Brioche Cheddar Cheese Buns
When I was a kid my Mum used to take us almost weekly to our favorite bakery, Bee Bell Bakery, in Edmonton, AB, Canada where I grew up. It was always jam-packed and smelled incredible. I loved looking in the glass cases at all the treats while my Mum took a number and waited to make her order. We rarely got the cakes or tarts that looked so exciting to me then, but very often my Mum would bless us with an order of the cheese buns. Cheese buns don’t really do justice to these incredible morsels. They were not round and domed like a traditional bun, but more the shape of a popover, and shot through with a ton of bright orange cheddar. The best were the ones that had cheese spilling out the side that had gotten baked and crispy. Or the ones where cheese had burst through the bottom and it was shiny with orange cheese grease, oh man.
Sadly Bee Bell closed its doors a few years ago so no one can get these beautiful buns anymore. With my strong memories as guide I set out this week to make a copy-cat version at home and I am incredibly happy with the result. So today I’m sharing with you a lightly sweet brioche dough, stuffed with cheddar cheese and cooked in a muffin tin for the same crazy shape I remember as a kid. These are a special, uber-cheesy treat. They take a bit of time, but were fairly easy to shape and work with so don’t be afraid if you are a beginner baker.
