Morning Buns

Before you start

A morning bun is a croissant-style pastry rolled like a cinnamon roll: flaky, buttery layers spiraled around brown sugar, cinnamon and orange zest, baked in a muffin cup so the outside caramelizes and then rolled in sugar. It is a bakery-case favorite in California and well worth making at home.

Full croissant lamination with a butter block takes most of a day. This recipe uses a faster method: cold butter pieces are mixed into the dough and then flattened into sheets through four letter folds. You get many flaky layers with less precision. The most important rule is temperature. If the butter melts at any point, the layers merge, so chill whenever the dough feels soft and proof the buns somewhere cool rather than warm.

Ingredients

• Dough300 g (2½ cups, spooned and leveled) all-purpose flour
• 30 g (2½ tbsp) granulated sugar
• 5 g (1½ tsp) instant yeast
• 5 g (¾ tsp + a pinch) fine salt
• 170 g (¾ cup) unsalted butter — cold, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• 175 ml (¾ cup) whole milk — cold
• Filling100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
• 50 g (¼ cup packed) light brown sugar
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 orange, finely zested
• 30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter — melted
• Finish1 tbsp soft butter — for the muffin tin
• 50 g (¼ cup) granulated sugar — for rolling

Method

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Toss in the cold butter cubes to coat, then press each cube once between your fingers to flatten it into a coin. Add the cold milk and stir until a rough, shaggy dough forms with visible butter pieces.
2. Press the dough into a flat rectangle, wrap it and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. On a floured counter, roll the dough into a 20 × 45 cm (8 × 18 in) rectangle. It will look streaky and ragged. Fold it in thirds like a letter, rotate it 90 degrees and repeat the roll and fold. Wrap and chill for 20 minutes.
4. Do two more roll-and-fold rounds, chilling 20 minutes after each, for four letter folds in total. By the end the dough should be smooth with thin butter streaks. Chill at least 20 minutes, or overnight.
5. Mix the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and orange zest. Butter the muffin cups and sprinkle each with a little of the filling sugar.
6. Roll the dough into a 25 × 40 cm (10 × 16 in) rectangle, brush it with melted butter and scatter the remaining filling over it. Roll up tightly from a long side and cut into 12 pieces about 3.3 cm (1⅓ in) wide.
7. Set each piece in a muffin cup, spiral side up. Cover and proof at cool room temperature, below 24°C (75°F), until puffy and jiggly, 60 to 90 minutes. Heat the oven to 190°C (375°F).
8. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until deep golden brown all over; pale buns are underbaked inside. Cool 5 minutes, then turn them out and roll each in sugar while still warm. Cool on a rack before serving.

Tips for success

• Set a baking sheet under the muffin tin; some butter will leak during baking, which is normal.
• If butter starts to break through the surface while rolling, dust it with flour and chill the dough for 15 minutes before continuing.
• Turn the buns out promptly. The caramelized sugar sets hard if they cool in the tin.

Substitutions

Homemade laminated dough

Use about 600 g store-bought croissant or puff pastry dough. Puff pastry gives crisp, flaky buns without the yeasty softness.

Orange zest

Lemon zest gives a sharper flavor; or leave it out for classic cinnamon-sugar buns.

Whole milk

Water works and gives a slightly crisper, leaner pastry.

Variations

Cardamom morning buns

Replace half of the cinnamon with ground cardamom.

Overnight method

After the last fold, wrap the dough and refrigerate it overnight; shape and proof in the morning, allowing a little extra proof time.

Troubleshooting

Buns are bready with no visible layers

The butter melted into the dough during folding or proofing. Keep the dough cold, chill between folds and proof below 24°C (75°F).

A pool of butter in the pan

The buns were underproofed or the butter layers were broken. Proof until the buns jiggle, and patch tears with flour before folding.

Raw centers

The buns came out too early. Bake until the tops and sides are deep golden; a center should read about 93°C (200°F).

Storage

Morning buns are best within a few hours. Store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for 1 day and re-crisp at 175°C (350°F) for 5 minutes. Freeze baked buns for up to 1 month.

Safety notes

Raw yeast dough made with flour should not be tasted before baking. Contains wheat and milk.