There is truly no better way to spend lockdown than sitting on my back deck in the sun, watching TikToks, and waiting for a dough to proof. Today's dough in question is another milk based dough that while challenging, provides the softest, fluffiest, scrummiest buns in the whole world. Smeared with a thick layer of Nutella and rolled into beautiful little pinwheels, these Nutella Swirl Buns *almost* make up for not being able to go to restaurants.
This dough starts with our tried and tested yeast bloom - warm liquid, add sugar, sprinkle over yeast and wait. If you gain only one thing from reading this blog, I hope it's how to bloom your yeast. I have tried countless recipes that suggest stirring the yeast, adding directly with the dry ingredients, and all sorts of wacky methods, but this my friends, is the only method you need.
This dough is quite sticky to start with, but I promise if you knead for the suggested 10 minutes you'll find it soft and springy. Because of the extra ingredients that make this dough so fluffy, the rising time is a little longer than my usual one hour. I let this sit outside with me (out of direct sunlight) for two hours and got the perfect result. The dough slightly more than doubles in size.
Once your dough is rolled out and the Nutella has been generously slathered, you're going to fold it in what bakers call an 'envelope fold'. All this means is folded into thirds, like you would a letter to go inside an envelope. Fold one side just slightly over the middle line, then fold the other on top. This is what gives you the perfect distribution and magical lines of Nutella in your rolls.
Ingredients:
250mL Milk
60g Butter, Very Soft
7g Dry Active Yeast
600g Plain Flour
100g Caster Sugar + 1 Tsp
1 Egg
Pinch Salt
4 Tbs Nutella
For the Wash:
1 Egg
3 Tbs Milk
Let's Bake These Buns:
In a saucepan, warm milk until lukewarm. Pour half the milk into a small bowl and put the rest aside.
In the small bowl, add 1 tsp caster sugar and stir. Sprinkle over the yeast and allow to sit for 10 min, or until frothy.
In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, salt, and sugar, and mix to combine.
Once the yeast has bloomed, add to the flour mixture, along with butter and one egg.
Stir with a metal spoon until dough has come together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes, or until dough is soft and bounces back when lightly poked. If you're doing this with an electric mixer, use the dough hook attachment and set on low for 8 minutes.
Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover with cling film.
Allow dough to rest in a warm area for about 2 hours, or until dough has slightly more than doubled in size.
Place the risen dough on a bench and roll out into a rectangle, about 2 cm thick.
Evenly distribute the Nutella over the dough, and use a spatula to spread. Leave about 2cm from the sides so the Nutella doesn't spill out when rolled.
Fold the dough into thirds in an envelope fold, then roll out again into a rectangle, again about 2cm thick.
Trim the edges so you have an evenly sized rectangle.
Cut the dough lengthways in half, then half again, and continue until you have 8 equally sized strips of dough.
One at a time, roll up each strip into a pinwheel and place on a parchment lined baking tray, leaving a good inch or so between them.
Allow dough to proof for a second time for about an hour. Pinwheels will expand and be much softer to the touch.
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and in a small bowl combine the egg and milk for your egg wash.
Brush the egg wash over the buns and bake for 15-18 min, or until golden brown on the outside.
If you can resist temptation, allow to cool before serving.
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