Cream cheese and raspberry jam brioche buns

Method

To make the brioche

1. Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the water and stir in the yeast and a tablespoon of sugar. Leave it for 5–10 minutes until it becomes foamy.
2. Add the remaining sugar, eggs, flour and salt to the bowl.
3. Turn the mixer on low and combine until it forms a thick, slightly sticky dough. Mix this dough for about 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten.
4. Add in the butter, a cube or two at a time, ensuring each one has been incorporated before the next addition. Turn the mixer on medium and keep it mixing until the sticky dough starts to come together and pull away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
5. For the best brioche crumb, keep the dough mixing for at least 15 minutes. Proper gluten development will allow you to stretch the dough so thin you can almost see through it.
6. Pull the dough out of the bowl onto a kitchen counter and form it into 100g individual balls.
7. Let the shaped dough rise in a warm spot until it has doubled in size (this will take about 2 hours, depending on the room temperature).
8. Preheat the oven to 200°C, then gently whisk an egg in a small bowl. Brush the tops of the dough with the egg wash.
9. Bake the brioche for 10–12 minutes, until it has turned a deep, golden brown. Once baked, it should sound hollow when tapped.
10. Allow the bread to cool before decorating.

To make the cream cheese frosting

1. Combine the butter and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer (or use an electric mixer) and beat until it’s creamy, thoroughly combined and lump-free.
2. Add the vanilla and stir well to combine.
3. With the mixer on low, gradually add the icing sugar, until completely combined.

To decorate

1. Cut a deep hole at the top of the brioche bun (like on a fairy cake). It should be deep enough to hold a good amount of jam.
2. Pipe the jam just shy of the top of the bun, then pipe on the cream cheese topping using a nozzle.
3. Decorate with fresh raspberries.