Raisin Bonnets

     Raisin bonnets are my favorite thing to buy from The French Baker. Always freshly baked and always available, these pillowy soft gems rarely last a day in our house. With a bit of nostalgia I tried recreating them at home. 

     I used my own raisin bread recipe which uses the sponge and dough method. Good thing there was enough raisins to make a batch. Since summer is in full swing, it didn't take long at all to have the dough reach its full potential and get ready for the warm oven. All it took was 15 minutes in the oven and voila! A couple of dozens of warm raisin bonnets ready for a smear of butter or jam. But honestly I prefer to eat these plain. 

Raisin Bonnets

Sponge:
bread flour 400 grams
instant yeast  4 grams
water 220 grams

Mix the above ingredients in a bowl until you get a shaggy dough. Set aside covered for 2 hours.

Dough:
bread flour 100 grams
egg 40 grams
yeast 4 grams
sugar 80 grams
salt 9 grams
molasses 30 grams
milk powder 20 grams

Add the ingredients above to the sponge mixture. Mix until the dough turns into a ball then add in:

butter 20 grams

Continue mixing on low speed until you get a smooth and pliable dough about 12 to 15 minutes. Form into a ball and put in a greased bowl. Cover with cling wrap and let rise until doubled.

After it doubles, punch down dough. Mix in:

raisins 120 grams

Divide dough into 24 pieces. Round each piece into a smooth ball and place in 2 greased muffin tins. Cover with a kitchen towel. Let the dough rise until double in volume about two hours. Brush with eggwash (1 lightly beaten egg and 1 tablespoon of water). Bake at 180°C for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Makes 24 pieces.