flower hot dog buns

• Break the large egg into a small bowl and whisk until blended.
• Measure about 1/2 of the beaten egg into a second small bowl.
• Set aside.

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add the room temperature heavy cream, milk, 1/2 beaten egg, sugar, flour, yeast & salt in that particular order.

• Turn on the mixer to “stir.”
• Let it go for 15 minutes.
• About halfway through, you may want to stop the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl and push the dough together.
• The dough should stick to the bottom of the bowl, but not the sides.

Alternatively, you can knead the dough for your Flower Hot Dog Buns by hand.

Just keep your hands lightly floured, but avoid adding too much additional flour to the dough, or it may become dense. The high amount of fat in the dough from the heavy cream should prevent it from sticking too badly to your hands.

• Cover the bowl with an overturned plate or kitchen towel.
• Place it in a warm spot for 60 to 90 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.
• After the hour of proofing, put the dough bowl back on the mixer and stir for another 5 minutes to remove air bubbles.

• Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and cut it into 8 equal pieces.

Of course, you can “eyeball it” as you divide your dough, but I always use my digital food scale to be sure each piece is uniform in size.

• Roll each piece of dough into an oval that’s about 4 inches wide and the same length as your hot dogs.
• Place the hot dog on one end of the dough and roll it tightly in the dough.
  
• Use a metal bench scraper or knife to cut 7 slits crosswise into the dough/hot dog.
• Be careful to not cut all the way through the bottom layer of dough.
• This will create 8 equal sections.

• Twist the dough so that all of the hot dog pieces are cut side up.
• Arrange the pieces to form a flower shape, finishing with a hot dog piece in the center of the arrangement.
  
• If you prefer your flower buns to be smaller in diameter, cut just 6 slits in the rolled dough to create 7 equal sections.
  

• Use your bench scraper or wide spatula to transfer the formed flower buns to a large parchment lined baking sheet.
• Be sure to leave an inch or more between each bun to allow for expansion.
  
• Cover the baking sheet with a kitchen towel and allow the buns to rise in a warm place for another hour.
  
• When the buns are almost done proofing, preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
  

• Mix your egg wash by whisking the remaining 1/2 beaten egg with 1/2 tablespoon of water.
• Add the scallions to your egg wash.
• Submerging the scallions this way will ensure that they stick to the buns.

• Use a pastry brush to lightly brush the buns with egg.
• Brush only the dough, and not the hot dog pieces.
• Make sure to also get the scallions evenly onto the bun.
• Use the brush to gently spread out any pooling egg wash in the crevices of the buns.
  

• Bake the buns for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking.
  
• Remove from the oven and serve while still warm.
  

Your Flower Hot Dog Buns can have that signature Chinese bakery shine…

• Make a simple syrup by dissolving one tablespoon of granulated sugar in one tablespoon of very hot water.
  
• When the buns are removed from the oven, immediately brush the surface of the buns with the simple syrup.