Makes 8 large buns.
Make the dough 1-3 days ahead of baking.
Dough:
- 380g AP flour
- 20g whole flour (or more AP flour)
- optional: 10g dried onion flakes (1 heaping tablespoon)
- 3g dry yeast
- 20g sugar (I reduce 10g and add 30g malt syrup)
- 9g salt
- 275g room temp water
- 15g butter, cubed
Onion mixture:
- 2 large onions (350g), finely diced
- 15g butter (~1 tbpsn)
- 20g poppy seeds
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 tsp water
Dough prep:
- Dissolve the yeast in the water.
- In a mixer (or by hand), mix all of the dough ingredients until a dough forms.
- Knead for ~5 minutes, then let rest for ~10 minutes.
- Repeat kneading a total of 3 or so times, until the dough is strong.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight and up to 3.
On day of baking, prepare the onion, mixture:
- Set aside ~2 tablespoons of the chopped onion.
- Lightly caramelize the remaining onion in the butter.
- Add water, salt, poppy seeds and raw onion that was set aside.
- Chill.
Shaping and baking:
- Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Dust you working surface with flour.
- Divide dough into 8 equal pieces.
- Shape each into tight balls.
- Place each on a dusted towel or surface. I prefer working with semolina rather than flour.
- Cover and let rise until almost doubled in size, fluffy and very relaxed - for 1.5-2.5 hours.
- Meanwhile, heat the oven to 240 C.
- Dust each with semolina and/or flour, lightly flatten, and gently stretch the center, similarly to shaping a tiny pizza, but retaining the air around the edge.
- Place each on the parchment lined baking sheet, 4 per sheet.
- Portion the onion mixture on top of the center of each.
- Bake until fully rised, and lightly browned, possibly with slightly darker spots.
- Remove onto cooling rack.
- Brush with butter.
- Let cool for ~15 minutes.
- Before serving - return to a hot oven (temperature no critical) and bake for 3-7 more minutes, until they gains a little more color.
- Serve with cream cheese.