Cheddar Swirl Buns

One day, Howard and I came upon a bagel bakery that also sold other baked goods. Browsing up and down the small aisles, we came upon cheese buns. Howard gave me that look, you know the one when the other person wants to buy something? He wanted to buy the cheese buns. Instead, we walked over to the grocery store and bought cheddar. I convinced him that I knew of a great recipe and I'd make it for him at home.

What I had in mine were the Smitten Kitchen cheddar swirl breakfast buns. I remember having them at the blogger brunch years before and have been waiting for a good time to make them. I guess this was as good as any other time. I also want to make that apple pie from the brunch one day!

I didn't start out very well, as I opened a package of gelatin instead of yeast. Oops!

Cheddar Swirl Buns
Recipe adapted from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
(Makes 12 buns)

3 cups of all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon of salt
Black pepper
1 tablespoon of sugar
2 1/4 teaspoon of instant yeast
1 cup of milk
4 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter
1/2 cup of grated white onion
1 1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese
2 teaspoons of minced fresh dill (I omitted this)
1/4 teaspoons of salt
Black pepper

1. Whisk the flour, salt, pepper, and sugar in a bowl. Set aside.
2. In your stand mixer, whisk the yeast with the milk until it dissolves. Add in the dry ingredients and melted butter. 
3. Using the dough hook, mix on low for about 6 minutes.
4. Place the dough in a covered bowl and let it rest for 2 hours.
5. Make the filling by mixing the onion, cheese, (dill if using), salt, and pepper together.
6. Scoop the dough out and roll out into a 12-by-16 rectangle on a floured surface (or baking pan in my case).
7. Spread the filling over the rectangle dough and roll into a log.
8. Use a sharp knife to cut the log into twelve 1-inch bun.
9. Line the bottom of a baking pan and arrange the twelve buns, with some space in between them. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for another two hours.
10. Preheat your oven to 350°F, bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the tops are golden and the cheese is bubbling. Serve right away!

You want to know what else is wonderful from making this recipe? Your place will smell amazing. Savoury cheese and onion wafts in and out of your kitchen, making your stomach grumble with hunger.

Somebody forgot to brush the tops with melted butter. Another oops! If you've been counting, that's two mistakes (where oh where is my memory going). So much for the golden colour, but the cheese was bubbling! So the buns were looking pale, but they still tasted great.

We were able to keep these in the fridge and warm them up during the the week. Just so you know, we didn't gobble all twelve buns in one sitting. That should be made clear. Although it was tempting to reach for another one, especially when they were fresh from the oven. We would suggest making these for a brunch or group gathering so they can all be eaten at once.

Our Favourite Cookbooks of the Year

The third time is quite the charm! We're very excited to share with you our favourite cookbooks from this year. There are some stellar new books for bakers and a few outstanding cookbooks from the food blogging community. If you're looking for gift ideas for bakers, cooks, or that friend that instagrams their food, consider these:

Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients
By Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito
Photographs by Tina Rupp
Hardcover, 224 pages
Published by Stewart, Tabori and Chang
ISBN 9781584799856

Every time they come out with a new cookbook, we can't help thinking about our visit to their bakery. Their desserts are that good. They're memorable. They're delicious. You're probably familiar with them now that Williams-Sonoma carries a lot of their products. But do pick up their books and try baking from scratch! What are the ten featured ingredients in this book? Peanut Butter, Lemon and Lime, Caramel, Booze, Pumpkin, Malted Milk Powder, Cinnamon, Cheese, Chocolate, and Banana. It's highly likely that you love more than seven of these ingredients. This book has a different design from their previous two, but you'll love the infographics that start each chapter!

Bouchon Bakery
By Thomas Keller and Sebastien Rouxel, with Susie Heller, Matthew McDonald, Michael Ruhlman, and Amy Vogler
Photographs by Deborah Jones
Hardcover, 400 pages
Published by Artisan
ISBN 9781579654351

Who doesn't get distracted walking by a Bouchon bakery case? The gigantic-sized cookies, macarons, éclairs, cupcakes, financiers, bouchons, madelines, tarts, and croissants! And what about the bread they use in the restaurants? They're all in this book. Read the helpful tips and create your own memories at home.

La Tartine Gourmande: Recipes for An Inspired Life
By Béatrice Peltre
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published by Roost Books
ISBN 9781590307625

Wow. The photographs in this cookbook are stunning. Just stunning! You may know Béatrice from her blog by the same name, La Tartine Gourmande. This cookbook is such a treat to see, flip through it and you'll get it. Everything Béatrice has captured for us to see is just charming, bright, and fresh.

Macarons: Authentic French Cookie Recipes from the Macaron Cafe
By Cecile Cannone
Paperback, 144 pages
Published by Ulysses Press
ISBN 9781569758205

Having visited Macaron Cafe in NYC, we placed this book on our holiday wishlist last year. Luckily our Secret Santa did deliver and we've made three batches of macarons following the recipe in this book. They've all turned out nicely and it's such a relief to be able to make macarons at home now! The instructions are clear and easy to follow. There are lots of recipes for the fillings and decoration ideas. It's an inspiring book for all!

One Girl Cookies: Recipes for Cakes, Cupcakes, Whoopie Pies, and Cookies from Brooklyn's Beloved Bakery
By Dawn Casale and David Crofton
Photographs by Iain Bagwell
Hardcover, 160 pages
Published by Clarkson Potter
ISBN 9780307720481

The cover had us at whoopie pies. But there's more inside! Orange Butter Drops with Shredded Coconut, Chocolate Coconut Macaroons, Chocolate Chip Pistachio Pound Cake, Banana Whoopie Pies with Dulce de Leche Filling and Milk Pie. We love all of these updated classics! It's about time that we pay them a visit on our next trip to New York!

Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones: 90 Recipes for Making Your Own Ice Cream and Frozen Treats from Bi-Rite Creamery
By Kris Hoogerhyde, Anne Walker, and Dabney Gough
Photography by Paige Green
Hardcover, 224 pages
Published by Ten Speed Press
ISBN 9781607741848

Ice cream! We have not made ice cream yet, but we have good inspiration to now. This puts getting an ice cream machine on the top of our list. The book will help you master the basic techniques like making the base for the ice cream, sugar cones, sorbet, granita, ice pops, ice cream cakes, ice cream pie, and ice cream sandwiches. There are step-by-step photos and tips interspersed between the instructions. Trust us, you'll be craving for their ice cream, even in the middle of winter.

Tartine: The Boxed Set
By Elisabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson
Photographs by France Ruffenach and Eric Wolfinger
Hardcover, 528 pages
Published by Chronicle Books
ISBN 9781452107028

A serious addition to your bookshelves! This is a great box set for those who love to bake. Tartine offers sweet treats and Tartine Bread is famous for their bread in San Francisco. These cookbooks will make you gain a whole new level of respect for pastry chefs and bread bakers. The clear instructions are filled with details, cups and weight measurements are both included, and each recipe includes carefully written kitchen notes with practical advice. Both books are designed with clean, simple lines. The burlap-covered box case adds such charm!

The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook
By Lindsay Landis
Hardcover, 160 pages
Published by Quirk Books
ISBN 9781594745645

If you're thinking that her name is familiar, it's probably because Lindsay is the blogger of Love and Olive Oil. She's come up with the perfect, egg-free cookie dough that tastes great and is easy to make. We were scratching our heads and wondering how a whole cookbook could  possibly feature cookie dough, we were pleasantly surprised. The book features treats such as Cooke Dough Crème Brûlée, Cookie Dough Whoope Pies, Malted Cookie Dough Milkshakes, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream, Deep-Fried Cookie Dough Fritters, Cookie Dough Dessert Pizza, and Cookie Dough-Stuffed Dark Chocolate Cupcakes. Oh there's more, but you're probably drooling already. We love the design of the book and Lindsay's photography knocks it out of the park. We're also quite excited to learn that Lindsay's next book, Breakfast For Dinner, will be out next year!

The Seasonal Baker: Easy Recipes from My Home Kitchen to Make Year-Round
By John Barricelli
Photographs by Ben Fink
Hardcover, 288 pages
Published by Clarkson Potter
ISBN 9780307951878

A follow-up to The SoNo Baking Company Cookbook (we featured it in our first list), this one makes a great companion. There are more stories about John and his family, more mouth-watering recipes, and offers savory recipes as well. This book focuses and explains the diversity of fruits and vegetables - when to buy them and how to prepare and store them. Some of the recipes I've already tagged for trying are Brioche French Toast with Vanilla Filling, Caramel-Apple Tart, Lemon Soufflé Tartlets, Asparagus Tart with Herbed Béchamel and Gruyère, and the Ratatouille Hand Pies.

The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
By Deb Perelman
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published by Appetite
ISBN 9780449015797

You read Deb's blog, don't you? If there were courses in school about food bloggers, Smitten Kitchen would be on a required reading list. What you'll love is her no fuss approach to food and photography. Cooking from her tiny Manhattan kitchen, she's never been a chef, restaurant owner, or even a waitress, but here we are, in love with her recipes!

Click on the year to view our previous lists: 2010, 2011.

Blogger Brunch with Smitten Kitchen

How many of you would wake up early on a Saturday morning and head into your office?
I'm guessing there's no show of hands.

But what if I told you that brunch would be served and you would get to meet Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen? And it wouldn't just be a meet-and-greet, you would get to have brunch with her, ask her any question, and have a copy of her cookbook signed? Yes, that early morning is starting to look enticing....

I was one of the lucky handful of bloggers invited to a brunch at Random House of Canada Limited. Even though I work there, I was sent an official invitation to attend as a blogger! Trust me, I was over the moon when I received it and quickly RSVPed with fan girl enthusiasm.

I had both my work and guest hats on. Before the day of the brunch, my colleague asked me to make some Smitten Kitchen items from the cookbook. We each called dibs on a recipe, made it, and brought it in for the brunch buffet.

This was truly a Smitten Kitchen brunch! And when you're with bloggers, you know that no one is touching the food until photos were taken.

Monique from the production department made these amazing Cheddar Swirl Breakfast Buns. Who doesn't like cheese? Who doesn't like swirl buns? As Deb writes on page 49 of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, these "are dangerous, dangerous buns."

I agree, they are highly addictive.

Mike from sales really outshone us all with Mom's Apple Cake (page 239 of the cookbook). The cake was delicious and I probably could have eaten a couple more slices.

Our incredible host and organize, Lindsey, of the online marketing department treated us with Big Cluster Maple Granola (page 26).

Poor Deb! I don't think she got many bites in during all the conversations: we learn which appliances are kept in her tiny kitchen - just four major ones: a food processor, a stand mixer, a blender, and an emulsion blender. It's all about priorities when there's limited space! She recounts that she did not like Brussel sprouts as a child, but has grown to love them now. However, she still doesn't eat fish! And her favourite brunch dishes were all the ones we made. ;)

After we had our fill of the food, Deb was busy signing copies of her book for us!

Deb and Syl! Yay!!!

I would be wrong not to thank my fellow colleagues who also took time out of their busy weekends for this event. Many thanks to Lindsey, Monique, Sheila, and Michael for planning, organizing, and hosting such a lovely brunch.

Are you wondering what I made for the blogger brunch? Brownie Roll-Out Cookies (page 210 of the cookbook)!

They are ridiculously easy to make. The dough is so pliable and easy to work with and great at holding their shape after you cut them.

It's no secret, but these make such good ice-cream sandwich cookies! So if you're looking to make your own at home, make these cookies! They're soft and chewy and are great milk-dunking cookies.

The best part was when Deb saw them, asked who made them, and was overjoyed that they were similar in shape to her's. Then she proceeded to snap a photo, which I captured. I'm such a dork.

Oh, one more thing. I don't know if you're interested, but I have a signed copy of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook to give away. Interested in winning it?

Giveaway contest regulations and conditions:

• The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook giveaway contest is open on Sunday, November 18, 2012 until Sunday, November 25, 2012. Entries submitted after 12 midnight EST on Sunday, November 25, 2012 will not be considered.
• To enter, leave a comment below telling me which Smitten Kitchen recipe you would like to make.
• A winner will be randomly chosen and announced here on A Baked Creation.
• Please leave an e-mail address or twitter handle, in the case that you are the winner, we will be able to contact you.
• This contest is available to residents of Canada and the U.S.A. only!
• There will be one winner. The winner will be chosen in a random draw. The winner will receive a signed copy of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman. If the winner does not respond with an adequate mailing address in a week, their prize is forfeited and a new winner will be chosen. Best of luck!
• UPDATE: A winner has been chosen and contacted. Congratulations to Stephanie! Thank you to everyone who entered our giveaway!