Bread making is now my latest fascination. I had a bread maker back in Singapore and it was handy. All you need to do is to throw all the ingredients in, set the timer and leave it to bake. But it does take away the fun of making a bread. I’ve made bread a couple of times, mainly hot cross buns over easter and it’s really not that hard. It does take a bit of patience waiting for the first rise and then knocking it down and wait for the second rise. But if you have the time, why not?

So today, I’ll be sharing one of the recipes that I found on Donna Hay again. It is a burnt butter and salted maple sticky bun recipe. I made it on the first attempt and it was a huge success. I loved it so much that I ate two rolls when it straight out from the oven. When I left it for my housemate, it was all gone in an afternoon. These buns reminded me of pancakes with maple syrup – mainly because these buns were drizzled in maple syrup. There are many steps to this recipe but do not get daunted by it, it’s really easy to make. Hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Ingredients

For the bread

1. 1 packet dry yeast
2. 160ml milk (lukewarm)
3. 2.5 tbsp maple syrup
4. 485g plain flour
5. 2 tbsp bread flour
6. 1/4 tsp salt
7. 2 eggs lightly beaten
8. 125g unsalted butter (melted)

Maple glaze

1. 160ml maple syrup
2. 50g brown sugar
3. 100g unsalted butter

Burnt butter filling

1. 125g unsalted butter
2. 100g brown sugar
3. 2 tsp all spice

Directions

Preparation time: 3hr – depending on how fast the dough rises
Baking time: 25-30min (or when the bun turns golden brown)

1. Place the yeast, milk and 1 teaspoon of the maple syrup in a small bowl and mix to combine (make sure that the milk is lukewarm to activate the yeast)
2. Set aside in a warm place for 5 minutes or until the surface is foamy
3. Place the flour, salt, egg, butter, the remaining maple syrup and the yeast mixture in the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook attached
4. Beat on low speed for 5 minutes until a uniform mixture is formed
5. Turn onto a floured surface and knead the dough until smooth and elastic
6. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size
7. While the dough is rising, make the maple glaze. Place the maple syrup, sugar and butter in a small saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring, until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved
8. Line a 20cm x 30cm slice tin with baking paper
9. Pour half the glaze into the slice tin, reserving the remaining glaze, and set aside
10. To make the burnt butter filling, place the butter in a small frying pan over high heat, stirring until the butter is melted
11. Bring to the boil and cook for 2–3 minutes or until nutty brown in colour
12. Transfer to a medium bowl and add the sugar and all spice. Mix to combine and set aside
13. Once the dough as risen to double its size, roll out the dough on a floured surface to make a 60cm x 25cm rectangle
14. Spread with the burnt butter filling, leaving a 1cm border. Starting from one long side, roll up the dough tightly to enclose the filling
15. Trim the edges of the scroll and slice into 12 equal pieces
16. Arrange the buns in the tin on top of the glaze
17. Cover with a damp tea towel and set aside for 45–60 minutes or until doubled in size
18. Preheat oven to 180°C.
19. Bake the buns for 25–30 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through
20. Gently warm the remaining glaze over low heat and pour it over the buns