[DAY 1]

Forming Dough:

Take 3 large eggs and 10 tbsp of unsalted butter, and let them come to room temperature. Cut the butter into 10 pieces.

In a microwaveable bowl, add in 1/2 cup of milk and heat in the microwave till it reaches a minimum of 180 F (80 C), about 1 1/2 minutes. This deactivates the whey proteins in the milk, which may hinder gluten development.

While the milk is hot, add in 1 tbsp of granulated sugar and whisk it in to dissolve. Continue whisking the milk to help it cool down faster, till it comes down to 105 - 115 F (40 - 46 C). When it reaches 115 F (or lower), add in 2 1/4 tsp (1 full envelope) of active dry yeast. Whisk the yeast to dissolve into the milk. Let it proof for 10 minutes.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, add in 2 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 tbsp granulated sugar, and 1 tsp of salt. With the paddle attachment, mix this on low-medium speed to mix the dry ingredients. Stop the mixer. Add in the 3 large room temperature eggs and the yeast mixture. Continue mixing with the paddle attachment on low-medium speed just until all the flour is moistened. Stop the mixer. Use a spatula to scrape dough off the paddle attachment and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure there's no dry flour. Cover this with plastic wrap, and let it rest at room temperature for 5 minutes. This lets the flour absorb moisture before kneading it.

After 5 minutes, attach the dough hook attachment, and knead on medium speed, about a level 5, for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes of kneading on level 5 speed, add in the pieces of room temperature unsalted butter, 10 tbsp total, one piece at a time, waiting for the butter to get incorporated before adding in the next piece, about 30 seconds to 1 minute between each addition of butter. If you see dough getting stuck at the bottom and not getting kneaded, stop the mixer and use a spatula to unstick it. Similarly, if you see a piece of butter stuck to the sides and not getting mixed in, stop the mixer and manually add the butter back onto the dough. Once all the butter has been added, turn the speed up to medium-high, about level 7 speed, and continue kneading the dough for another 5 to 10 minutes, till it forms a cohesive dough, has a soft and elastic texture, and passes the "windowpane test" - take a little dough square and stretch it till you see it being transparent but still stretchy and elastic.

Oil a clean bowl. Form the dough into a ball (it should be very soft), put it in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rest at room temperature for 1 hour. Then refrigerate the dough overnight - approximately 12 to 16 hours. This will slow the fermentation and chill the butter, making the dough easier to shape.

[DAY 2]

Yema Caramel Filling:

In a small bowl, add in 1 cup of heavy cream and 1 egg yolk. Whisk these together to combine so that the egg yolk is fully mixed in. Let this egg-cream mixture come to room temperature.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add 1/2 cup sugar and 4 tsp water. Do not stir the sugar. Just gently swirl the pan to make sure sugar is heating evenly.

Bring the sugar-water mixture to a boil until it turns into a copper/amber color. Be careful not to let it get too dark, otherwise it will have a slightly bitter burnt flavor. Turn off the heat as soon as it turns light amber. It will continue to darken with residual heat.

Then while vigorously whisking, very slowly add in the prepared room temperature egg-cream mixture, and vigorously whisk it in. Be careful of the hot steam from the initial addition of egg-cream. Adding the egg-cream mixture very slowly will prevent the caramel from seizing up. But if the sugar does seize up into a solid ball, don't worry. Just keep whisking and it will melt again.

Add 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and mix in to melt the butter. Turn on the heat to medium-low, and let the mixture come to a boil Starting when the mixture starts to boil, continue boiling down while whisking constantly for 10 to 12 minutes, until the yema caramel mixture has thickened. Make sure to whisk constantly during this time as the caramel may separate if you don't.

Transfer to a clean bowl and let the yema caramel mixture cool completely to room temperature.

Forming Buns:

Generously butter 12 egg tart molds or brioche molds. The top diameter of the molds should be around 3.5 to 4 inches. These ones we're using are 3.8 inches top diameter.

The dough should have doubled in size from when you put it in the fridge. Turn the dough onto a clean surface. The dough should be quite greasy from all the butter, and shouldn't stick too badly onto the counter. If you find it is sticking too much, just put some oil on a paper towel and lightly grease the counter. Divide the chilled dough into 12 equal pieces. I just use my hands and eyes to approximate the same weight and size of balls.

Depending on how much you pinched pieces and transferred dough from ball to ball to make them as even as possible, your balls might be uneven. So, take each ball, and lightly press down on the ball with the palm of your hand while doing a round motion. Like shaping play-dough as kids. This tightens and smoothens the skin of the dough. Do this with all 12 balls.

Put some oil on a paper towel and lightly grease your rolling pin. First use your hands to lightly press the dough into a flatter shape. Using a rolling pin, roll it out into a rounded rectangle shape, about 5 inches by 10 inches in size. Spoon a heaping 1 tablespoon of the prepared ube filling onto the middle, and then spread it into a thin layer. Be careful the ube doesn’t come too close to the edges of the dough.

Then from the long 10-inch end to the other long 10-inch end, tightly roll the dough back over the filling, forming a log (the log may stretch and contract as you roll it, since the dough is elastic). Once the log is formed, stretch the ends slightly to create tapered ends, like this. Then tightly coil the log to form a spiral bun, tucking the end underneath. Place this coiled bun into a buttered egg tart mold. Repeat this with all 12 portions of dough.

With the 12 buns arranged next to each other in the molds on a sheet pan, loosely cover the buns with plastic wrap, and let them rise for 3 hours, until it's doubled and looks very puffy.

Butter Topping:

Add 4 tbsp room temperature butter and 4 tbsp powdered sugar into a bowl.

With a small spoon, mix them together till it forms a smooth, creamy consistency.

Baking:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare the egg wash by whisking together 1 egg with 2 tsp of whole milk. Lightly brush the top of each bun with egg wash.

Place the molds onto a baking sheet for easy handling. Bake buns for 18 to 20 minutes, until puffed up and brown. If you have a thermometer, buns are done when they read 185 - 190 degrees F (85 - 88 C) in the middle of each bun. When the inside goes past 200 degrees F (93 C), the ensaymada will start becoming a little dry.

Once out of the oven, let them cool slightly, about 10 minutes, then transfer them from the moulds onto a cooling rack.

After cooling on the racks for an additional 20 minutes - using a spoon or bread knife, smear the top of each bun with a very light layer of the prepared sugar-butter topping. Finally, top with a heaping 2 tbsp of grated edam cheese (sub: gouda or mild cheddar). Eat fresh and enjoy!

If not finishing them in one day, refrigerate in an airtight container - it reheats well in the oven or microwave.