bun, just different filling.

Ingredients

Heavy whipping cream - 2/3 cup
Milk - 1 cup + 1TBSP
Egg - 1 (I used egg replacer)
Sugar - 1/3 cup
All-purpose Flour - 4 cups
Active dry yeast - 1 TBSP
Salt - 1 1/2 tsp
Optional: Egg wash (beat 1 egg with 1 teaspoon water, skipped)
Optional : Simple syrup (1 tablespoon sugar, dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water, skipped)

Purple yam - 3-4 medium

Condensed milk - 2-4 TBSP, to your taste

Sugar - to your taste

Yield 16 buns

Steps

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, add the ingredients in the following order: heavy cream, milk, egg, sugar, all-purpose flour, yeast, and salt. Turn on the mixer to “stir,” and knead for 15 minutes. If the dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl, add a little more flour 1 tablespoon at a time until it pulls away from the sides (it should be sticking to the bottom of the mixing bowl, but not the sides). If kneading by hand, extend the kneading time by 5-10 minutes.
2. Cover the dough, and place in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in size (1-2 hours). 

3. While dough is proofing, peel and steam purple yam. Then blend the purple yam, condensed milk, and sugar to your taste. 

4. After the dough has doubled in size, put it back in the mixer, and stir for another 5 minutes to get rid of air bubbles. 

5. Dump the dough on a lightly floured surface, and divide into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a rectangle shape, and spread purple yam filling, leave 1/2 inch space around. And then roll up the rectangle dough along the long side into a log shape. Seal and tug both ends under the log. 

5. Once shaped, let the dough proof, covered, for another hour.

6. Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat it to 350° F. Brush the risen dough with egg wash. (I skipped the egg wash to avoid allergy.) Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown. 

7. Remove from the oven and brush the warm bread with sugar water to give it shine and sweetness, if desired.

Hot Dog Bun (热狗包)

This is easy to make and convenient to eat as snack or simple lunch. 

Ingredients

Heavy whipping cream - 2/3 cup
Milk - 1 cup + 1TBSP
Egg - 1 (I used egg replacer)
Sugar - 1/3 cup
All-purpose Flour - 4 cups
Active dry yeast - 1 TBSP
Salt - 1 1/2 tsp
Optional: Egg wash (beat 1 egg with 1 teaspoon water, skipped)
Optional : Simple syrup (1 tablespoon sugar, dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water, skipped)

Hot dog - 16
Yield 16 buns

Steps

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, add the ingredients in the following order: heavy cream, milk, egg, sugar, all-purpose flour, yeast, and salt. Turn on the mixer to “stir,” and knead for 15 minutes. If the dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl, add a little more flour 1 tablespoon at a time until it pulls away from the sides (it should be sticking to the bottom of the mixing bowl, but not the sides). If kneading by hand, extend the kneading time by 5-10 minutes.
2. Cover the dough, and place in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in size (1-2 hours). 

3. While dough is proofing, grill or air fry 16 hot dogs.

4. After the dough has doubled in size, put it back in the mixer, and stir for another 5 minutes to get rid of air bubbles. 

5. Dump the dough on a lightly floured surface, and divide into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and wrap around a hot dog. 

6. Once shaped, let the dough proof, covered, for another hour.

7. Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat it to 350° F. Brush the risen dough with egg wash. (I skipped the egg wash to avoid allergy.) Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown. 

8. Remove from the oven and brush the warm bread with sugar water to give it shine and sweetness, if desired.

Pumpkin Dinner Roll

I followed this recipe to make it for Thanksgiving. It was soft and fluffy, well received.  

Ingredients

Cake flour - 1/2 cup
Bread flour - 2 and 1/2 cups 
Salt - 1 and 1/2 tsp
Pumpkin puree - 1/2 cup
Heavy cream - 2/3 cup, at room temperature
Milk - 1/3 cup , at room temperature
Active dry yeast - 1 TBSP
Egg - 1, substitute with 1/4 cup apple sauce
Sugar - 1/3 cup 
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water) (skipped for egg-free)
Pumpkin seeds - optional garnish
For optional glazing, the recipe uses simple syrup (2 teaspoons of sugar dissolved in 2 teaspoons hot water), I used some butter

Steps

1. In a mixing bowl, mix the cake flour, bread flour and salt. Set aside

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add pumpkin puree, heavy cream, milk, egg (or substitute), sugar, yeast. Mix well, and then add the flour mixture. Turn the mixer on to the lowest setting, and let it go for 15 minutes until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. 

3. Cover the bowl with a damp towel, and place in a warm spot for 1 hour. The dough will grow to 1.5x its original size.

4. In the meantime, grease a 9x13” pan on all sides.
5. After first proofing, punch the dough to rid of air bubbles and divide the dough into equal pieces on a lightly floured surface, with the help of your kitchen scale. I divided into 18 of about 60g each. Shape each piece of dough into a smooth ball and arrange them on the pan with about half an inch of space between them on all sides. Once shaped, cover and proof for another hour until the buns grow to 1.5X their original size. Brush the risen dough with egg wash (skipped), and sprinkle with the raw pumpkin seeds.

6. Preheat the oven to 350F. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 20 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Take the buns out of the oven and immediately brush them with the sugar water to give them a really great shine, sweetness, and rich color. Serve warm! 

Bacon Scallion Milk Bread

This is a variation of Hokkaido Milk Bread. I used all purpose flour and it worked fine.

Ingredients

All purpose flour - 4 1/2 cups
Active dry yeast - 1 TBSP
Sugar - 1/3 cup
Salt - 1.5 tsp
Egg - 1
Warm milk - 1 cup (about 110F)
Whipping cream - 2/3 cup

Bacon - 8oz (cooked, and cut into small pieces)
Green onion - 2 cups (chopped)

Optional simple syrup for glazing (2 teaspoons sugar, dissolved in 2 teaspoons hot water)

Or butter for glazing

YIELD: two 9" round bread

Steps

1. Grease two 9" cake pan

2. Add sugar, yeast to warm milk, and let it sit for 5 minutes. 

3. In stand mixer bowl, combine the egg and whipping cream. Add the yeast and milk mixture, mix well together.

4. Add salt and flour to the bowl, start at low speed then gradually raise speed to medium. Mix for 12-15 mins until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. If dented by your finger, the dough should spring back. Be careful not to overmix, since the gluten structure might be dwindled.

5. Grease a big bowl, and transfer the dough in. Cover the bowl and let proof until the dough has doubled in size, about 40-60min.

6. Transfer the dough to worktop, quickly knead for 1-2 mins. Divide the dough evenly into two. Roll out each into into a ¼ in thick rectangle or rough circle. Sprinkle the scallions and bacon evenly over the dough, and cut it into small 1.5 inch squares.

7. Fold each square in half like a taco with the bacon scallion filling on the inside. Nestle them in the pan standing up on one end of the taco. At this point, you can cover and refrigerate the dough overnight, if making this recipe in advance. The next day, remove the dough from the refrigerator, let it come up to room temperature, and proceed with the next step.

9. Preheat oven to 350°F. 
10. Bake for approximately 22 – 25 mins until the top is golden brown. 

11. For the final glow and delicious aroma of the bread, you can brush the top of the bread with some melted butter or whipping cream or simple sugar syrup. Cool, and enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Hokkaido Milk Bread Bun

 This is a variation of Hokkaido Milk Bread. The recipe yields two 9" tray of total 16 pull apart buns.

Follow the recipe to first proof the dough, then divide the dough into 16 portions. Roll each dough into a rope and twist on itself and then into a knot. 

Place 8 knots in each 9" greased cake pan. Do the second proof. 

Bake at 350F for 22-25 min or until golden brown. Glaze with butter while it is hot.

Peach Quick Bread

I received some organic peaches from friend's tree and found this recipe to try. Quick breads are bread recipes made without yeast, but this tasted more like a cake than bread. It was perfect to go with a cup of coffee.

Ingredients

[CRUMB TOPPING]
Light or dark brown sugar - 2 TBSP, packed
All-purpose flour - 3 TBSP
Ground cinnamon - 1/4 tsp
Unsalted butter - 2 TBSP, cold and cubed
[BREAD]

All-purpose flour - 2 cups
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Large Egg - 1, at room temperature
Granulated sugar - 3/4 cup
Vegetable oil - 1/3 cup 
Sour cream (or plain yogurt/Greek yogurt) - 1/2 cup, at room temperature

Whole milk, 1/2 cup, at room temperature

Pure vanilla extract - 1 tsp
Almond extract - 1/2 tsp (I did not put in for allergy reason)
[PEACH LAYER]

Peeled and chopped peaches - 1 and 1/2 cups, about 2 medium-large peaches, 3/4 inch pieces

Granulated sugar -1 TBSP
Ground cinnamon - 1/2 tsp

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×5 inch loaf pan with nonstick spray.
2. Crumb Topping: Make the crumb topping first. Mix the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together. Add the cold butter and using a pastry cutter or fork, cut butter into the brown sugar mixture until pea-size crumbles form. You can also use your hands to mix it together. Freeze until ready to use in step 5. (The colder it is, the less likely it will sink down into the bread and lose its crumbly texture.)
3. Bread: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg and granulated sugar together until combined. Whisk in the oil, sour cream, milk, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then whisk to completely combine. Avoid over-mixing. You will have about 3 cups of batter.
4. Peaches: Mix the peach layer ingredients together.
5. Pour/spread half of the batter into prepared loaf pan. Spoon/spread the peaches (and any juices) evenly on top. Carefully pour/spread remaining batter evenly on top. Using a knife, swirl the batter down the center of the loaf pan. Evenly sprinkle crumb topping on top.

6. Bake the bread for 60-65 minutes, covering loosely with foil about halfway through to prevent the top from over-browning. Poke the center of the bread with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, the bread is done. Cool bread completely in the pan set on a wire rack.

7. Once completely cooled, slice and serve. Cover and store leftover bread at room temperature for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Baked and cooled bread freezes well up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Note:

You can do the same with apricot. First blanch the apricot in boiling water and then immerse in cold water so that it is easier to remove the skin. 

Easy Cinnamon Rolls

Followed this easy cinnamon roll recipe to make this for breakfast. I made the dough to step 5 and covered with plastic wrap  to let rest in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, removed from the refrigerator and allow to rise in a warm environment, about 1 hour. Then continue to step 7.

Ingredients

Rolls
All-purpose flour - 2 and 3/4 cups
Granulated sugar - 1/4 cup
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Active dry yeast - 2 and 1/4 tsp
Whole milk - 1/2 cup
Water - 1/4 cup
Unsalted butter - 3 TBSP
Egg - 1 large (used egg replacer)
Filling
Unsalted butter - 3 TBSP, at room temperature
Ground cinnamon - 1 TBSP
Granulated sugar or packed light or dark brown sugar - 1/4 cup
Icing
Confectioners’ sugar - 1 cup
Pure vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
Strong brewed coffee or milk - 2–3 TBSP

Steps

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast together in a large bowl. Set aside.
2. Combine the milk, water, and butter together in a heatproof bowl. Microwave until the butter is melted and the mixture is warm to touch (about 110°F). Pour into the dry ingredients, add the egg, and stir until it forms a soft dough or use your mixer.

3. On a lightly floured surface using floured hands, knead the dough for 3 minutes. Place in a lightly greased bowl, cover loosely, and let rest for about 10 minutes.
4. Roll the dough out in a 14×8 inch rectangle. Spread the softened butter on top. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle it all over the dough.

5. Roll up the dough tightly to make a 14 inch log. Cut into 10-12 even rolls and arrange in a lightly greased 9-inch round cake pan or pie dish.

6. Tightly cover the rolls with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free environment for 60-90 minutes.

7. After the rolls have doubled in size, preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake for 25-28 minutes until lightly browned. If you notice the tops are getting too brown too quickly, loosely cover the rolls with aluminum foil and continue baking.

8. Whisk the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and coffee/milk together. Drizzle or spread over warm rolls.

Cover leftover frosted or unfrosted rolls tightly and store for up to 3 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the refrigerator.

Japanese "Fresh" Bread (Tangzhong method)

The ”Fresh” bread loaf of NOGAMI (乃が美生食吐司) is very popular in Japan. I adapted this recipe that claims to copycat NOGAMI Toast. Since I have never had the original 乃が美生食吐司, nor do I have the pan with lid, so I am not sure how good my loaf compares. The bread is very soft and fluffy and great for toasts or sandwiches.

Ingredients

Yield: 3 large loaves

[Water roux (Tangzhong)]
Bread flour - 1/3 cup
Water - ¾ cup + 1 TBSP
[Bread]
Bread flour - 7 3/4 cup
Salt - 2 1/4 tsp
Granulated sugar - 2/3 cup
Whipping cream -1/3 cup
Dry active yeast - 2 tsp
Warm water - 2 1/3 cups
Sweetened condensed milk - 3 TBSP
Unsalted butter - 7 TBSP, melted
Additional water - 6 - 7 TBSP

Steps

1. In a sauce pan, whisk together the water and the flour until the mixture is well blended and lump free. Put sauce pan on stove with medium heat (to reach 65°C/150°F). Continue whisking until the mixture starts to thicken up and remove immediately from the heat. Transfer the water roux to a bowl and keep covered in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

2. Add water, sugar, yeast in stand mixer, and let it sit for 5 minutes. 

3. Add whipping cream, sweetened condensed milk, water roux, salt, bread flour in stand mixer bowl, attach the kneading hook onto the stand mixer and combine all ingredient on low speed 1.

4. When all ingredients are combined, turn the speed up to 4 and knead the dough for 20 min, or until the dough is smooth and elastic to pass the windowpane test.

5. Add melted butter and stir at low speed 1 until well mixed

6. Add the 6-7 TBSP additional water. Stir at low speed 1 until well integrated.

7. Take dough out of mixer, cover and store in refrigerator overnight (16-18 hours).

8. Divide the dough into 12 equal parts. Knead each part into a round ball. Cover and let them rest for 30 min.

9. With a roller, flatten each piece out in one direction, roll up, and then flatten the dough in another directory, roll up. Line four rolls inside a greased loaf pan. Let the shaped breads proof in a warm and humid place, until they have doubled in size.

10. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 40 minutes.

11. The bread can be sliced after completely cool.