Peanut butter cookie bun

We almost looked like our famous cousins. Almost.

Blond is in. Lumpy, not.

I almost became a roti boy lookalike today. Unfortunately, my baker maker forgot that she was running short of butter for the topping. In the end, instead of having coffee black hair, my baker turned stylist and have me a head of highlight – in peanut color. The peanut butter was the crunchy kind and I hate it ! My distant relatives now think I have tu-tu on my hair. How am I to tell the world that those were peanut chunks and not some yucky bugs ?

Despite being grossly misunderstood, I still taste good. Some of my siblings have ‘feet’, as a result of my baker maker using too much peanut butter hair dye. We are long suffering buns.

This is so embarrassing, looking so mumsy. Perhaps I will have to pretend to be an overgrown macaroon to get over this terrible hair day.

Credits : Adapted from happyhomebaking

Makes 10

To make the water-roux :

15g bread flour, 75ml water
Whisk to combine the above ingredients.

Cook over low heat, stirring continuously.

When the whisk makes lines on the mixture, remove the pot from the heat source. If using a thermometer, whisk and cook until it reaches 65C.

Leave to cool.

When cooled to room temperature, add 85g water, 30g of egg ( lightly beaten ).

Combine. Set aside.

To make the bread dough:
210g bread flour
56g cake flour
20g milk powder
42g caster sugar
1/8 tsp salt
6g instant yeast

 20g unsalted butter, softened

Combine all the dry ingredients, minus butter.

Add final roux mixture.

Combine to bring the ingredients together.

Add butter.

Transfer the mixture to the bread machine.

Set to dough mode to knead and let the dough ferment, about 1.5 hr.

Meanwhile, we make the peanut butter cookie topping. Combine these ingredients :
70g peanut butter ( 50g recommended ), 50g caster sugar ( 70g recommended ), 1 tbsp water , 50g egg-lightly beaten.

Whisk.

Sift in 50g cake flour.

Whisk to combine again.

Transfer the topping to a piping bag.

Chill until it is ready for use.

Assembly:

Grease a baking tray , the worktop and your hands. I used ghee.

Portion out dough, 10 equal portions.

Make round balls. Form a cage with the fingers, lightly depress the ball of dough and roll within the confines of the fingers.

Leave the balls on the tray for about 30 minutes in a warm place, covered.

Preheat oven to 180C.

Pipe the topping on the twice-fermented balls.

Bake at 180C for 15 minutes.

Cool well before storing, if it is not eaten first !

Verdict : I think 70g of peanut butter is a tad too thick for the topping to flow nicely over the bun’s dome during baking. Maybe 50g would be better , plus a tbsp of melted butter ?

Baker has a peculiar tilt when applying the topping. Most ended up lopsided.