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    Home » Recipes » Dessert

    Published: Jul 12, 2022 · Updated: Dec 9, 2024 by Joanne

    Ube Mini Buns with Ube Cream Sauce

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase an item, Sees Food, Will Travel will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. See terms and conditions for details.

    A trip to the Czech Republic inspired this ube dessert recipe with mini buns and cream sauce. In Czech, the dessert can also be called buchtičky s krémem or mini buns in cream. I adjusted this dessert recipe to include ube (Filipino purple yam) halaya, and this recipe is the result! If you love sweet comfort food and ube, I suggest you try this recipe!

    A side view of a gray plate with ube mini buns and ube cream sauce next to pink towel

    Update Disclosure: This post has been updated for one or more of the following reasons: easier reading, updated photos, clearer instructions, and just plain ol' improvements to the recipe (as noted).

    Jump to:
    • What is Ube Halaya and How to Get It
    • Ingredients
    • Recipe Tips
    • How to Make Ube Mini Buns
    • How to Serve
    • Ube Mini Buns with Ube Sauce Recipe
    • Have You Tried This Recipe?

    What is Ube Halaya and How to Get It

    Ube halaya is a mix of sugar, butter, and ube flesh. You could eat halayang ube on its own as a dessert or use it as a spread on Filipino baked goods such as pandesal. The most authentic versions of halaya would also consist of coconut milk. But I have to settle for jarred ube halaya because I have to order them online. You can also find ube halaya in Asian stores, specifically Filipino ones.

    Ingredients

    You'll need the following for this recipe:

    • Active Dry Yeast
    • Granulated Sugar 
    • Milk
    • Coconut Milk
    • All-Purpose Flour
    • Unsalted Butter
    • Eggs
    • Salt
    • Cornstarch
    • Ube Halaya
    • Ube Extract

    Recipe Tips

    • Don't Worry About Uniformity: The mini buns will come out in different shapes and size. It's part of the rustic look!
    • Don't Boil Milk: When making ube cream, heat the milk but do not boil it. There is a bigger chance that excessive heat will cook the egg yolks when you try to temper the milk into the egg yolk mixture.
    • Thin the Cream: If you think the cream sauce is too thick, you can add some milk one tablespoon at a time to thin out the sauce.

    How to Make Ube Mini Buns

    Glass bowl with activated yeast
    Sifted flour in the background with a sieve in the foreground
    Wet and dry ingredients for ube mini buns in one bowl
    Rolled and flattened pieces of proofed dough next to a rolling pin
    Ube halaya on ube bun dough
    Strips of dough in a glass baking dish
    Silicone brush with leavened bread dough in a glass baking dish
    Bake ube mini buns

    Making this dessert takes time, so make sure you have carved out at least three hours from your day for this recipe. Here are the steps:

    1. Bloom the yeast in milk and sugar. Sift flour, sugar and salt in a separate bowl then mix them and set it aside.
    2. Add the eggs, melted butter to the yeast and pour into the dry ingredients.
    3. Mix until you get a dough and knead to develop gluten.
    4. Cover and proof it for one hour until doubled in size.
    5. Roll out the dough on a work surface, add the ube halaya, and create long rolled strips.
    6. Lay them out on a prepared baking dish. Cover and proof for twenty minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
    7. Use a pastry cutter to make mini buns by perforating the dough into small squares.
    8. Bake the buns for about twenty to twenty-five minutes. Allow to cool completely.

    How to Make Ube Cream Sauce

    Mixed ube sauce in a pot
    Cooked cream sauce in a glass bowl
    Ube extract in cream sauce in glass bowl
    Ube sauce in glass bowl
    1. Whisk egg yolks, cornstarch, and sugar in a bowl until all the ingredients are incorporated.
    2. Add coconut milk and milk to a medium pot, then mix them together.
    3. Place on low heat and heat the pot until it just starts to steam. 
    4. Slowly add one-third of the milk to the egg yolk bowl as you whisk. Repeat these steps until you use up all the milk.
    5. Pour the combined ingredients back into the pot and place on low heat to thicken.
    6. Whisk the liquid as it heats up and watch carefully as it thickens.
    7. Strain into a bowl and add the butter. Mix it all together until the butter has disappeared.
    8. Add the ube extract and mix until the cream sauce is a uniform purple color.

    How to Serve

    Pull apart some buns in the baking dish and place them on a plate. I like mixing the shapes and sizes of the buns. But play around with what you have. You probably ended up with a lot of mini buns!

    Gray plate with ube mini buns and a spoon

    I dress these ube mini buns with the sauce in two different, but simple ways. The first way would be adding sauce first, then placing the mini buns on top or placing the buns first, then adding the sauce on top of the buns. Either way, this ube dessert is creamy and comforting!

    A side view of a gray plate with ube mini buns and ube cream sauce next to pink towel

    Ube Mini Buns with Ube Sauce Recipe

    This ube dessert recipe inspired by a Czech dessert called buchtičky s krémem that means buns in cream sauce. I added ube halaya inside the buns and then used ube extract in the cream sauce. It's perfect for a cozy night when you are craving comfort food!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins
    Cook Time 25 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 55 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine Filipino, Fusion
    Servings 4 people
    Calories 914 kcal
    Disclosure

    The equipment and ingredients sections contain affiliate links to products I love to use as well as items that I personally believe make this recipe the best version of itself.

    Ingredients
     
     

    Ube Mini Buns

    • 1 tablespoon + ¾ teaspoon active dry yeast
    • ½ cup granulated sugar 1 tablespoon reserved for yeast blooming
    • ½ cup milk
    • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
    • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted 1½ tablespoon reserved for brushing
    • 1 egg
    • 1 egg yolk
    • ⅛ teaspoon salt
    • ½ cup ube halaya for filling

    Ube Cream Sauce

    • ⅔ cup coconut milk
    • 1¼ cups milk
    • ½ cup sugar
    • 1½ tablespoon butter
    • ¼ cup cornstarch
    • 4 egg yolks
    • ¼ teaspoon + ⅛ teaspoon ube extract use more if preferred

    Instructions
     

    Make Buns

    • Add active dry yeast, 1 tablespoon sugar, and warm milk. Mix well. Cover and set aside to bloom for ten minutes.
      Glass bowl with activated yeast
    • In a big bowl sift and add flour, remaining sugar, and salt.
      Sifted flour in the background with a sieve in the foreground
    • When the yeast is bubbly and frothy, add egg plus one egg yolk, and melted butter. Mix together then pour into the bowl of dry ingredients.
      Wet and dry ingredients for ube mini buns in one bowl
    • Using an electric mixer with dough hooks, mix and knead the dough for 8 mins until it passes windowpane test. Cover and set aside for 1 hour or until double in size.
      Covered dough for proofing in a glass bowl
    • Once proofed, punch the air out of dough and split in two equal halves. Roll out the dough pieces to a similar shape and size of your baking dish.
      Rolled and flattened pieces of proofed dough next to a rolling pin
    • On one flat piece of dough, top with ube halaya. Cover the ube halaya topping with the second piece. Pinch the edges closed.
      Ube halaya on ube bun dough
    • Make thin strips by slicing along the long side of the rectangle dough. Pinch the edges of the strips closed then gently roll each one under your palms.
      Piece of ube strip
    • Place the strips next to each other in a baking dish.
      Strips of dough in a glass baking dish
    • Use a pastry cutter to cut slice down the width of the dough strips. You should end up with squares of dough. Cover and proof for 20 minutes. Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F)
      Silicone brush with leavened bread dough in a glass baking dish
    • Once second proof is done, brush with melted butter. Bake for 20 - 30 minutes until the tops are nice and golden brown. Remove and set aside to cool.
      Bake ube mini buns

    Make Ube Sauce

    • In a bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch. Set aside.
    • In a pot, add milk and coconut milk. Mix then place on the stove on low heat until it starts to steam. Remove from the heat.
      Mixed ube sauce in a pot
    • Add one third of the milk mix to the egg yolk mix and mix well. Repeat this step until you use the remaining two thirds of the steamed milk.
    • Add the combined sauce back into the pot and place on low heat to thicken. Whisk as it thickens and look for a consistency that is looser than a pudding. Remove from the heat as you continue to whisk to prevent clumps. Strain to a bowl and add the butter. Mix it all together until the butter has melted and disappeared.
      Cooked cream sauce in a glass bowl
    • Add the ube extract. Whisk until you get one solid color. Add more extract if you prefer.
      Ube sauce in glass bowl

    Assembly

    • Pull apart the ube buns and put them on a plate. Then add some sauce onto the plate. Eat with a spoon. Enjoy!
      Gray plate with ube mini buns and a spoon

    Nutrition

    Calories: 914kcalCarbohydrates: 115gProtein: 18gFat: 44gSaturated Fat: 27gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 361mgSodium: 182mgPotassium: 380mgFiber: 2gSugar: 50gVitamin A: 1306IUVitamin C: 0.4mgCalcium: 192mgIron: 6mg
    Disclaimer: Nutritional values were calculated with the Spoonacular Food API and should be used for informational purposes only.
    Keyword filipino dessert, filled buns, ube

    Have You Tried This Recipe?

    Simply rate the recipe by clicking on the ⭐️s on the recipe card. Have something to say? Please leave me a comment down below telling me what you think of this recipe.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Christina says

      August 17, 2022 at 7:06 pm

      Why is the cream sauce purple ?

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        August 19, 2022 at 4:42 am

        The purple color comes from the ube extract. Ube is a purple yam from the Philippines. I added the extract to add a colorful (and tasteful) twist to these mini buns recipe!

        Reply
    2. Abby says

      December 05, 2024 at 12:22 pm

      Do you use butter when making the ube sauce?

      I see it in the ingredients list to make the sauce but I don’t see it in the steps to make the sauce.

      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        December 09, 2024 at 3:15 pm

        Hi Abby, thanks for catching that! I listed it in the blog post steps, but not the recipe card 🤦🏻‍♀️ The recipe card has now been updated with the butter in the ube sauce directions (#4).

        Reply
    3. Abigail says

      January 16, 2025 at 5:23 am

      Hi Joannne!! Thank you for this recipe— I tried the sauce and it is amazing!!

      How long does the sauce last without refrigeration?

      Thanks!!
      Abigail

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        January 21, 2025 at 11:10 pm

        Hi Abigail! So glad you liked this recipe 🤗 The cream has milk in it so I would only let it sit out for about an hour until it has to be refrigerated. Hope this helps!

        Reply
    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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