Tonight’s dinner – a bowl of warm Mexican corn soup and homemade honeycomb buns… yummy and goodness for all!! There is nothing better than the aroma of freshly baked bread in a house – warm, fluffy and delicious! These are just plain buns, baked in a honeycomb or beehive pattern – so light and airy.
RECIPE DETAIL – Adapted from my pav recipe, I have used the same measurements except the flour. Recipe is pretty simple and straightforward, follow the step by step guide to a perfect dinner buns. Secrets to perfect bread recipe is –
- Proofing of the yeast. They are yeast pavs, but adding baking powder makes them feather light and extremely soft.
- First resting/rising time
- Kneading the dough after the rising time. This step is necessary – if the dough is not kneaded well, buns will turn out dense. Dough elasticity and gluten formation is enhanced by kneading.
Once the dough has risen, knead it thoroughly, give it a round shape and arrange them in a baking bowl in a beehive pattern. Cover and let it rise again for 30-40 minutes. They will spread and form a perfect honeycomb/beehive pattern. Brush the buns with butter and sprinkle herb of your choice. If you have some garlic salt in your pantry- sprinkle that for extra flavor, but again it’s optional.
Bake @400 degree F for 12-15 minutes. In this time frame, buns are baked but not brown from the top. To give it a rich brown color, broil it for 2-3 SECONDS until that color is attained. Be around and keep an eye on the buns. Soft, airy and fluffy buns are ready.
Enjoy freshly baked honeycomb buns with these healthy homemade soup recipes – Mexican corn soup, Dal ka shorba, sweet corn soup, Veggie bean soup and chicken noodle soup.
Honeycomb Buns or Beehive Buns
INGREDIENTS
- 2.5 cup All purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- 2 teaspoon Active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1.5 teaspoon Sugar
- 4 tablespoon Butter
- 1 cup Milk
- 1 teaspoon Butter for brushing the buns
- 1 teaspoon Dried Parsley
INSTRUCTIONS
- Assemble: all the ingredients.
- Combine yeast, sugar and 1/4 cup of water.
- Let it sit for 10 minutes, it will look like a thick creamy paste.
- In another 10 -15 minutes it will become all frothy and bubbly (frothing may take longer for some maybe 20 - 30 minutes). This proofing procedure shows that yeast is alive and active. If by now your yeast has not become frothy, please discard and start over.
- In a bowl combine flour with salt and baking powder. Mix it well. Pour in yeast mixture...
- Add butter and milk.
- Knead a soft pliable dough.
- Cover the dough and let it sit undisturbed for 2 hours.
- The dough will double in size.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, knead it again for a few more minutes. This step is necessary - if the dough is not kneaded well, buns will turn out dense. Dough elasticity and gluten formation is enhanced by kneading.
- Well kneaded, smooth and rounded dough is ready.
- Divide the dough in 10 equal parts.
- Let's shape the buns - take one part of the dough, flatten it. Fold one end in the center, likewise fold all the ends; making it look like a ball.
- Pinch all the ends and smooth-en the ball.
- Buns are ready.
- Grease a baking pan.
- Arrange buns in the pan.
- Cover the pan and let the dough rise for another 30 - 40 minutes.
- Preheat oven @400 degree F. Dough is all set and ready.
- Brush the buns with butter..
- Sprinkle some dry parsley and some garlic salt (optional).
- Place the tray in the preheated oven and bake for 12-15 minutes.
- To give it a rich brown color, broil it for 2-3 SECONDS until that color is attained. Be around and keep an eye on the buns.
- Soft, airy and fluffy buns are ready.
If baking in microwave at convection mode what should be the temperature and time?? What is broiling?
In a microwave convection mode, bake @200 degree C. Most ovens have two elements – In baking, the bottom rods/element heat up and cooks the food. In broiling, the top element provides direct heat to cook the food. Broiling always means heat from above and the default temperature is between 500 – 550 degree F (260 degree C). Hope that answers your query!!
You have mentioned oil in the method but not in the ingredients. Is the oil just to run on the inside of the pan or is there an amount for it? thenaks
Thanks for pointing that out Alka. It was a typing error, fixed that!!
I tried this and they baked so well. Fluffy and light. I sprinkled garlic salt as you suggested and everyone loved it. Doubled your recipe and baking a big batch today.. hope it last me for sometime. Thanks a ton.
Thanks for trying the recipe Patty. I agree they don’t last very long. Glad you liked the recipe. 🙂
Hey there, You’ve done a fantastic job. Tried this recipe and absolutely great great buns. Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and sharing your experience with me. Glad you liked it. 🙂
Can make it again and again blindly, btw this is my fourth time! Perfect measurements and puffs really well. Thanks for stepped photography and all your effort.
Thanks for your wonderful feedback Heather!! Glad you liked the recipe as much as I do. 🙂
Do we need to add warm water to the yeast for it to froth up?
Shubha, use lukewarm tap water.
Keep up the excellent work and love all your recipes. This was a rockstar!
Thanks for your feedback.
Hi, can we use olive oil in place of butter..
Akshaya, I have experimented this recipe with oil and the end result was not that great. With oil, the bread was not soft as compared to the one prepared with butter.
Can we use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour with same ratio of all other ingredients.
Haven’t tried with wheat flour so can’t comment on the end result but feel free to experiment.
Hi, I only have instant dry yeast. Can I substitute the active dry yeast with this and would it change the steps to making the bread ? I really want to try this as I have used your wheat kulcha recipe previously and it worked really well
Thanks, Nyakwar!
Sure you can. Skip the yeast proofing part and follow the next step.
Use 2 teaspoons of Instant yeast. Unlike active dry yeast, instant yeast doesn’t have to be proofed; it can be added straight to the dry ingredients. The result will be the same.
Turned out absolutely amazing! I cooked them in the cast iron frying pan and topped with garlic butter and old cheddar cheese. Wow it was a hit.
Thanks for the great recipe
Thank you for the feedback, Tim. So glad you liked the recipe. 😊