Quick cheese and cilantro buns

I am still trying recipes from Warm Bread and Honey Cake, the same book I made the multilayered spice cake from. I was really excited about a nutmeg cake, especially since I had bought some nutmeg in the shell when I was in Montreal. I was a bit disappointed in the cake, so I think I'll save the rest of the nutmeg for custardy things where it can really shine. Hungry and undaunted, I dove back into the book to find something else to make, right that minute! These buns fit the bill, as I had all the ingredients on hand.

They really are quick to make, and so worth the few minutes you'll have to invest in making and baking them. The dough is really nice to work with, and the feel of it might remind you of the silky dough used for Mrs Vogel's Scherben, except these aren't deep-fried. Too bad, as the oil from the scherben is still lurking in the back of my fridge. Maybe next time I'll fry them...

Quick cheese and parsley buns  from Warm Bread and Honey Cake 
dough:
1⅔ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3½ ounces thick Greek yogurt (I drained some sheep's milk yogurt)
1 egg beaten (save 2 tablespoons for glaze)

filling:
4½ ounces feta cheese, crumbled
small handful chopped flat leaf parsley (I used at least half a big bunch of cilantro) chopped
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400℉. Grease a baking sheet (I used parchment, and I didn't grease it).

Knead together all of the dough ingredients and set aside while you make the filling. For the filling, mix the feta and the chopped herbs. Divide the dough into 12* pieces and flatten or roll out one piece to a 4-inch circle. Try to get the edges thinner than the centre. I used a rolling pin, as the dough is not sticky, and it only took a minute.

Put 1 tablespoon of the filling in the centre and pleat and pinch the edges to seal into a ball. Don't worry too much about appearance, as this is the bottom of the bun. Just make sure it's well sealed. Place on the baking sheet and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand. Repeat with the remaining 11 pieces of dough and the filling.

Brush twice with the reserved egg and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

I baked half of these and froze the other half. I took them out of the freezer when the oven was preheating, glazed and then baked them from frozen at a slightly lower temperature (375℉) and for 4-5 minutes longer, and they were just as nice. Next time I'll make a double batch and freeze more of them. These are perfect with soup for lunch.

*I somehow managed to get 11 buns from this. I'm not sure what's scarier: that I can't count to 12, or that I divided the dough into 11 equal pieces by eyeballing it.

See you on Tuesday with the Daring Bakers' reveal!