Blackcurrant & pistachio buns
These blackcurrant and pistachio buns are swirls of tangy jam in soft pillowy dough. A bit like a cinnamon roll with a fruity flair or a Chelsea bun that’s been on a gap year.
I’ve been verging on the obsessed with enriched dough bakes since I went on a bread course earlier this year. This is the first time I’ve worked that into my own recipe which was inspired by a recent trip to a Waterstones cafe where I tried, what they called, a “Chelsea Scone”. It was neither a scone or a Chelsea bun. This delight was a swirled sweet bread dough with fragrant blueberries, incredibly dense, heavy and sticky.
This is my similar take on that, but with a lighter dough and a tangy blackcurrant filling. I’ve also added salted pistachios to balance the sweetness.
Like many breads, this recipe takes a bit of time. I like to settle into the task and savour each step, even the 15 minutes of kneading – beef up the biceps! The proving gives you time to do other things in between. You can also do the second prove overnight in the fridge if that fits better – Oh, freshly baked the next morning!
Timings don’t include proving.
Here’s the recipe for Blackcurrant & Pistachio Buns
Swirls of tangy blackcurrant jam in soft pillowy dough. A bit like a cinnamon roll with a fruity flair or a Chelsea bun that's been on a gap year.
The first step is to make a basic sweet dough, the same as for a brioche, doughnut or cinnamon roll. Melt the butter and warm with the milk and water. Weigh all the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add in the warmed butter, milk and water, and finally the egg.
Mix together the dough until all the ingredients are combined. Knead for 10-15 minutes. Cover and leave to prove for 1.5 hours.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and gently pat into a rough square. Roll out into a thin, large rectangle. Spread over the blackcurrant jam - I've used Bonne Maman Blackcurrant Conserve - leaving a two inch strip across the long bottom edge. This will leave enough space to finish the roll without too much jam squishing out. Then roll along the long edge, keeping the dough as taught as possible. Cut into 12 even rounds and arrange on a lined backing tray or brownie pan. Cover and leave to prove for another hour.
Uncover the tray and bake for 25-35 minutes. Keep an eye on them as the jam will burn quickly if it gets too hot. I turned my oven down to 180 for the final five minutes. To glaze, I heated roughly equal volumes of lemon juice and sugar to make a thick syrup. Brush the syrup over the warm buns and top with the chopped pistachios. Allow to cool in the tray before serving.
Ingredients
Directions
The first step is to make a basic sweet dough, the same as for a brioche, doughnut or cinnamon roll. Melt the butter and warm with the milk and water. Weigh all the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add in the warmed butter, milk and water, and finally the egg.
Mix together the dough until all the ingredients are combined. Knead for 10-15 minutes. Cover and leave to prove for 1.5 hours.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and gently pat into a rough square. Roll out into a thin, large rectangle. Spread over the blackcurrant jam - I've used Bonne Maman Blackcurrant Conserve - leaving a two inch strip across the long bottom edge. This will leave enough space to finish the roll without too much jam squishing out. Then roll along the long edge, keeping the dough as taught as possible. Cut into 12 even rounds and arrange on a lined backing tray or brownie pan. Cover and leave to prove for another hour.
Uncover the tray and bake for 25-35 minutes. Keep an eye on them as the jam will burn quickly if it gets too hot. I turned my oven down to 180 for the final five minutes. To glaze, I heated roughly equal volumes of lemon juice and sugar to make a thick syrup. Brush the syrup over the warm buns and top with the chopped pistachios. Allow to cool in the tray before serving.