When I started this project, I thought of doing the Cantonese pineapple bun, so I Google about it and the more I Google, my plan changed. I decided to make the cute turtle melon pan that I always see at the Japanese bakery, who doesn't love cute snacks right?. After my intensive study, I realised they are actually the same kind of thing, only one is called pineapple bun and the other is called melon pan and both has nothing to do with the fruit pineapple and melon beside the shape. I understand in Hong Kong, some of those old cafe had lard in their pineapple bun recipe, but seems like its kind of difficult for me to get lard so I moved to healthier Japanese version.
In short:
Melon Pan/Pineapple Bun = Bread Dough + Cookie Dough.
So, if you know both recipe or had your own preferred recipe, you got yourself a melon pan recipe in hand.
And to make a turtle one, you just need to shape the bread dough and assemble it, just like how this lady (Hippomum) has done it here at step no.5. If you are unable to understand Chinese, let me explain to you how to assemble in the highlighted steps below. She had also done a Totoro version here.
Here is the recipe:
Serves: 10
(depend on whether you are making baby turtle or mommy turtle, if you are first time making bread I suggest you can half the recipe as assembling turtle takes time)
Ingredients
Bread Dough
200g bread flour
5g instant yeast
35g caster sugar
100ml warm water (not too hot for hand)
20g beaten egg, room temperature
1/2 tsp. salt
20g butter, room temperature
Cookie Dough
50g butter, room temperature
50g beaten egg, room temperature
70g sugar
160g cake flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp of pandan flavouring/green food colouring (optional if you want a green turtle)
Direction
1. First, you need to make the cookie dough as it require time to set in the fridge.
2. In a stand mixer (optional), whisk the butter for awhile. Add sugar and continue to whisk until pale and creamy, approx 3 min. Add egg little by little and mix well. (Optional) Add the pandan flavouring/green food colouring and mix well.
3. Shift in cake flour and baking powder and mix well until everything comes together into a dough.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and shape it into a log and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
5. Next, we can make the bread dough. Mix warm water, salt and beaten egg together.
6. In a stand mixer with dough-hook attachment, first mix together bread flour, instant yeast and sugar until even. (Kneading with hand will take at least 20 min)
7. Gradually mix in the warm water mixture and turn the speed to medium, and knead the dough until it's silky and elastic, appprox 5 min (the dough may seem slightly dry at first but should come together at the end, if not add 1 tsp more water).
8. Then add the softened butter in 3 additions. Only add the next addition when the previous one has been evenly kneaded into the dough for at least 7-8 min. The dough should be soft and moist, but pulls away cleanly from the bowl when the machine run and makes slapping sound against the side.
9. In a large bowl, form the dough into a ball and cover the bowl with plastic wrap (to keep the surface of the dough from drying out), and leave to proof in a warm place at 30C for 30-60 min or until it has doubled or tripled in size.
(You can use the proof function on your home oven by first preheat the oven to the lowest setting 30C/40C then turn it off 15 minutes before you put in the bowl of dough. Place 2 cups of recently boiled hot water into the oven, next to the dough to ensure the bread dough is not dry up. Ensure the oven door is closed during the whole proofing process.)
10. Once proofed, coat your finger in flour and poke the dough. If the hole stays, it's ready. If the dough springs back, it needs to proof more. If the dough shrinks, it is over proofed.
11. Finally, assemble the melon pan, in a turtle shape if you want. I learn this from this blogger hippomum.
12. Place the dough onto a working surface and punch out the air with your palm. Divide it into 10 equal pieces using a knife.
To make turtle shape:
For each piece, cut out 4g (head), 6g (divide into 4 legs and one tail) and the rest for body. Quickly form them into balls. Place them on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and rest for 15 minutes.
13. Take out the cookie dough and cut them into 10 pieces and shape them into balls. One at a time, roll out the cookie dough between two layers of plastic wrap, place the turtle body in the center and enclose it in the cookie dough. With a scraper or knife, cut the criss-cross pattern on the cookie dough. Finally glue the head, legs and tail onto the body (use a bit of water if necessary).
Optional: You can sprinkle some sugar on the cookie dough for better flavour.
(The pastry crust softens very easily, so work with only 1 or 2 portions at a time, keeping the remaining pastry crust refrigerated.)
14. Place them on lined baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap and leave to proof in a warm place at 30C for 20-30 min. (you can use the proof function on your home oven as above)
15. Bake at 180C for 10-12 minutes. (Depending on the heat of the oven, cooking time may differ). Place them on a wire rack to cool. Ready!!!
Enjoy the fun baking process!!! Its ok to fail, bread is always hard to make, you need lots of failure to be successful, or maybe you are baking genius.
I still want to study more on how to make bread extremely moist in the mouth, if you can teach me, please do share it on my facebook page.
Sharing some illustration of my turtle toy and my turtle melon pan.
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