Speculoos Buns

These buns are delightfully soft and chock full of delicious speculoos spread.

Recipe adapted from: The Imaginariyum
Ingredients
125mL buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp dry instant yeast
3 tbsp white sugar
1 egg
250g flour
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp butter (room temperature)
1 cup speculoos spread (a.k.a. speculaas, cookie butter)
Optional - about 1/4 cup chopped apple

Method
1. Heat the buttermilk until lukewarm, then mix the yeast in and leave to activate.  It should start to froth up.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the buttermilk and yeast mixture with the sugar, egg, flour and salt.  Mix until combined.

3. Add the butter and mix until it's been incorporated.  Continue to knead the dough with the mixer on low speed for about 10 minutes.  The dough will be a bit sticky. 

4. Place the dough inside a bowl greased with butter.  Cover it with a tea towel or cling wrap and let it rise for about 1.5 hours, or until doubled in size.

5. After the dough has risen, lightly dust your work surface with flour and roll the dough out into a large rectangle, so that the dough is quite thin.

6. Spread the speculoos across the dough.  If desired, you can sprinkle other fillings such as chopped apple or nuts on top.

7. Roll the dough up, starting with the short edge.  Pinch the seam closed and cut the log into about 12 even slices.

8. There are a few options for baking these buns - you can arrange them in a brownie pan for a more rustic approach, or butter a muffin tin and place each roll into a separate cup (this will give you lovely round buns!)

9. Cover the buns with a tea towel or cling wrap and let them rise for another 30 minutes.

10. Preheat your oven to 175C (350F).  When the buns have risen, bake them for about 15-20 minutes.

11. Let the buns cool.  If you've baked them in a muffin tin, after they've cooled for 10 minutes, remove the buns from the tin by loosening the edges with a table knife, then place them on a wire rack to cool further.

These are great when warm from the oven!  If you have leftovers the next day, heating them in the microwave for 10-20 seconds will rejuvenate them and bring back that just-baked feeling.

Enjoy!