This is a delicious recipe for onion buns which taste stunning with the herby oil! The recipe is by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley and their book ‘Falastin’.
Ingredients
530g plain flour, plus extra to dust
35g caster sugar
7g (about 1 sachet) dried yeast
3 large eggs
150g unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 2cm pieces
oil of choice, to grease
For the Filling
100ml olive oil
3 onions, finely chopped
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tbsp sumac
2 tbsp oregano, roughly chopped
1 tbsp thyme leaves, roughly chopped
1 tsp caster sugar
For the Herb Oil
2 tbs flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
1 red chilli, seeds removed, finely chopped
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
120ml olive oil
Method
– Add the flour, sugar and yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook. Mix on low for 1 minute.
– In another bowl whisk together the eggs and 120ml of water then add to the mixer and continue to mix for 2 minutes.
– Add 1/2 tsp salt and start adding the butter, a few cubes at a time, until it all melts together into the dough. Continue kneading for about 10 minutes on a medium speed, until the dough is completely smooth, elastic and shiny.
– Place dough in a large bowl brushed with oil, cover with a clean tea towel and leave in the fridge for at least half a day or, preferably, overnight. It will increase in volume by just under 50 per cent.
– Add 3 tbsp of oil to a medium saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook for 15 minutes, until completely soft and golden brown.
– Add cinnamon and cook for another minute. Remove from heat and set aside to cool before adding remaining 55ml of olive oil, sumac, oregano, thyme, sugar and 1 tsp salt.
– Grease a 20cm x 30cm baking tray and line with baking paper.
– On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a rectangle, about 55cm x 35cm. Spread the sumac onion filling all over the dough, taking it right up to the edges.
– With the long end facing towards you, gently roll the dough as you would a Swiss roll, using both hands to gently press as you go along. Trim about 2cm off both ends so that it becomes a perfect sausage. Cut widthways into 12 even slices, each about 4cm wide.
– Carefully place the slices on the baking tray, evenly spaced apart. Cover the tray with a slightly damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour 30 minutes. The rolls will rise by 20-30 per cent.
– About 30 minutes before the buns have finished rising, preheat the oven to 200°C / 180°C with a fan.
– Remove the tea towel and place the tray of buns on the middle shelf of the oven. Cook for 30 minutes, until the buns are golden brown.
– Remove them from oven, cover loosely with foil and return buns to the oven for about another 20 minutes or until the dough is cooked through.
– Remove the buns from the oven and set aside to cool for 30 minutes.
– Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the herb oil in a bowl with a small pinch of salt.
– Once the buns have cooled, pour oil evenly over the tops, sprinkle lightly with sumac and serve!