Apple Buns

A mild apple aroma will be with you from the moment you mix the dough until you finish your last bite of this absolutely delicious bun. And it’s only 160 calories. A perfect treat for a weekend brunch.

Source 

Inspired by the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. 

Taste 5 (out of 5)

Difficulty 1 (out of 5)

Ingredients

- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (1140 cal)

- 1/4 cup whole wheat bread flour (110 cal)

- 1/2 cup ground oats (160 cal)

- 1 large apple (80 cal)

- 2 tbsp honey (130 cal)

- 1/4 cup maple syrup (210 cal)

- 2 tbsp apple vinegar (5 cal)

- 2 tbsp sunflower seeds (95 cal)

- 3/4 tbsp yeast

- 1/2 tbsp salt

- 1 cup water at 90-100F

Total 1930 cal, 12 buns, 160 cal / bun

Instructions

1. Wash the apple, discard the seeds, do not peel. Finely chop it a puree in a food processor. 

2. In a large container that has a lid, using a wooden spoon mix all the ingredients until all the flour is incorporated. Cover the container (not airtight) and let on the kitchen counter for about 2 hour until the dough approximately doubles in size. 

3. Use the dough after the 2 hour rest or refrigerate it in the same container still covered (not airtight). The refrigerated dough can be used over the next 10 days. 

4. On the baking day, sprinkle the dough with flour to prevent sticking and cut the desired amount. I use half of the dough at a time to make 6 buns. Each bun should be a size of a large plum. Dust it with flour and gently form a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Place the buns on a cornmeal or semolina coated pizza peel leaving 2 inches between the buns. If you do not use a baking stone, place the buns on a cookie sheet which will be used for baking. Let the buns rest for about 50 minutes (or 30 minutes if using non-refrigerated dough).

5. Place an empty broiler tray in the oven where it will not interfere with the rising of your buns.   About 30 minutes before baking preheat the oven with the broiler tray and the baking stone to 450F. If you do not use the stone, the preheat will be shorter.  

6. Right before baking you can brush the tops of the buns with an egg white wash made from 1 egg white lightly beaten with 1 tsp of sugar - this will make the buns shinier. Slide the buns onto the stone, if using or simply place the cookie sheet into the oven. Pour 1 cup of hot (not boiling) tap water into the broiler tray - be very careful here, the tray is hot there will be a lot of steam.  Avoid splashing the water on the oven glass door (the glass might crack).

7. Close the oven door as soon as possible to trap the steam inside. Bake for about 25 minutes until the buns are nicely browned. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack. 

Afterthoughts

- A lovely, a little bit sweet bread with a mild apple flavor. It’s simply wonderful when eaten warm and fresh with butter and your favorite jam or apple puree. 

- My favorite thing about this bread is that it’s extraordinarily satisfying - I find it really tasty, but I am perfectly happy with one bun and don’t crave the second one right away (which is very rare for me). So for 160 calories (ok, 260 with jam and butter), it’s a great deal. 

- This bread is inspired by the Barley Apple Bread from the Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. However, I’ve made a lot of changes. First of all, my recipe primarily uses all purpose flour (because I like it much more than the whole wheat and it rises better). Then I used oats instead of barley (when I made this recipe with barley it was tasty, but very heavy). Lastly, I added sunflower seeds.