Coconut and condensed milk rolls (pão doce com coco)

Traditional recipes for these ridiculously delicious buns tend to be dense with flour, but here’s a slightly fluffier version for you to try. As if the condensed milk in the filling isn’t enough, you get to pour more over the end result. Use as much – or as little – at this stage as you like, and a sprinkling of shredded coconut is an optional embellishment.

Coconut and condensed milk rolls Credit: China Squirrel

• makes

  8

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  35 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 150 ml coconut flavoured evaporated milk (see Note)
• 50 g unsalted butter, chopped
• 2 eggs, beaten well
• 3 tsp instant dried yeast
• 50 ml lukewarm water
• 525 g (3½ cups) plain flour
• 80 g (⅓ cup) caster sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• shredded coconut, to serve (optional)

Filling

• 25 g unsalted butter, melted
• 100 g desiccated coconut
• 105 g (⅓ cup) sweetened condensed milk, plus extra for drizzling

Rising time 2 hours 20 minutes

Instructions

Combine the evaporated milk and butter in a saucepan and heat over low heat until butter is melted. Cool to blood temperature then add the eggs and whisk to combine well.

Meanwhile, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a small bowl and stand for 5 minutes or until foamy. Add to the milk mixture. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar and salt, then add the milk mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon to form a coarse dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface then knead for 6–7 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place in a large, lightly greased bowl, turning to coat, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 1½ hours or until doubled in size. Using your fist, punch the dough to deflate.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a rectangle about 40 cm x 24 cm. For the filling, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir with a fork to mix well. Using your fingers, scatter the mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 2 cm border around the edges. With a long side facing you, roll the dough up, Swiss roll fashion, to form a long log, pinching the seam and ends to seal. Cut the roll into 8 even slices. Arrange these over the greased base of a 22 cm springform tin, leaving a little room between each, where possible, to allow room for spreading. Cover the pan loosely with a damp tea towel and set aside in a draught-free place for about 50 minutes or until the dough has risen to the top of the tin. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C.

Bake the buns for 30 minutes or until golden and cooked through, covering the rolls with foil if they brown too quickly. Cool slightly then drizzle with extra condensed milk to taste and sprinkle with shredded coconut, if you like. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

• Coconut flavoured evaporated milk is available from some supermarkets.

• A ceramic baking dish can be used instead of a springform pan.

Photography, styling and food preparation by china squirrel.

This recipe is part of our 10 ways with sweetened condensed milk column.View previous 10 ways with… columns and recipes.

When she doesn’t have her head in the pantry cupboard, Leanne Kitchen finds time to photograph food and write cookbooks. You can view her work on her website.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.