Rice Cooker Brown Sugar Bun with Caramel Cream Cheese 黑糖面包焦糖奶酪馅

A dark brown sugar milk bun with caramel cream cheese filling. The mildly sweetened caramel cream cheese filling, complimented well the sweeter dark brown sugar bread. 

A characteristic of a rice cooker baked bread - this humble-looking bread is soft and moist :)

Yield: 8 mini buns in a 21cm diameter rice cooker pot

Appliances: 

Whirlpool BM1000 breadmaker 面包机

Philips Avance rice cooker 电饭锅

(10 rice cups volume)

Bread weight: 567g

Raw dough weight: 426g

Caramel Cream Cheese

Ingredients

30g fine sugar

2 tsp water

1 tbsp hot water

150g cream cheese

Direction

1. Place cool water and fine sugar in a stainless steel measuring cup to heat up over medium low flame.

2. Give a few rounds of light swirls to the measuring cup to mix the sugar and water.  But do not stir to dissolve the sugar. Partially cover the cup to acceralate the heating process, and prevent sugar crystals from forming at the surface.

3. When the sugar beginning to turn yellow, reduce the heat and watch closely. Try not to let the sugar brown too much, or it will give a bitter taste.

4. When the syrup darkened to golden brown, remove it from the flame. Add 1 to 2 tbsp of hot water to the caramel to dilute it into a thick syrup.  Add the hot water in a few additions, checking the consistency of the caramel. 

As the caramel is very hot, allow the added hot water to flow down from the wall of the cup.

5. Cream the softened cream cheese using a fork. 

6. Pour the caramel to the cream cheese and mix well. Cover and store the caramel cream cheese in the fridge till needed.

Bread dough

Ingredients

120g cold whole milk 冷全脂牛奶
15g condensed milk 炼乳

25g raw sugar 黄砂糖

15g dark brown sugar 黑糖

1/4 tsp salt 盐
15g beaten egg 蛋液
20g cold unsalted butter 冷无盐奶油

190g bread  flour 高筋面粉
20g top flour 低筋面粉

1/2 tsp instant dry yeast 即发酵母粉

Directions:

1. Line the inner pot of the rice cooker with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. Pour cold whole/fresh milk and condensed milk into the bread pan.

3. Add in beaten egg.

4. Add in raw sugar, dark brown sugar, salt and cold butter.

5. Pour in bread flour and top/cake flour.

6. Dig a hole and pour in the instant dry yeast.

7. Place the bread pan into the bread machine.

8. Select "8" Dough Kneading function; and press "Start".

9. When the program stops, let the dough continue to sit in the pan for another 20 minutes.

The dough is ready.

10. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Flatten it with your palm to release the trapped air.

11. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions, about 53g each.

12. Roll up the small dough, pull down the sides several times to stretch out the dough surface, and seal at the bottom. Lightly coat with some flour and place on a plate, cover with a lid, and rest for 15 minutes.

13. After the rest, roll out the dough.

Spoon about 20g of caramel cream cheese filling to the centre of the dough, wrap it up and seal tightly.

Wrap your palm around the dough and let it roll within your palm, to shape it. Coat the dough with a thin layer of flour.

14. Place the dough into the lined rice cooker pot. Close the lid and turn on the "keep warm" mode for 30 seconds. Only need to raise the pot temperature slightly. Let the doughs proof for about 30 minutes.

Keep warm for 30 seconds.

15. After the final proofing is done, close the lid and turn on the "Cake" function. Although the cake function will take 45 minutes to complete, you can stop the process at around 35 minutes after the baking starts.

To check whether the bread is cooked, just lightly press the top crust, if the crust returns to its original form, then the bread is cooked. Otherwise, you need to continue the baking.

After stopping the "cake" baking program, let the bread stays in the warm rice cooker for 15 minutes.

The bread is ready :)

16. Lift out the hot buns and cool down on a wire rack.

The base of the bread was just nicely browned :)

17. Enjoy ^^

Oven baked

You can bake this bread in an oven set at 170 degree Celsius for about 18 to 20 minutes at lower rack :)