These little pineapple and ginger buns--or puffs, if you prefer--are something in between a muffin and a cupcake but with a slight yeasty taste. The buns are mildly sweet and moist from the pineapple. The sourdough in the batter provides a nice tangy taste, and crystallized ginger gives extra flavor and a bit of spice to the buns. If your discard isn't too powerful yet, not to worry. The recipe includes baking powder, which insures that the buns will rise--or puff--when you bake them. I like the buns "as is," warm from the oven, but, if you'd like, feel free to glaze or frost them. Frankly, though, I think the buns are sweet enough for breakfast or tea time without any extra glaze or frosting. The buns also reheat well in the air fryer. Enjoy!
Sourdough Pineapple Ginger Bun Puffs -- Makes 18
1 1/2 cups of flour
2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
3/4 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/3 cup of sugar
4 tablespoons of butter cut into smallish bits
3 tablespoons of canola oil
1 cup of crushed pineapple (with a little juice is fine)
1 cup of sourdough discard/starter
1/3 cup of chopped crystallized ginger
Sugar to sprinkle, optional
Spritz 18 muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray. In the bowl of your food processor combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and sugar and pulse them a few times to blend them. Add the butter and pulse it in a few times. Drizzle in the oil and pulse it in a few times. Add the crushed pineapple and sourdough discard and pulse it into the mixture until well blended. The mixture will be thick but wet. Pulse in the chopped crystallized ginger until thoroughly combined (the food processor will further break down the ginger, so if you want large pieces, stir it in rather than pulse it in). Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups, filling the cups about 1/2 to 2/3 full. Sprinkle the top of the batter in each cup with a little sugar, if you'd like. You can bake the batter immediately or let it sit a few hours before baking it. I do the latter to let the sourdough process do its thing (and because I make the buns earlier in the afternoon and pop them in the oven when I'm ready to bake dinner alongside the buns), but you'll get lift from the baking powder if you bake the buns immediately. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and bake the buns for 20-25 minutes or until light golden brown.
