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Freshly baked soft bread rolls piled on a wooden plate

Ube Pandesal

Soft Filipino bread rolls flavored and colored with ube halaya and ube extract, coated in fine breadcrumbs, with an optional cheese center.
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Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 16 rolls
Cuisine: Filipino
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 4 cups (500 g) bread flour (or all-purpose flour), plus more for dusting
  • 2¼ tsp (1 packet) instant yeast
  • ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp fine salt
  • ¾ cup (180 ml) warm milk, about 110°F (45°C)
  • ½ cup (130 g) ube halaya (purple yam jam), room temperature
  • 2 tsp ube extract
  • 1 large egg room temperature
  • 3 tbsp (42 g) unsalted butter, very soft
  • Optional: 16 small cubes of cheese about ½ inch each
  • ½ cup fine dry breadcrumbs for coating

Method
 

  1. Whisk flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add warm milk, ube halaya, ube extract, egg and butter; stir to a soft purple dough.
  2. Knead 10 minutes by hand (or 8 minutes with a dough hook) until smooth, elastic and evenly purple.
  3. Cover and rise in a warm spot about 1 hour, until doubled.
  4. Divide into 16 equal pieces (about 55 g each), keeping them covered.
  5. Flatten each piece; add a cheese cube if using and pinch closed. Shape into short oval rolls, seam side down.
  6. Coat the tops in fine breadcrumbs and arrange on a parchment-lined tray.
  7. Proof, covered, 30 to 40 minutes, until puffy.
  8. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 18 to 20 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly golden and the rolls spring back when pressed. Cool 10 minutes on a rack.

Notes

Find ube halaya and ube extract at Asian grocery stores with a Filipino section, or online; the extract is what gives the vivid purple color.
Judge doneness by the bottoms, not the tops — the breadcrumb coat hides browning.
The dough starts sticky; knead through it instead of adding much extra flour, or the rolls will be dense.
Store airtight at room temperature up to 3 days, or freeze up to 1 month; reheat at 300°F (150°C) for about 5 minutes.