Coconut Buns

I've always loved Coconut Buns that we get in Indian bakeries and was so happy when the Salara I tried from Cynthia's place was pretty close. They were my absolute favorite with soft buns (cut into triangular wedges) encasing a sweet, coconut-tutti frutti mixture. On those days my mom couldn't get these, she would buy the coconut puffs instead but that never quite stood up to the buns. Infact, since I loved it so much, my grandparents actually bought an entire round bun (which was not cut into wedges) from a bakery and I cut into that for one of my birthdays instead of a cake :)

So, a few weeks back, I decided to bake these coconut stuffed buns and we really enjoyed the treat. The buns were soft and the coconut filling was delicious. I had some tutti frutti leftover from this Plum Cake I had baked and so added that as well along with some dates and raisins. The next time however, I think I will use brown sugar instead of white so the filing can get that deep colour that the store bought ones have. I also didn't glaze the buns with egg whites or mik so they had a dull looking exterior but that didn't take away from the taste one bit.

COCONUT BUNS


Ingredients:
For the Buns:
Active dry yeast - 1 pack
Warm water - 1/4 cup
Warm milk - 1 cup
Butter - 3 tbsp, softened
Eggs - 1
Sugar - 3 to 4 tbsp
Salt - 0.5 tsp
Bread flour - 3.5 cups (bread flour is preferable, else All purpose flour is fine)


For the Filling: (Combine the following in a bowl)Coconut grated - 1.5 cups, run it through the mixie to make it softer if using frozen
Combination of Tutti Frutti, Raisins & Dates - 0.5 cups, chopped
Sugar - 1 cup or slighty lesser.
Cardamom, powdered - 1/4 tsp or more

Method:1) To the warm milk, add yeast and sugar and mix. Allow this to proof for about 10 minutes. It will become foamy.

2) Mix flour and salt and butter. Add the yeast-milk mixture and combine until you get a  sticky dough. Knead well until dough becomes smooth and elastic (about 6 to 8 minutes).

3) Spray a bowl with some oil, place dough, cover with wrap and put in a warm place (e.g. oven with light on) and let it rise for an hour or so until it doubles.

4) Punch down the dough and knead lightly. Then take a piece of about 2.5 inches diameter and flatten it lightly to a circle, place about 2 tbsp of the filling in the middle. Pull the edges over the filling and enclose it. Seal it and place on a greased parchment paper. Repeat with the remaining dough. I got about 16 buns. 


5) Cover with wrap and allow to rise again till doubled about 45 minutes. Then, remove the cover and bake in a pre-heated 350F oven for 20 to 25 minutes. If preferred you can brush an egg white wash or milk over the buns before baking.


6) Allow to cool a bit and serve warm or at room temperature. Keeps well for a few days on the counter.

Comments

  1. OMG! this must be fantastic, Never had one before, will have to try this soon :)

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  2. awesome buns! looks so tempting. i wish i could make it but my oven sucks.

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  3. Oh how sweet to get to cut your favorite sweet on your birthday...what a cute memory!

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  4. Me and my dh love coconut buns..We usually buy form the local bakeries in India..Urs look delicious..Thanx for sharing the recipe..i will try them soon

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  5. Lovely buns Laav.Just love them.

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  6. I have tried maing these from Pusiva's blog,BUt ths recipe looks delicous.Will try this version soon

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  7. Wow the buns have come out great...they look delicious.

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  8. Coconu bun looks so tempting..just perfect..

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  9. Coconut buns are fovarotie...love ur clicks...they look so soft and delicious :)

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  10. My mom used to mbuy this for me,i just love it,looks tempting...:)

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  11. Naaku oorudhu!! Coconut is my favorite and these have come out amazingly well! :)

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  12. looks so tempting and has come so perfect too..

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  13. looks so cool lavanya...nothing to beat the coconut flavour...hmmm..mouth watering :)

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  14. looks sooo yummy and cool... very delicious recipe.. awesome clicks!!.. thanks for sharing !!

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  15. hey lavanya..h r u?..this is different buns whihc looks soo cute...i make plain one..will try stuffing with coconuts..

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  16. yum....looks absolutely delicious...i have never eaten this...i have been meaning to email and ask you how you were..coz there were no blog updates for a while..and you are pretty regular :)

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  17. WOW....tempting and inviting buns..

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  18. I remember the coconut buns from back home. I don't really remember whether I used to love them a lot or not, but reading your account makes me think that I was crazy about those too :)

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  19. absolutely fantastic. very much tempting.

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  20. OMG coconut filled buns sound so delicious, i wish i could make these right now! bookmarked, will make them soon!

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  21. Ann, yes do try.. they are yummy, esp if you like coconut.

    Thank you Mahima, Priya.

    Nupur, thanks.. yes I found it very sweet of my grandparents too.

    Ramya, this is my way of satisfying those cravings :) Thanks.

    Thank you akka.

    Sumi, oh that's good to know.

    Thank you Poornima, Vrinda, Gita & Lakshmi.

    Raks... yeah.. even now when i go home, i make it a point to taste this.

    Thank you Kalai, Sowmya, Suparna, Hari Chandana & Shama.

    Suma, good to see you - thanks.

    Thank you Chitra & Sireesha.

    Rajitha, thank you.. yeah been a bit lazy :)

    Sig, that's funny.. :)

    Thank you Jeyashri & Parita.

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  22. Hi Lavanya, first time here .. Coconut buns looks tempting .. would be visiting often :)

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  23. Wow! Thanks for posting this recipe! I tried it and it was delicious. Only hitch was that some liquid oozed out in the baking process. But I guess, I might have stuffed a little too much!

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  24. Me too - am so glad to hear that you tried & liked this recipe. I overstuffed my buns too and had the same problem but the oozing solidified once it cooled a bit and :)

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  25. Hi,

    These buns are fantastic. I made them yesterday evening... I am a novice baker, so I was scared to go the whole way. I reduced all the quantities by half and made it. Drool worthy !!! I have been craving these forever !!! Could you please tell me whether the same idea would work if i want to make them into vegetable buns or a vegetable loaf ? Can I cut out the sugar then or is it needed for the yeast to work ? With the sugar, the bun is too sweet for vegetable fillings. Also, Could I make this using white whole wheat flour completely ? any adjustments in liquid if i do that ????

    Thank you so much for an amazing recipe.

    Anusha

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  26. Hi,

    These buns are fantastic. I made them yesterday evening... I am a novice baker, so I was scared to go the whole way. I reduced all the quantities by half and made it. Drool worthy !!! I have been craving these forever !!! Could you please tell me whether the same idea would work if i want to make them into vegetable buns or a vegetable loaf ? Can I cut out the sugar then or is it needed for the yeast to work ? With the sugar, the bun is too sweet for vegetable fillings. Also, Could I make this using white whole wheat flour completely ? any adjustments in liquid if i do that ????

    Thank you so much for an amazing recipe.

    Anusha

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  27. Thank you for trying out this recipe Anushka... so glad you liked it... Coconut buns hold a spl. place for me too :)

    As for vegetable buns.. I've tried this recipe from another blogger that worked well -
    http://chefatwork.blogspot.com/2007/08/masala-buns.html
    You can try that recipe for a savoury version.

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