Vanilla cream bun cake
Serves: 8
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Martin Poole
Vanilla cream bun cake
This fluffy, brioche-like bun is the perfect partner for a filling of velvety crème légère – vanilla pastry cream lightened with pillows of whipped cream
Serves: 8
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
593Kcal
Fat
30gr
Saturates
18gr
Carbs
66gr
Sugars
16gr
Fibre
2gr
Protein
12gr
Salt
0.6gr
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Ingredients
- 350ml semi-skimmed milk
- 50g butter
- 4 tbsp caster sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 500g strong white flour
- 1 x 7g sachet active dried yeast
- 1⁄2 tsp fine sea salt
- oil, to grease
- 1 medium egg, beaten
- icing sugar, to dust
For the filling
- 200ml milk
- 1 vanilla pod
- 1 medium egg, plus 1 extra yolk
- 35g caster sugar
- 20g cornflour
- 300ml double cream
Step by step
- Put the milk in a saucepan and heat until just steaming. Add the butter and leave to melt. Stir through the caster sugar and vanilla extract. Set aside until lukewarm.
- Put the flour in a freestanding mixer with a dough hook attached. Add the yeast and salt in separate areas. Make a well in the middle and add the buttery milk mixture. Turn on the mixer and mix for 3-4 minutes, until you have a smooth, sticky dough. Transfer to an oiled bowl and leave to rise for a couple of hours, or until doubled.
- Oil a 20cm-diameter springform tin and tip out the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface. Shape into a round, then cut it into eight evenly sized wedges. Transfer to the prepped tin and leave to prove again for 30-45 minutes, or until puffed to fill the tin.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. Brush the top of the bun with the beaten egg. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until well risen and golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.
- For the filling, put the milk in a saucepan. Split the vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and add these and the pod to the milk, then heat until just steaming. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, extra yolk, caster sugar and cornflour. Slowly pour the vanilla milk into the egg mixture, whisking continuously. Return the mixture to the pan and stir continuously over a medium-low heat until the mixture thickens. Remove from the heat and leave to cool completely. Press a sheet of clingfilm over the surface of the custard to prevent a crust from forming.
- When the custard has cooled completely, beat lightly until smooth. Lightly whip the double cream to soft peaks, then carefully fold a third of the custard through the cream. Repeat until you have incorporated all of the custard, taking care not to knock all the air out of the cream.
- Slice the top off the bun and cut along the indentations so the top is separated into wedges – this will make it easier to slice when serving. Pile the custard cream onto the base of the bun, then sit the wedges on top. Dust with icing sugar to serve.
