Six years ago, I fell in love with a pastry.
It was the early days of the pandemic. If I left the house at all, it was to go on a quick walk around the neighbourhood to pick up groceries. Occasionally, I’d treat myself to a coffee and a pastry from the local café en route. That’s where I discovered Bread by Bike’s miso cheese buns, which quickly turned into an unreasonable obsession. They were perfect: Chewy, both sweet and savoury, undergirded by a deep, umami funk. I had to restrain myself from buying them every day,
Alas, as far as I’ve been able to tell, Bread by Bike has since discontinued its miso cheese buns. But I have thought about them often and always pondered attempting to make them myself. The only resource I found to guide me was an old Instagram post from the bakery, which noted that they were made with “brown rice miso, Keen’s Cheddar and our sweet bun dough”.
This month, I finally took the plunge, after stumbling upon a Genevieve Ko recipe for sesame scallion buns; their spiral shape and similar look seemed like a good first step for an adaptation. I picked up a jar of brown rice miso but instead of cheddar, I decided to go for meltable, nutty Comté. These buns are not, then, exactly like Bread by Bike’s originals, but I love them just the same.
That cheese swap was done, in part, because I wanted to pair these buns with a bottle of Domaine de Bon Augure Joncs-Cella. A recent Jancis Robinson wine of the week, this blend of Chardonnay and Petit Manseng is just the kind of white wine that was made for these still-chilly spring days: Full and even fleshy, it mingles notes of cream and stone fruit, and hints at croissants without approaching clichéd Chardonnay butter-bomb.
In other words, it’s an absolute beauty and well-suited to both the Comté and the sweet-savoury mingle of miso. Served lightly chilled, with oven-warm buns on the side, it is a shortcut to happiness.
Miso Comté Buns
Adapted from New York Times Cooking
Makes 12–14
For the dough:
130g whole milk
3 tablespoons caster sugar
7g active dry yeast
300g flour, plus additional for rolling
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
45g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus additional for greasing
1 large egg
For the filling:
75g unsalted butter, softened
75g brown rice miso paste (I used Clearspring Organic)
200g Comté
1. First, make the dough. Add the milk to a microwave-proof measuring jug or bowl, and microwave for 30 seconds–1 minute, or until it reaches 43°C (I used a probe thermometer to gauge). Add the sugar and stir briefly to dissolve. Next, add the yeast and stir to combine. Set aside and leave for 5–10 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour and the salt, and whisk to combine. Add the cubes of butter and, using the paddle attachment, process on medium-low speed for a minute or two, until the mixture looks crumbly.
3. Next, make a well in the centre of the flour mixture. Pour in the yeast-milk mixture, and crack in one whole egg. Process on low speed using the paddle attachment for a minute or two, or until a shaggy dough forms.
4. Switch to the dough-hook attachment. Knead on low for 10–15 minutes, or until the dough looks relatively smooth and elastic, and starts forming a ball. Stop to scrape the sides and hook down with a spatula once or twice along the way. If it’s still quite shaggy and sticky, let it sit for 20 minutes before kneading for a few minutes further.
5. Grease a large bowl with butter and scrape the dough into the bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and leave to proof in a warm place for roughly 1.5 hours, or until doubled in size.
6. While the dough is proofing, prep the fillings. In a food processor, blend the softened butter and miso paste until uniform; set aside. Next, finely grate the Comté.
7. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Once the dough has proofed, gently press on it to deflate. Transfer to a lightly floured surface; lightly coat your rolling pin in flour, then roll the dough into a roughly 12” x 20” rectangle, with the wide side facing you. It should be roughly ¼” thick.
8. Next, using a rubber spatula, gently spread the miso-butter mixture evenly over the dough, going nearly up to the edges. Sprinkle the grated Comté evenly over the butter layer.
9. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Starting from the wide edge facing you, roll the dough up loosely into a log. Using a very sharp knife, cut the dough into roughly 1”-wide pieces. Transfer each bun to the tray, using your fingertips to slightly pull the dough layers apart. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to proof for an additional 20–30 minutes, or until puffed up.
10. Transfer to the oven. Bake for 18–20 minutes, or until the buns are golden-brown and risen. (If they’re browning too quickly, you can tent them with a layer of foil.) Serve while still warm.
Claire M Bullen is a professional food and travel writer and all-around lover of tasty things. You can follow her at @clairembullen. For more recipes like this, sign up to our Natural Wine Killers wine subscription - you'll receive Claire's recipe and food pairings plus expert tasting notes for three amazing wines like this one every month (or two, if you choose our bi-monthly option).
