Lekváros bukta
Lekváros bukta: soft pull-apart yeast buns filled with plum jam
Grandmothers across Hungary bake a tray of bukta on a Sunday afternoon, and school bakeries sell them for the walk home: soft, milky yeast buns, each folded around a spoon of thick plum butter and baked so close together that they rise into one another. Pulled apart, the sides stay tender and pale while the tops shine golden, and the dark, tart plum filling balances the sweet dough. Serve them warm with a glass of cold milk or cocoa. The usual slip is using runny jam, which bubbles out and burns on the tray; it must be a thick lekvár that holds its shape on a spoon. Chef's tip: brush each bun with melted butter before it goes into the tin, so the buns rise together but still pull apart neatly.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 cup milklukewarm
- 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar
- 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 lemonzest only
- 2 ⅛ oz unsalted buttersoftened
For filling and finishing
- 1 ⅜ oz unsalted buttermelted
- 2 tbsp icing sugar (optional)for dusting
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Stir the ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast and a teaspoon of the ¼ oz caster sugar into the 1 cup milk and leave for 5 minutes, until it froths.
5 minStep 2: Mix the 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour, the rest of the 1 ⅞ oz caster sugar, the ½ tsp salt and the 1 lemon zest in a bowl. Add the yeasty milk and the 2 egg yolks and knead for 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
10 minStep 3: Knead in the soft 2 ⅛ oz unsalted butter a little at a time until the dough is glossy and comes away from the bowl. Cover and leave in a warm place for 1 hour, until doubled.
60 minStep 4: Knock back the dough and roll it out on a floured surface into a 36 × 27 cm rectangle. Cut into 12 squares of 9 cm.
6 minStep 5: Put a heaped teaspoon of 9 oz thick plum butter (szilvalekvár) in the centre of each square. Fold the corners to the middle and pinch the seams firmly so no jam can escape.
10 minStep 6: Brush each bun all over with the ⅞ oz unsalted butter and set them seam-side down, snugly side by side, in a buttered 20 × 30 cm tin. Cover and rise for 25 minutes, until puffy.
25 minStep 7: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Brush the tops with the rest of the 0.6 oz unsalted butter and bake for 25–30 minutes, until deep golden and hollow-sounding when tapped underneath.
30 minStep 8: Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then dust with 2 tbsp icing sugar and pull apart to serve.
10 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 260 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 44 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does lekváros bukta take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 90 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of milk?
- Oat, soy or almond milk, same amount (use unsweetened for savoury dishes).
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
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