Raspberry Jam Rose Buns

130 boxes, 11 states, and 5 days later we've finally arrived in Austin and things are starting to look rosy. 5 days on the road with 2 kids and a dog (who sat on my lap the entire car ride down) was... challenging. Singing, songs, playing trivia games and reading books all along the way it was not. It was however, a lot of talking, questions, dropping things which I had to apparently grow a second spine and 5 arms to reach and lots and lots of snacking. I don't think I've ever eaten so much beef jerky! Plus that bin of toys that I so carefully packed and picked for each individual child was barely ever opened. They decided that fighting and staring out the window was a much better use of their hours in the car. Though I must admit we did break out the iPads for the last 2 days of our trip. Thank goodness for that! Halfway into our trip we had to bring the car to a mechanic to have it looked at, which almost caused my neurotic, anal self to almost self implode. The only thing that made it better was that this happened near Atlanta, Ga and we were able to stay an extra day with my cousin, Soupbelly. Which also meant about 5000 extra calories worth of eating that I had not originally accounted for! So despite the drama, hair pulling and exhaustion, we made and couldn't be happier. So to celebrate things starting to get rosy, I'm posting these Raspberry Jam Rose buns. Super soft milk bread wrapped around a raspberry lemon jam for a beautifully sweet treat!

I love buns...and I cannot lie. When I make them, they go FAST. Which I guess is better for my attempt at a lower carb lifestyle. These buns start with my slightly modified milk bread recipe that I originally got from The Woks of Life blog. This bread is versatile, super easy and makes making bread a much less intimidating process. The only thing complicated is the rolling of these buns into their rose shape, but once you see it, it's really not that bad.

The dough gets divided into 16 pieces and rolled out into thin circles.

Lay out 4 circles slightly overlapping each other in a vertical line. Cut this in half and flip one side of circles so that both of the rounded sides of dough are facing your right.

Place a teaspoon of jam onto the top of one of the halves and roll it so that the edges don't line up. place this roll at the top of the previously rolled out half and roll again. You should be able to see the petals. Place these shaped buns in the wells of a muffin tin. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls.

Allow these shaped buns to rise for 30 minutes. Brush with egg wash and bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes. Cool slightly in the pan before removing and dust with powdered sugar for an extra special touch. These buns almost look too good to eat. But seriously, you're gonna want to eat them up!

Raspberry Rose Buns

Yields 16 buns

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup  heavy cream (at room temperature)
• 1 cup, plus 1 tablespoon milk (at room temperature)
• 1 large egg (at room temperature)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cake flour, tap measuring cup to avoid air pockets
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour, tap measuring cut to avoid air pockets
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• Egg wash: whisk together 1 egg with 1 teaspoon water
• 1 cup Raspberry jam 
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar (optional)

Method

1. In the bowl of a mixer, add ingredients in the following order: heavy cream, milk, egg, sugar, cake flour, bread flour, yeast, and salt. Use the dough hook attachment, and turn the mixer to low and let it knead for 15 minutes, occasionally stopping the mixer to push the dough together. 
2. After 15 minutes, Cover the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot for 1 hour to rise.
3. In the meantime, grease two baking vessels on all sides with butter. I used a standard 2X 9-inch round cake pan.
4. Make the filling by mixing the raspberry jam with the lemon juice till combined. 
5. After the hour of proofing, punch the dough down and dump the dough on a lightly floured surface. 
6. Cut the dough into 16 equal pieces. Roll into balls and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
7. Roll the dough ball into a circles about 1/8" thick. Lay out 4 circles in a vertical line slightly overlapping. Cut this in half lengthwise.
8. Place a teaspoon of filling at the top of one of the halves and begin to roll. The rounded side of the oval half will become the rose petals so roll it so that the rounded side doesn't match up exactly.)
9. Place this roll at the top of the other half of dough and roll the same way to make extra petals. Place the shaped buns into the well of a muffin tin.
10. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof for 30 minutes. 
11. Once proofed, gently brush with egg wash and bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes,
12. Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan to help keep the shape. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.