Tangzhong Cat Buns

 I have a breads class coming in a couple weeks. And with any skill its best to practice. 

Since I got my new Kim Joy cookbook, I decided to try the Tanzhong method of bread making. This involves making a roux, sort of. Typically when I think of a roux I think of butter and flour. But in this case, it involves a water flour paste that you cook over the stove, and then add it to the dough mixture. This creates a fluffier softer texture that lasts longer, according to the author, Kim Joy. 

And they are cute - cat buns! She did such adorable stuff in the Great British Baking Show that I really wanted to learn the methods. 

So here we are, trying out the method on what is similar to a milk roll. If you've ever had those you will know they are delicious!

 

Here is the recipe. Even the cookbook is adorable with little drawn cats playing with the bread crumbs. 

Page 2, showing the method for rolling the buns and making ears. 

Here is my attempt at getting the ears on to the cats. They kept sliding off the heads, looking more like horns on bugs than ears on cats. Here's hoping!

I think they turned out pretty cute. I used food color gel mixed with gin and a toothpick to draw on the eyes, toes, and whiskers. Gonna be hard to dig in but I'll give it a try.