\u00a0 This month the Bread Bakers are trying out stuffed buns.\u00a0 I have made a few filled buns in the past but this month, custard buns immediately came to mind.\u00a0 They are typically either steamed or baked, and the steamed ones tend to have the custard filling while the baked ones tend toward a large swathe of whipped cream filling after halving the bun.\u00a0 I decided to use a method from when I made custard mochi and freeze dollops of custard, wrap the dough around them, and then bake them.<\/p>\n Could you fill these buns after baking?\u00a0 Totally.\u00a0 They are soft and fluffy and would probably fill as easily as a doughnut.\u00a0 You could choose your favorite creamy custard filling that way, and to be honest, I might have cooked my custard about 10 seconds too long.\u00a0 This custard is also different than a starch based custard and tends to be more fluffy than creamy.\u00a0 But it’s still delicious!\u00a0 (Hubby loves jelly doughnuts and would love these with a jelly filling.)\u00a0 You could also bake the buns plain and fold the custard into whipped cream and then fill the split buns with that creme diplomat mixture, which would also be delicious.\u00a0 Totally baker’s preference.<\/p>\n These are simple, comforting buns, not cloyingly sweet, just a nice treat.\u00a0 They froze and reheated nicely as well.\u00a0 I will admit that I nuked one for 30 seconds straight out of the freezer and it was just about perfect.\u00a0 One little cold spot left.\u00a0 But you never want to go very long in the microwave for bread anyway, it will ruin it.\u00a0 You could also run these under water for 5 seconds and then wrap in foil and reheat in the oven for 10 minutes at 350\u00ba or the air fryer at (I would guess) 275-300\u00ba for 10-12 minutes.\u00a0 (That’s from frozen.)<\/p>\n Thanks to Magical Ingredients<\/a> for hosting this month!\u00a0<\/p>\n Custard Buns<\/span><\/i> Custard: Buns: 1 beaten egg for egg wash<\/p>\n Make the custard:<\/p>\n (Can be made ahead and prepared up to the frozen stage before making the dough.)<\/i><\/p>\n Whisk together the milk and yolks in a small saucepan until well combined.\u00a0 Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a small dish, then whisk into the milk mixture until there are no lumps.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Heat on low heat until just starting to bubbling and thick, about 5-10 minutes.\u00a0 (Once it starts to thicken, it will get really thick, really fast – go low and slow.)\u00a0 Remove from heat quickly. Stir in vanilla extract.<\/p>\n Pass the custard through a mesh sieve to remove any clumps, if desired.\u00a0 Cover with a piece of plastic pressed against the surface and let the custard chill in the refrigerator.<\/p>\n Scoop the cooled custard into a frosting or ziptop bag and pipe onto a cookie sheet into 8 dollops, or scoop out with a #40 (1\u00bd tbsp) cookie scoop.\u00a0 Freeze for one hour.<\/p>\n For the dough:<\/p>\n In a stand mixer, combine the flour, sugar, salt, zest and yeast and lightly mix together.\u00a0 Add the milk and eggs and knead on low speed until the dough comes together, then on medium speed until the dough has smoothed out a bit and is a cohesive mixture.\u00a0 Add the softened butter and knead until the gluten is strong and has reached windowpane stage, which may take up to 10 minutes.\u00a0 Scrape down the edges a few times during kneading.\u00a0 (The dough will mostly clean the sides of the bowl, it will be bouncy and tacky, but not sticky, and it will feel strong when pulling to stretch the windowpane.)<\/p>\n Form the dough into a ball and return to the bowl.\u00a0 Cover and leave to rise until it has increased in volume 2\u00bd-3 times, 60-90 minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gently knock down the dough and transfer to a work surface.\u00a0 Divide the dough into 8 pieces (somewhere around 72g each).\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Flatten each piece and form into a ball.\u00a0 Cover with a damp towel and let rest for 10 minutes.\u00a0 Flatten each piece of dough and place a frozen ball of custard in the center (flat side up).\u00a0 Draw up the edges around the custard and seal together very well.\u00a0 Place each ball, seam side down, on a parchment lined baking sheet.\u00a0 Cover the shaped buns with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm area until doubled in size.\u00a0 This will take longer than plain buns due to the frozen custard cooling the dough.\u00a0 (Mine took about 2\u00be hours with the final hour in the proof setting of the oven to give it some help.)<\/i>\u00a0 The dough should be fully doubled and jiggly, and the custard will have come to room temperature by then.<\/p>\n Toward the end of the rise time, preheat oven to 365\u00baF.\u00a0 Gently brush the tops and sides of the buns with the beaten egg, thinned with a little water if desired.\u00a0 Bake for 5 minutes and then turn down the oven to 350\u00baF and bake for another 10-13 minutes until evenly golden brown.\u00a0 Rotate the pan for even browning if necessary halfway through baking.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEgq2_cQcA-ykExVcHx_SnpWDKE1IMMKqx4lqa56me-abDlQ1lmBaGhkrF0xY8FmGBxkshtEFeK8TVoJEjt7kpkZQxDVH4wLUMHvTNfIAIP5IYDwfgFOcfaYZL9KO-eG5IswQ1XpDpUmuaVJlVJwfzaTU4ZFbR1M2w0VKteaUxsAJgTq5FpX724rqwjt1Ic\/s3633\/PXL_20260809_010642914.jpg\")
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makes 8 generously sized filled buns<\/span><\/p>\n
227g (1 cup) milk
16.5g (2 tbsp) all-purpose flour
4 egg yolks
37.5g (3 tbsp) sugar
1.4g (\u00bc tsp) sea salt
2.5ml (\u00bd tsp) vanilla extract<\/p>\n
300g bread flour
50g sugar
5g sea salt
zest of one orange
5g dry yeast
170g milk, warmed to 110\u00baF
1 egg (50g)
25g butter, softened<\/p>\n\n\n
\n <\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n Really.\u00a0 Cook it on LOW<\/i>.\u00a0 Patience.
(Still yummy.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n