Blueberry Cheesecake Brioche Buns

The recipe today is for blueberry cheesecake brioche buns which are fluffy brioche buns filled with cheesecake filling, blueberry jam, and a crumble topping. These are a bit of a project to make, but it’s honestly one of the best things I’ve baked this year and they are well worth the effort!

These turn out almost like a danish, but with a soft, pillowy bread dough as the base. While I’m calling them brioche because of the butter and milk in the dough, the base dough comes together much faster than a traditional brioche bun. Let’s get to it!

How to Make Blueberry Cheesecake Brioche Buns

Starting out with the dough, this recipe uses pretty simple ingredients to make the base for the buns. I like to add some honey to the dough along with sugar, giving the flavor of the buns just a little something extra. We’re also using lots of softened butter and milk here to create a very soft, flavorful dough.

I like to bloom my yeast first in a mixture of the honey, milk, and sugar just to make sure everything is alive and well. It should look slightly bubbly and puffy after letting the mixture sit for a few minutes. Then it’s time to stir in the butter with the yeast mixture until you have a lumpy mix.

Then add in the flour, starting on the lower amount, along with salt. Mix the dough in a stand mixer until things are well combined and a dough has formed. You want the dough to be very soft, but it should pull away from the sides of the bowl while sticking slightly to the bottom of the bowl as it kneads. Add more flour as needed here.

Once everything is well mixed and kneaded, you want to let the dough rise. I like to snap a photo to easily see the change in the dough as it rests- you can see my before and after below.

For the crumble topping, we’re mixing together melted butter with warm spices, salt, sugar, and flour until a soft crumble forms. Cover this mixture and set it aside.

Once the dough has risen, divide the dough into 8 even sections and roll each section into a round bun. Gently press each bun in the center to create a well for the filling. The cheesecake filling is a super simple cream cheese mixture, and you can fill each bun generously with it to start.

Then add the blueberry jam on top, or any jam you prefer here, and top each bun generously with the crumble topping. I like to gently press the crumble into the filling to help it stick as it bakes.

Finally it’s off to the oven to bake these buns until they are lightly golden brown all over and baked through. The filling may spill over the sides slightly as the buns rise, but that’s ok- I kind of like the messy look of these once baked.

These are seriously indulgent and taste amazing- they take a little time and a few extra dishes to pull together, but it’s the perfect way to make your house feel like a coffee shop any day of the week. Hope you guys enjoy!

Tips & Tricks for Blueberry Cheesecake Brioche Buns

Here are my tips to help along the way to the perfect blueberry cheesecake buns!

• Do I need a stand mixer for this dough? No, you can mix and knead the dough by hand, but it will take a little more time and energy to pull together. I find it’s much easier in a mixer if you have one!
• How do I know when I’ve added enough flour to the dough? You want the dough to remain very soft and slightly tacky, but it should pull away from the sides of the bowl. If you’re using a stand mixer, you may find that the dough still sticks slightly to the bottom of the bowl as it kneads.
• Do I have to use the crumble topping? No, you can skip it but I think it’s a perfect addition to these buns and I highly recommend you keep it.
• Can I use another flavor of jam? Yes, you can use any type of jam you prefer for these buns. I love blueberry here, but raspberry, cherry, or strawberry would also be great options!
• How do I know when the dough is finished rising? The dough should be just short of doubled in size, and it should spring back when you poke it. I like to take a picture of the dough before rising so I can easily reference how much it’s grown.
• How do I shape the dough? You can gently press each dough ball in the center to create a well for the filling. It may take a little bit of working, but I typically just use my hands to shape the buns carefully.
• How do I know when the buns are finished baking? They should puff significantly as they bake, and they should be golden brown all over.
• I’m at about 5,000 ft above sea level, and I find that most people who live between about 3,000-7,000 ft. above sea level do not need to make any adjustments to my recipes.

Enjoy!

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Blueberry Cheesecake Brioche Buns

Servings 8 buns

Ingredients

For the buns:

• 3/4 cup water
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tbs. sugar
• 2 tbs. honey
• 5 tbs. butter
• 2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast 1 packet
• 4- 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 tsp. salt

For the filling:

• 8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup blueberry preserves

For the crumble:

• 3 tbs. sugar
• 3 tbs. brown sugar
• 1 tbs. cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 tbs butter

Instructions

For the buns:

1. In a microwave safe bowl, heat the water, milk, sugar, honey, and 1 tbs. butter in the microwave until it reaches 110-115 degrees on an instant read thermometer. Stir in the active dry yeast, and set aside to bloom for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbly and foamy.
2. Transfer the yeast mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer along with the remaining butter and stir together until the butter is distributed- this mixture will be lumpy at this stage. Add in 4 cups of flour and the salt, and begin to knead until a dough forms.
3. Knead the dough together until it’s pulling away from the sides and becomes smooth and stretchy, adding more flour as needed. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky at the bottom of the bowl when you stop adding flour.
4. Knead either in the mixer or by hand until the dough is elastic. By hand, this will take about 10 minutes, and by mixer it should take about 5. The dough may still be slightly lumpy, but should spring back when you touch it.
5. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled large bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise by about 1/3 in size, which takes about 30 minutes for me, but keep an eye on your dough size to avoid over-proofing- I like to snap a quick picture with my phone so I can easily see how much the dough has grown.
6. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
7. Once the dough has risen, divide it into 8 even pieces and roll each piece into a ball. I recommend forming the dough on an un-floured surface, allowing the tension to help seal any seams in the dough. Place the dough evenly spaced on your prepared baking sheet. Cover the dough and let it rest for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

For the filling:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract and set this mixture aside.
2. Once the dough balls have rested, press the centers of the dough to make an indent. You don’t want to press through the dough entirely, but you want to make a wide indent into each dough ball for your filling.
3. Spoon about 1-2 tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into each indent, and then top each bun with a generous dollop of blueberry preserves.

For the crumb:

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, salt, and flour until well combined. In a small microwave safe bowl, melt the butter. While the butter is still warm, use a fork to mix the melted butter into the dry mixture until well combined and a soft crumb forms. Generously top each bun with the crumble topping.
2. Bake the buns for 15-18 minutes, or until the buns are golden brown around the edges and baked through. Cool completely before serving.

Nicole Hampton

Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!