Purple Sweet Potato Buns

Age is just a number. Certainly rings true when you're getting on your years eh?

Purple Sweet Potato Buns

I just turned another year older (and hopefully wiser) a couple of days back. With each passing year, I'm thankful for those who have been with me (and stayed) through all these times. I'm over the gifts phase, so have been collecting my birthday "gifts" in the form of treats instead. Ha. It's no wonder November has now officially become a sort of Nom-ember for me.

I have a love/hate relationship with last two months of the year. It's like a time for celebrations and feasting - the birthday month is followed by Christmas. And not to mention, New Year/Chinese New Year in January and February. Reason for love is self-explanatory (hello food!); reason for hate is also pretty much self-explanatory (hello fats!). Ha.

Enough rambling from me, I made these buns earlier this year. My best friend gave me a whole bunch of purple sweet potatoes again. Besides snacking on it as it is, I made a couple stuff with the sweet potatoes. So look out for more purple sweet potato posts to come!

These are one of my favourite buns I've made. There are multiple reasons for this, one because I'm partial to the colour purple, two because I love how pretty the buns are, three because they taste as good as they look.

Was exploring various ways to shape breads, and chanced upon this pretty design. I thought it was really suitable for the buns as they had a filling, and the design showcases the vibrant filling too.

The buns were really soft, and there was no need for any spreads with the addition of purple sweet potato. They taste the best slightly warm and toasted.

Pardon the photo spam of this post as I couldn't resist going camera crazy with these beauties.

And one last final shot just to show you how soft the buns were...

Innards

Purple Sweet Potato Buns 
(makes 12 buns)

Filling
350g mashed cooked purple sweet potato, hot
2 tbsp sugar
30g unsalted butter
pinch of salt

milk (optional)

Add the butter and sugar into the hot mashed sweet potato and mix well until the butter melts. Set the filling aside to cool. (If the mashed sweet potato is too dry, add some milk - one tablespoon at at time)

Dough (adapted from here)
400g bread flour
250g mashed cooked purple sweet potato, cooled
60g caster sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
160ml (2/3 cups) milk, lukewarm
90g unsalted butter
Black sesame seeds (optional)

Place all the dough ingredients into a large bowl, use the dough hook and knead together until the dough comes together for about 15 minutes.
Set it aside to rise for one hour or till doubled in size (mine took like 2.5 hours).
Punch down the bread dough to release the air.
Divide dough into 12 equal portions and shape into balls.
Flour the table top, take one dough ball and roll on the floured surface, into a small rectangle, about 7" by 4".
Spread about 30g of purple sweet potato filling onto half the dough, leaving about a small cm border around the edges.
Flip the other half of the dough onto the filling, pinch the edges to seal.
Use a dough scraper, slice two straight lines onto the dough (longer end), leaving the top together. (Visually - It's sort of looking like a plait at this stage, where you have three long strands hanging together)
Pick up the dough, and twist the three braids a few times, twirling the dough together to form a braided bun.
Place braided buns onto a baking paper lined baking tray.
Set aside to proof for another one hour or until double in size.
Brush the buns with milk and sprinkle some black sesame seeds on top.
Bake at 175C for 20 to 30mins.
Remove bread to cool on rack completely.

* Click here for step by step images to help you visualise the shaping stage better .