Sausage + cheddar + maple syrup = breakfast bliss.
Most families have a traditional Christmas morning breakfast. My family’s was Bubble Tree Bread.
Bubble Tree Bread: a tear-and-share loaf made of small rolls stuffed with brown sugar-pecan paste and arranged in the shape of a Christmas tree. Every year, my siblings and I filled and assembled it, stretching the bread dough around nuggets of filling and pinching it back together with our chubby fingers. We baked it on Christmas Eve, and decorated it the next morning with swags of sugary icing and whole maraschino cherries.
As a kid, I thought those rolls were delicious. But as I started to get older, I began to see just how sweet they were—clumps of brown sugared pecans baked inside sweet dough, slathered in confectioner’s sugar icing, and topped with candied cherries—and how dry and tough the texture of the bread could be.
I firmly believe in respecting tradition and family recipes: heirlooms that have been passed down through the generations until they become almost sacred. But I also believe in the search for deliciousness . . . so with all due respect to my family’s Bubble Tree Bread, this year I decided that the Christmas morning bun tradition needed to be updated.
I set out to create a soft, fluffy Christmas morning breakfast bun that perfectly balanced the sweet with the savory and that—above all!—didn’t have artificial cherries on top of it! My search for a new, delicious bun recipe led me to explore completely new flavors and styles of breakfast rolls. A pound of sausage and a pint of maple syrup later, I ended up with Sausage and Cheddar Breakfast Buns.
Light, tender bread rolls stuffed with sausage, apple, and cheddar, slathered in maple butter. Their soft, pillowy crumb provides the perfect backdrop for the savory fennel-spiced pork filling, while the rich sausage and cheddar balances perfectly against the tart apple and the sweet maple glaze. Sticky and sweet, savory and substantial, these breakfast buns will be a delicious addition to your Christmas morning table . . . or any table at any time of year.
Now, a note for people who are intimidated by yeast:
These buns might look complicated, but they’re incredibly easy to make. Simply dump the yeast into some warm milk with a little sugar, let it bubble a bit, and then mix it together with all the rest of your ingredients. A stand mixer with a dough hook makes the kneading easy, but if you don’t have one, you can absolutely do it by hand. After that, all you have to do is let the dough rise, roll it out like you would cookie dough, sprinkle the filling on top, roll it into a log and cut that into even slices. Drop those slices cut-side up in the pan and give them a final rise before popping them in to bake. A short 35 minutes later, you’re ready to roll . . . pun intended!
Whether you’re searching for some delicious morning buns to serve at Christmas brunch or looking for a delicious new bread enjoy any time of the year, I hope you’ll try these Sausage and Cheddar Breakfast Buns. With their sticky-sweet glaze and flavor-packed, savory filling, they’re sure to please adults and children alike! Who knows? You might find you have a new Christmas morning tradition on your hands!
Enjoy!
Sausage and Cheddar Breakfast Buns with Maple Glaze
(Makes 12)
For the dough:
7 grams active dry yeast (2 ½ tsp, or one packet)
10 grams granulated sugar (1 tbsp)
300 mL milk (about 1 ¼ cup), heated until warm to the touch
500 g bread flour (about 4 cups)
5 grams salt (about 1 ½ tsp)
1 egg
57 grams butter, melted (about 4 tbsp)
For the filling:
1 tbsp oil
½ yellow onion, finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, minced
¾ tsp kosher salt
2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1 tsp chili flakes
1 lb ground pork
1 granny smith apple, chopped
½ lb sharp cheddar, shredded (preferably white)
To assemble and bake:
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp unsalted butter
½ cup maple syrup
Special equipment: stand mixer (optional), rolling pin, board or clean countertop
Method
For the dough:
Combine 120 mL (about ½ cup) milk and sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle yeast over top and let sit for 10 minutes, until foamy.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment on low speed, combine 125 grams (1 cup) flour and salt. Add in milk-yeast mixture, egg, melted butter, and remaining milk, and continue to stir at low speed until combined. Switch to the dough hook and add in the remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, still at low speed, until the mixture becomes a tacky dough. Increase to medium speed and continue to beat for 5-6 minutes, or until the dough becomes smooth and elastic, holds its shape when you hold it up in your hand, and springs back when you poke it with your finger. If you don’t have a stand mixer, mix the dough in a regular mixing bow, then turn it out onto a lightly floured board once the mixture has formed a rough ball and knead with your hands!
When the dough is ready, place into a greased bowl; cover and let sit in a warm room for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. While waiting, make the filling.
For the filling:
Heat a metal pan over medium heat and add oil. Add chopped onion, minced garlic, and ¼ tsp kosher salt and cook until onion is translucent. Add fennel and chili flake and saute until fragrant. Add in ground pork and remaining ½ tsp kosher salt, and saute until pork is just cooked through. Transfer pork to a medium-sized bowl, leaving behind most of the fat, and toss with apple to combine. Let cool.
To assemble and bake:
Punch down risen dough; turn out onto a lightly floured board and lightly roll out into a rectangle about 18 by 12 inches. Let rest for 10 minutes to relax the dough.
Sprinkle with pork and apple mixture, leaving an inch boarder on one of the long sides; sprinkle cheese over pork and apple mixture. Starting at the long side opposite the inch boarder, roll up the dough into a neat log. Use a sharp knife to trim the uneven ends and then cut the log into twelve even slices.
Grease a 9 x 13 baking tin (metal preferably) and arrange the buns in the tin cut side up. Cover tin with a clean cloth and let rise for 45 minutes or until the buns have roughly doubled in size and appear puffy, and the dough holds an indent when a finger is pressed into it.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Brush the risen buns with beaten egg and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
For the glaze, combine butter and maple syrup in a bowl and microwave, 15 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until the butter is melted and incorporated with the maple syrup.
Drizzle warm buns with maple glaze and serve.
Originally posted December 17, 2020.
Comments