Purple Sweet Potato Stuffed Buns

This recipe is too beautiful not to post. I love cooking with the color purple because it can be rare in our daily ingredients. I was experimenting with making a stuffed bun for purposes of portability since I have to commute to work once again. These buns are perfect for transporting lunch with no mess. The nutrient-packed sweet potatoes in the filling are an added bonus.

Ingredients

Buns

2 cups water, warm
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. active dry yeast
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. salt

Filling

1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 Tbsp. purple onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup adzuki beans, cooked
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

To make the buns

Dissolve sugar in water
Add yeast to water and set aside to bloom
Once bloomed, add flours and salt in the same bowl and mix
Mix until well-combined
Let dough sit in bowl with damp towel on top to rise for 1-3 hours
With a damp hand, pull dough and fold over 4-5 times to form a dough mass
Form dough into a ball and let sit in bowl with damp towel to rise for another 1-3 hours

To make the filling

Steam sweet potato for 15 minutes or until fork-tender
1. I use a steam basket over a pot of boiling water to steam
Remove sweet potato from steamer and mash in a medium bowl
Add onion, garlic, beans, and spices
Mix to incorporate
Let mixture cool slightly for ease of assembly

To assemble

Flour a kitchen surface (counter or cutting board) to roll out dough
Divide dough into 6-8 pieces (less pieces will yield larger buns)
Flour a rolling pin or your hands to flatten dough pieces to ½ inch thick discs
Add filling to middle of buns and seal filling inside
1. I do not have a precise technique for this, but I usually fold opposite ends of the discs on top of each other until a sphere is formed
Place buns on parchment sheet as oven preheats to 400°F
Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes or until buns are golden brown
Let rest for 10 minutes after taking buns out of oven
Serve and enjoy