Beetroot buns win you over at first sight with their fuchsia color. The color, moreover, is due solely to the addition of cooked beetroot and some of its cooking liquid and not to any food coloring.
I often make hamburger buns; in fact you’ll find several on the blog, such as those with potatoes, the sourdough burger buns, or even the semi-wholemeal ones. But among them all, the beetroot buns are certainly the most striking!
And while I usually sprinkle burger buns with sesame seeds, in this case I used black cumin seeds (black sesame seeds also work), which pair perfectly with the beetroot color.
Try them, you’ll like them!
- Difficulty: Easy
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 25 Minutes
- Cooking time: 29 Minutes
- Portions: 12 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 11 oz beetroot (cooked (about 2 cups))
- 1 oz beetroot juice (cooking liquid or from the package (about 2 tbsp))
- 1 oz milk
- 1 egg
- 4 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 tsp instant dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp milk (for brushing)
- to taste black cumin (or black sesame)
Steps
To prepare the beetroot buns, cut the cooked beetroot into pieces and place it in a tall container together with the beetroot juice, the milk and the egg. Purée with an immersion blender.
Put the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer together with the dry yeast and the sugar. Mix and add the beetroot and egg purée. Start the stand mixer and after a few moments add the salt. Continue to work everything until the dough begins to form. At this point pour in the oil and continue kneading until the dough is elastic and pulls away from the sides and bottom of the bowl, wrapping around the dough hook.
Shape the dough into a ball, return it to the bowl and let it rise covered in a warm place until doubled. This will take about 2.5–3 hours.
After the resting time, divide the dough into 12 equal pieces using a scale (about 3.2 oz per piece). Shape each piece into a smooth ball and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Flatten the balls with your hands.
Let rise covered for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 356°F (conventional).
After the resting time, brush the buns with milk and sprinkle them with black cumin seeds (or black sesame).
Bake at 356°F for 22–25 minutes. To check doneness, turn them over and tap the bottom with a finger; if it sounds hollow, they are ready.
Remove your beetroot buns from the oven and let them cool on a rack, or fill them while still warm.
