How to make the famous Norwegian Coconut and Custard filled Buns?

Level: Easy
Total Time: 1h 45 Min

The coconut and custard-filled buns are found in any bakery and grocery shop all over Norway. Just the smell of these brings me straight back to childhood and the warmth of the atmosphere by the fireplace in our kitchen while eating my mum’s freshly baked buns. If I translate directly from Norwegian these buns are called School buns. There are several theories of why they are called so but the most common explanation is that they were one of the dishes kids learned to cook in school from around 1950 onwards.

Kids in Norway still learn to cook in school today and the subject has evolved over the years to be called “food and health”, which includes a mixture of nutrition theory, hygiene, and practical cooking techniques. 197 hours are provided to this subject over the period of primary and secondary school. I still remember basics from these classes: as how to do the dishes in the most hygienic way, or how to make a dough with yeast or a basic brown sauce 🙂 It was naturally one of my favorite subjects in school. It is a pity that food and health have no place in the French education system. Knowing how to cook and understanding nutrition and food hygiene is surely as important for public health as doing sport…

THE TIPS TO SUCCEED

1: Prefer good quality vanilla beans. If what you have is quite small and dry you may want to use two pieces.

2: Add the glazing once the buns have cooled down to avoid it from melting.

Let’s get started

Ingredients

Dough

• 550 g All-purpose flour
• 100 g Sugar
• 2 tsp Ground Cardamom
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 350 ml Milk
• 100 g Butter
• 25 g Fresh yeast

Custard sauce

• 300 ml Milk
• 70 g Sugar
• 3 pcs Egg yolk
• 20 g Maïzenna
• 1 pcs Vanilla bean

Baking and Coconut topping

• 1 pcs Egg
• 80 g Icing sugar Adjust the qty needed
• 50 g Grated coconut

How to do it?

The dough

Melt the butter and add the milk. It should become a tempered mixture around 37°.

Mix all the dry ingredients.

Add the milk/butter ingredients and let the machine turn on low speed for 1 minute.

Drop the fresh yeast in crumbles into the dough while the machine is turning and let it work for 10-15 minutes.

Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

The custard

Bring the milk slowly to boil together with half the sugar and the grains from the vanilla bean.

Mix the egg yolks with the rest of the sugar and the maïzenna in a bowl.

Pour half of the boiling milk into the egg mixture while whisking vigorously.

Pour all of it back into the milk and bring to boil while whisking vigorously for 2 minutes.

Put the custard into a clean bowl and cover with plastic in contact with the custard. Leave it to cool down in the fridge.

Baking and coconut topping

Place the dough on a flour covered table on fold it on itself a few times. Cut it into 12 pieces and roll each piece with your hand.

Place the buns on a baking covered baking tray and press them slightly flatter. Use a spoon to press the dough down in the middle and place a spoon of custard.

Let the buns rest for 30 min.

Preheat the oven at 210°c.

Put aside half of the egg white in a bowl and mix the remaining white with the egg yolk and brush it on the buns (avoid the custard).

Bake the buns for 10-15 minutes, until golden, and set to cool down in room temperature.

Prepare the glazing by mixing icing sugar with the egg white until the texture is thick but still fluid.

Place grated coconut in a soup plate.

Smear, using a spoon, the glazing onto the bun, and roll it in the grated coconut until the glazing is entierely covered.

How to serve the Coconut and custard filled buns?

The buns are as good served freshly baked as reheated after freezing. Avoid to add the glazing before freezing. Reheat at 90°c and add glazing and coconut just before to serve.