Hokkaido Milk buns filled with Mozeralla and pesto

There was a time when I had so much free time, and to be honest, when I skyped or phoned with my sis in India and sis in Houston, I always used to make fun with them as they will be saying they have too much things to do and have less time etc....and I will be like hi hi look at me I have so much free time especially as Shyama only comes home in the weekend.

But as my friends in facebook will know that the situation is totally different now from February as my MIL passed away suddenly and my FIL and mostly my niece ( she live with my inlaws) come here for lunch everyday to myplace, plus in the evening I go to my fil to make fresh soup for him etc...plus there is their dog couscous whome we all adore and I have him a lot in my place till the niece is back etc.... so all together I hardly have times, especially as you know if you make a bread you need time as it has to ferment etc...

But then I had joined up the group in Facebook which Aparna started  and one always have to make it before 23rd as that day everyone post it on their blog.

So anyway last week I had a whole day to myself ( didn't had to go out at all ) so I planned to bake the bread and I am si happy I did it, it is so soft and so delicious and so easyto make.

I am sure I will be making this recipe with other fillings in the near future too.

 



Hokkaido Milk Bread With Tangzhong

(Original Recipe from 65 Degrees Tangzhong “65C Bread Doctor” by Yvonne Chen, and adapted from Kirbie’s Cravings        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

For The Tangzhong (Flour-Water Roux) 

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

 1/2 cup water

1/2 cup milk

For The Dough:

 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour ( I used white bread flour)

 3 tbsp sugar

 1tsp salt 

2 tbsp powdered milk

2 tsp instant dried yeast

1/2 cup milk (and a little more if needed)

1/8 cup cream (25% fat)

 1/3 cup tangzhong (use HALF of the tangzhong from above)

1/4 tsp salt

25gm unsalted butter (cut into small pieces, softened at room temperature)

I made rolls so I am giving the recipe for the filling.

3 mozeralla balls shreaded  ( although hubby thought I should have used some other really flavourfull cheese)

4 table spoon of grated parmesan cheese.

Couple of spoon of pesto ( I used shop bought sweet pepper pesto)

Combine the indridients for the filling in a bowl and keep.

Method:

The Tangzhong  (Flour-Water Roux):

Whisk together lightly the flour, water and milk in a saucepan until smooth and there are no lumps. Place the saucepan on the stove, and over medium heat, let the roux cook till it starts thickening. Keep stirring/ whisking constantly so no lumps form and the roux is smooth.

If you have a thermometer, cook the roux/ tangzhong till it reaches 65C (150F) and take it off the heat. If  you don’t have a thermometer, then watch the roux/ tangzhong until you

start seeing “lines” forming in the roux/ tangzhong as you whisk/ stir it. Take the pan off the heat at this point.

Let the roux/ tangzhong cool completely and rest for about 2 to 3 hours at least. It will have the consistency of a soft and creamy crème patisserie. If not using immediately, transfer the roux to a bowl and cover using plastic wrap. It can be stored in the fridge for about a day. Discard the tangzhong after that. 

The Bread Dough:

I made this dough in the food processor. This dough can be made by hand but the dough is a bit sticky and can take some time and effort to knead by hand. If you have some sort of machine which will do the kneading for you, use it. Don’t punish yourself. And do not add more flour to make it less sticky either!

Put the flour, salt, sugar, powdered milk and instant yeast in the processor bowl and pulse a couple of times to mix. In another small bowl mix the milk, cream and Tangzhong till smooth and add to the processor bowl. Run on slow speed until the dough comes together. Now add the butter and process till you have a smooth and elastic dough which is just short of sticky. 

The dough will start out sticky but kneading will make it smooth. If the dough feels firm and not soft to touch, add a couple of tsps of milk till it becomes soft and elastic. When the dough is done, you should be able to stretch the dough without it breaking right away.  When it does break, the break should be form a circle.

 Form the dough into a ball and place it in a well-oiled bowl turning it so it is well coated. Cover with a towel, and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes or till almost double in volume.  

Place the dough on your working surface. You don’t need flour to work or shape this dough. This recipe makes enough dough to make one loaf (9” by 5” tin), 2 small loaves (6” by 4” tins) or 1 small loaf (6” by 4”) and 6 small rolls (muffin tins). Depending on what you are making, divide your dough. If you are making 1 loaf, divide your dough in 3 equal pieces. If you are making two smaller loaves, divide your dough into 6 equal pieces.

I made one small loaf and 6 small rolls. So I first divided my dough into two equal pieces first. Then I divided the first half into three equal pieces to make the loaf. The other half was divided into six equal pieces for six rolls.

The shaping of the portions, whether for the loaf or the rolls, is the same.

Roll out each portion of the dough with a rolling pin into an oval shape, about 1/8” thick. Take one end of the dough from the shorter side of the oval and fold it to the middle of the oval. Take the other end and fold so it slightly overlaps the other fold. (See the collage)

Roll this folded dough with the rolling pin so the unfolded edges are stretched out to form a rectangle. Roll the rectangle from one short edge to the other, pinching the edges to seal well. Do this with each of the three larger pieces and place them, sealed edges down, in a well-oiled loaf tin. Cover with a towel and leave the dough to rise for about 45 minutes.

To make the rolls fold them in the same manner described above, but before rolling them up, place some filling on the dough. Roll the dough rectangles carefully and pinch to seal the edge. Place each roll of dough in a well-oiled muffin cup and cover with a towel. Allow to rise for about 45 minutes.

Carefully brush the tops of the rolls and the loaf with milk (or cream) and bake them at 170C (325F) for about 20 to 30 minutes till they are done (if you tap them they’ll sound hollow) and beautifully browned on top. Let them cool in the tins for about 5 minutes and then unmould and transfer to a rack till slightly warm or cool. 

Serve or else store in a bread bin. This bread stays soft and delicious even the next day. This recipe makes enough dough to make one loaf (9” by 5” tin), 2 small loaves (6” by 4” tins) or 1 small loaf (6” by 4”) and 6 small rolls (muffin tins).

I did same for the rolls as described above, but instead of shaping into rectangular in the end process i just added the filling in the middles of each and shaped into a ball.