An American interlude

with fantans

Once fire was discovered, the instinct for improvement made men bring food to it. - Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin 

A brief American pastry interlude today. I know we are all trying to conserve energy this winter and yet winter is such a wonderful time to stay in and bake. And share what we’ve baked.  And I wanted to share this recipe I discovered back in 2013 when it was the project of a bread baking group I was a part of. And it is such a great recipe I think it is the perfect weekend activity.

Enriched doughs are my favorite to make; they are easy to put together and pretty much foolproof…and failproof. Enriched doughs are yeast doughs that have added - an often high percentage of - fat (usually butter), dairy (milk, buttermilk, yogurt), and sugar (sugar, honey, maple syrup). They are richer than “lean” bread doughs; they are light, fluffy yet also sometimes firm, always tender, and flavorful. They are used to make yeasted coffee cakes, stollen, sweet breads, brioche, dinner rolls, etc. And while they are more flavorful doughs, they are neutral enough to carry off almost any filling you love. 

I tried to do a bit of research about fantan rolls, or fantans, but there isn’t much to learn. In fact, I don’t find a trace of them in any of my old American cookbooks before the early 1950s. Fantans are usually an enriched yeasted bread roll called so because of its fan shape. I’ve seen them called butter fluffs, butter buds, and Yankee or New England buttermilk rolls, making me assume that these rolls, served savory or sweet, with dinner or for breakfast and snack, originated in New England.

If you do met la main à la pâte - as the French say - literally ‘put your hands in the dough’, figuratively, lend a hand or take part in an activity, or, as the Americans say ‘to put one's shoulder to the wheel" - just make sure you take a photo of your fantans to share with me on social media.

Sweet Jam or Cinnamon Sugar Fantan Rolls

A pompous yet amusing change from a regular cinnamon bun. Plus jam.

Makes 12

Yeast starter: 

1 package (8 grams) of active dry yeast yeast + ¼ cup (60 ml) warm water + ½ cup (65/70 grams) all-purpose flour

Dough:

3-4 cups all-purpose flour, divided (135/140 grams per cup)

1 cup (135/140 grams) whole wheat bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

½ cup (125 ml) low fat or whole milk + ½ cup (125 ml) plain yogurt OR 0% fat fromage frais/fromage blanc (see note*)

4 tablespoons (60 grams) unsalted butter

¼ cup (60 ml) pure maple syrup

1 egg, lightly beaten

½ teaspoon vanilla

Garnish:

3 - 4 tablespoons (45 – 60 grams) unsalted butter

Up to 2/3 cup/6 rounded tablespoons marmalade or jam OR 6 tablespoons cinnamon-sugar (1 teaspoon ground cinnamon for every 2 tablespoons granulated 

sugar) OR a combo of 1/2 jam + 1/2 cinnamon-sugar

*note: you can replace this with 1 cup nonfat evaporated milk

You will need a standard 12-cup muffin tin.

Prepare the yeast starter by blending the active dry yeast with the ¼ cup of warm water and ½ cup (70 grams) flour. Allow to activate for anywhere from 2 hours to 24 hours - I let mine sit for 2 hours for the recipe I photographed here.

Sift or whisk together 1 cup (135/140 grams) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (135/140 grams) whole wheat bread flour, salt and nutmeg into a large mixing bowl until well blended and light. Set aside.

Place the mixture of milk and yogurt or fromage frais (or evaporated milk, if using), the butter, and maple syrup into a saucepan and place over low heat until the butter is nearly but not quite completely melted. Remove from heat. Stir a few minutes until the butter is completely melted and the mixture is cooled to tepid.

Add the now frothy yeast mixture to the tepid milk mixture, then add this mixture to the flour mixture in the large mixing bowl; beat or whisk well to blend. 

Add the egg and vanilla and stir until blended. 

Add 1 ½ cups (200/210 grams) more all-purpose flour and stir until thoroughly incorporated. Gradually add enough of the remaining flour to make a soft, rather sticky dough; the rest of the flour can be used for keeping the work surface floured while kneading.

Turn the dough out onto the lightly floured surface. Knead 3 minutes or until the dough is smooth and silky, adding enough of the additional flour while kneading to keep it from sticking to the work surface and your hands. 

Place the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl, turn the dough to lightly coat with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel and set in a warm place to rise for 1 ½ to 2 hours.

Butter the 12 cups of a regular/standard muffin tin.

Warm the 3 - 4 tablespoons (45 – 60 grams) unsalted butter just until melted then remove from the heat and set aside.

Gently heat the marmalade or jam just until warmed and easily spreadable, not liquid. Remove immediately from the heat and set aside.

Dust the work surface with flour. Punch down the dough then halve it. Wrap one half in the plastic wrap and set aside. 

Roll the other half into a 12×12-inch (30.5×30.5 cm) square. You may have to roll slightly larger then trim the ends to even out the square. 

Brush the dough with half the melted butter. 

Spread the surface of the dough with about ½ the warmed marmalade or ½ the cinnamon-sugar (or all of one if doing half/half). 

Cut into 6 equal 2-inch (4 cm) strips then stack the strips on top of each other. Cut through the layers into 6 equal pieces - you will now have 2-inch squares of dough stacked 6 layers high. 

Carefully place each set of squares into a buttered muffin cup, standing up so the layers are visible. Gently fan them open. Each will have six dough pieces with jam or cinnamon-sugar in between. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough and the rest of the marmalade for the other six cups of the muffin tin. Make sure the 6 layers of dough are not sticking together.

Cover the tins with a piece of plastic wrap then the clean kitchen towel and let the rolls rise until the dough doubles, about 1 to 1 ½ hours.

(these are uncooked but risen - top jam, bottom cinnamon-sugar )

Preheat the oven to 375° F (190° C). Place the oven rack in the middle of the oven.

Remove the towel and plastic wrap and bake the rolls in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Watch the Fantans carefully for the last 10 minutes – the high sugar content in the jam can easily and quickly burn.

Remove from the oven to a rack and cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully remove the Fantans from the muffin tin and set on a cooling rack. Allow to cool before serving. 

If desired, make a glaze of 1 teaspoon milk whisked together with enough icing/confectioners’ sugar to make a glaze that is not too runny, not too stiff and drizzle over the rolls; let the icing dry before serving the rolls.

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