Thursday, April 29, 2010

Thengai bun ( Coconut bun)

Thengai means Coconut. A popular stuffed bread available in the bakeries of Tirunelveli , Tuticorin (TN, India) and other places South to it. Usually they stuff the bread with sweetened coconut, raisins, cashews, cherries and left over fruit cake some times.

This is one of the snacks we usually buy in my father's house for evening tea. I love the way my mother used to keep a snack every evening while we return home from school. She was so dedicated and caring in such a way that at least she would buy some goodies from the nearby bakery for us:) When I told my hubby of those fond memories after marriage, he started bringing me my sweet breads when he comes to pick me up from the University, so that I won't starve till I reach home...hi..hi. Those were the touching moments , he waiting to pick me up after work and myself feeling embarrassed to do so. That was the most sweet bread any one can get..right!

So whenever we talk of our home town's specialties , this bun will make a great topic for us. We both are crazy for this but I never know a recipe to try it. So I tried a version myself with the pizza base and it came out fantastic. May be a bread dough can also work here. I don't know the exact recipe for that bread, but this gives me the exact taste and no wonder we enjoyed it to the core:)

Here is that special thengai bun for you all!

Thengai bun before slicing.


Sliced thengai bun , ready to eat:)

Ingredients:
Pizza base (or) bread dough - enough to make a medium size pizza.
butter - 1 tsp
egg white - 1 tbsp
water - 1 tsp

For stuffing:
Sweetened coconut - 1 1/2 cup
(I used store bought one. But we can make it at home by stirring 1 1/4 cup coconut with 1/4 cup sugar till it becomes dry).
raisins - 10
cashew - 10
cherry - 5 (halved)
cardamom powder - 1/8 tsp

Method:
Preheat the oven to 425 deg F.

Divide the dough into two equal portions.
Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Grease it with butter (1/2 tsp).

Mix all the stuffing items. Let them cool, if we prepared the sweetened coconut at home.

Take one ball of the dough. Flatten it a circle of 1 inch thickness and almost 1/2 feet dia.
Place it on the sheet. Spread the stuffing uniformly.

Make a similar circle with the other half and cover the stuffing.
Gently fold the edges without any opening there.
Coat a 1/2 tsp butter over the top.

Make a few slits at the top to make vent.

Mix the egg with water and coat the top (Egg wash).
Egg wash makes the bread shiny and more brown and it is purely optional.

Place it in oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or till the top starts turning red.

Take out and slice it (into 4 or 5 pieces) after cooling a little.

Thengai bun is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as dessert or snack.
I like it instead of regular pizza for dinner:)

Variations:
I won't use egg wash (don't wanna waste that yellow portion...hi..hi). A coat of butter / ghee will give a shiny brown top. Broiling will make it more gorgeous.
Some bakeries add scrambled fruit cake (that goes as waste or less priced snack), to this stuffing and make it like a less coconuty bun. That will also be tasty.

31 comments:

Cool Lassi(e) said...

This looks soo good. I used to eat this when I was a kid. Damn,this looks fantastic!Thanks for the recipe!

Sailaja Damodaran said...

My favorite....looking for this recipe for so long.Tasy

Shama Nagarajan said...

one of my favourite dear..yummy

Sushma Mallya said...

My fav too, even i used to have this , brought back so many memories....coconut bun looks delicious viki,loved the way you have done it too

Simplyfood said...

What an unusual cake/bread.Goods delicious.

SathyaSridhar said...

Viki,,enakkum thengai bun naa rombha pidikkum schooling days la evening epdi yavadhu saptuduven...tutti fruity poetu superah irukkum thengai bun,,,ur's came out perfect dear..

Unknown said...

this is my dh's fave..want to try it out!!Thanx for sharing the recipe

Priya Suresh said...

My favourite, i used to have this bun atleast twice a week, makes me nostalgic..

Malar Gandhi said...

Nostalgic past...recall' is great. Tea with a snack each day, lucky you. Most of college days went in starvation in damn hostel:( Coconut bun sounds new and diff' although cud relate to one of the stuff I like from bakery...

Gita Jaishankar said...

I too am crazy about these buns Viki..my father used to get this for me very often...it was nice reading about your memories too :) Thanks for sharing this recipe dear..will try this soon :)

Hamaree Rasoi said...

Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe with us. Looks too good.
Deepa
Hamaree Rasoi

Prema said...

Love this recipe.Coconut stuffing very nice...comes out perfect.

Cham said...

OMG- I almost forgot this buns! Do u think other than pizza base something else will work? Bookmarked!

Unknown said...

Nostalgic. i remember getting this at the bakery close to my house.

Priya dharshini said...

Thats luvly luv story...i luv thengai bun like anything..I am confessing it is a sweet pizza we were fond of before got known to savoury pizza..I am crazy to macroons in ur tuthukudi ..

Ash said...

Very yummilicious stuffing... I love the dilpasand types...... I drool every evening for a bite of these delicacies.....

Ash...
(http://asha-oceanichope.blogspot.com/)

Unknown said...

interesting recipe..

Nandinis food said...

My fav coconut bun. Drooling here. Thanks for sharing Viki.

Life is beautiful !!! said...

Everytime I go to a bakery I used to buy it...my favourite :) Beautiful blog and wondeful recipe cllections :)

Hari Chandana P said...

Yum Yum Yumm... Wonderful job dear!!

Sumi said...

looks simple and delicious..there another recipe at Pusiva's culinary studio..take a look if u r interested

Urmi said...

Coconut bun looks fantastic and tempting. Thanks for your wonderful recipe. I will definitely prepare it.

Jaleela Kamal said...

விகி ரொம்ப நல்ல இருக்கு, ரயில் பயணம் செல்லும் போது இதான் வாங்கி கொடுப்பாஙக்.

இது பேர் தில் பசந் .

gtyuk said...

that's a lovely gesture of your husband :) getting the same buns for you like in your past; that's truly special, right?

I have never known this thengai bun so far until I tried one sometime back...
ungaloda bun looks delicious Vicky, andha thenga nallaa narukku narukku-nnu thithippaa irukkum illa?? must have tasted terribly good. nice recipe!!!

Suja Manoj said...

Wow!!Thengai bun... My favorite..enjoyed it two months back when i visited my parents.

தக்குடு said...

yaa, yaa still remember this thengai bun which i had in our tirunelveli side. how you got my blog?? thanks for your visit...;) so neengalum exam halla nuulu vitta gosthiyaa??...:)hahahahaha

Sapthanaa Vytheswaran said...

chance ae illa.. wat a wonderful recipe.. iam droling over it

FoodLovers said...

i used to eat this looks good viki .pls stop y atmy blog if u get a chance
its my fav too

Rina said...

Yum...will luv to try this..

MAGESH said...

hi viki
i tried your tandoori chicken,really it is very tasty. Thanks pa.

Vikis Kitchen said...

anonymous friend: Thanks for visiting and the nice comment. Have a blessed Lent and joyful Easter.

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