Vegan Chocolate Cream Buns filled with chocolate spread and whipped chocolate cream. These pillowy soft, light and fluffy buns are a favourite tea-time treat, decorated as adorable reindeer for the festive season. Fully vegan, no eggs or no dairy!
Vegan Chocolate Cream Buns
Happy Christmas baking season friends. I am very excited to share this recipe with you for the Holidays. Difference to doughnuts which have a downside of frying, buns are great as they’re baked in the oven. The buns have texture of baked bread which is delicious, along with a shiny top from the dairy-free milk glaze. The filling is a simple layer of vegan chocolate spread (I use a vegan ‘Nutella’), and whipped dairy-free cream which has added cocoa inside to make it a rich chocolate cream. As Christmas is around the corner, I decided to make them into reindeer with a cherry nose, chocolate eyes and dark chocolate antlers. How cute are they?!!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Vegan friendly – This recipe doesn’t contain any animal derived ingredients.
- Super fun – They’re a great christmas baking activity for all to enjoy making.
- Easy to make – Minimal ingredients and a simple method.
- Fluffy – The texture of the buns is ultra light and fluffy. They’re gorgeous.
- Deliciously rich and chocolaty – The flavour is rich of chocolate and is delicious!
- Ultra creamy : The chocolate cream is silky smooth and is scrumptious!
- Great for kids – Get the kids involved in kneading the dough and decorating.
- Fun to decorate – You’ll have a blast making & decorating the buns.
Ingredients you’ll need
You’ll be very pleased to hear, this recipe contains minimal ingredients, some of which you probably already have in your kitchen cupboards! Jot these ingredients down for your next shopping trip!
- Dairy-free milk : Soya milk works best. Alternatively you can use any dairy-free milk for this recipe including oat, almond or cashew.
- Active dry yeast : One packet is usually 7-8g of yeast which is perfect. The active yeast is what will make these buns super light, fluffy and springy!
- All-purpose / plain flour : Plain flour works perfectly for this recipe. Self raising flour can make the buns raise too much, and may result in massive buns.
- Cocoa powder : Use a rich / dark cocoa for the ultimate chocolate flavour.
- Sugar : Caster sugar or a very fine white sugar is perfect for this recipe. I wouldn’t recommend granulated sugar as it can make the buns gritty in texture.
- Oil : Use a neutral flavoured oil. Sunflower works best!
- Dairy-free cream : You want to use a good quality cream which is thick and holds it’s shape. The BEST dairy-free / vegan cream is ‘The Coconut Collaborative Double Cream’.
- Dairy-free chocolate spread : I use Natures Store Hazelnut & Cocoa Spread, which is a vegan Nutella alternative. Use your favourite chocolate spread, just make sure it’s suitable for vegans. You could even use a Biscoff / cookie butter if preferred.
- Icing sugar : Icing sugar to the tops of the buns adds sweetness and makes them look snowy.
- Dairy-free dark chocolate : Melt the dark chocoalte for the antlers. I like to use 70% and above for a rich flavour.
- Dairy-free white chocolate buttons. Use white buttons for the eyes. You can even use the end of a round piping tip to cut the buttons into smaller shapes.
- Black fondant : Roll into balls and stick onto the white buttons for the eyes.
What is the best dairy-free cream ?
Whipped cream is definitely the star of the show with this delicious breaded dessert. You want to use a vey thick vegan double / whipped cream for this recipe. The BEST Vegan cream which I’ve tried if ‘The Coconut Collaborative Double Cream‘. This cream is absolutely unbelievable! It has to be thick enough to be piped and hold it’s shape in the bun. Whip the cream in a stand mixer until thick, along with the cocoa. The cocoa helps to stabilise the cream and thicken it up. It’s worth looking up the best thick vegan cream where you are based and try them out yourself.
How to make Vegan Chocolate Cream Buns
You will be surprised with how EASY these buns are to make. You only need a handful of ingredients, some simple tools and a little bit of time and you’ll be making the most bakery worthy treat in no time! The full method, recipe and ingredients list is written in the recipe card at the bottom of this page. Happy baking.
- Dough
Heat the milk and sprinkle over the yeast and a teaspoon of the sugar. Whisk to combine. Pour the activated yeast mixture and oil into the flour, cocoa and sugar. Knead into a sticky dough.
- Prove
Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl. Place in a warm area for at least an hour to prove. The dough will double in size. Turn out on a lightly floured surface. Roll 100g of the dough into balls and place on a lined baking tray. Allow the prove for a second time.
- Bake
Brush the tops of the dough with milk and bake. Make sure the buns to cool before filling.
- Chocolate spread and cream
Use a serrated knife to slice the buns 3/4 in half. Spread chocolate spread into the buns. Whip up the cream along with the cocoa, transfer into a piping bag and pipe into the buns. spread the cream flush to the buns.
- Decorate
Press a glacé cherry into the middle of the cream. Add black fondant to some white chocolate buttons, press into the cream above the nose for the reindeer eyes. Pipe dark chocolate on to grease proof paper. Chill then add to the top of the buns.
- Serve and enjoy
Serve the buns on a place, dust over some icing sugar.
Vegan Chocolate Cream Bun FAQ
Is this a cake or doughnut?
- I would class this dessert more like a sweet bread. The bun has the taste and texture of a breaded bun, with the addition of the chocolate.
Can this recipe be made gluten-free?
- Unfortunately not. This recipe requires a wheat based flour for best results. Stay tuned as i am currently recipe testing a gluten-free version.
How to store the chocolate buns?
- Store the buns for 1 – 2 days only. Store in a sealed container at room temperature (do not store in the fridge) The buns will dry out if left too long. Best enjoyed within 1-2 days of making.
Can the buns be made ahead of time?
- As I mentioned above, the bun are best made day of making. If you really needed to make them ahead of time, you can bake them and store them in an air tight container at room temperature overnight to keep them soft and fresh!
If you make, and love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below. Thank you & happy baking! Make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram , TikTok and Facebook! Pin this recipe for later, you can use the button on the recipe card, above or below this post, or on any of the photos. Happy baking all!
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Vegan Chocolate Reindeer Cream Buns
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 8–10 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
How to make Vegan Chocolate Cream Buns, shaped as reindeer for the Holidays. Chocolate buns with chocolate spread and a whipped chocolate cream are decorated with a glacé cherry and chocolate details. Vegan, No-Egg, No-Dairy and easy to make.
Ingredients
Ingredients for the buns
- 250g of dairy-free milk
- 7g of active dry yeast
- 500g of plain flour
- 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder
- 100g of caster sugar
- 70g of sunflower oil
Ingredients for the cream filling and decoration
- 15g of vegan chocolate spread / vgean ‘Nutella’ (I use Natures Store Hazelnut & Cocoa Spread)
- 220ml of dairy-free double cream / whipping cream
- Glacé cherries
- 1 pack of dairy-free white chocolate buttons
- Black fondant (for the eyes)
- 80g of dairy-free dark chocolate (for the antlers)
- Icing sugar (for dusting)
Instructions
Method (buns)
- Pour the warm dairy-free milk into a bowl and sprinkle over the yeast and a tablespoon of the sugar, stir. Cover with a tea towel then put into a warm place for around 8-10 minutes until frothy. TIP: To heat the milk, add it into a small saucepan and simmer until it’s warm. If the milk is too hot it can kill the yeast, so make sure its just warm.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar and cocoa powder. Mix to combine.
- Once the yeast mixture is frothy, pour into the dry ingredients along with the oil.
- Mix with a hand whisk or attach a dough hook to your stand mixer and begin to knead on medium until nice and smooth. The dough should be soft, smooth and slightly sticky.
- Once kneaded, place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a tea towel and place into a warm area (I place mine in my conservatory) and allow to prove for around 2-3 hours or until double in size.
- Line a baking tray with grease proof paper. You might want to line two just in case.
- Once doubled, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, form into a large dough ball and divide the dough into equal balls. Weigh the balls out to 100g each. Take each ball of dough and roll it with your hands to form a smooth, round shape (watch my video tutorial here). Place the dough balls on a lined baking tray lined with grease paper and let proof a second time in a warm place for 1 hour. The buns will puff up on their second prove and will also rise in the oven, so make sure to space them out on the tray / trays.
- Once ready to make, preheat oven to 180°C fan. Brush the top and sides of each bun with some dairy-free milk, place onto the bottom rack of the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the tops of the buns are golden in colour, and soft to touch.
- Allow the buns to cool fully before cutting open and filling with cream.
Method (Cream filling and decoration)
- Whisk the dairy-free cream and cocoa powder using an electric hand whisk or in a stand mixer fitted with a balloon whisk attachment until it has thickened and soft peaks form. Transfer the whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle (you can even use a star tip nozzle for a different effect).
- Use a sharp serrated knife to cut open the buns open on a diagonal, but do not cut all the way through!
- Spread some chocolate spread on one half of the bun, then pipe in some of the chocolate cream, continue piping in the cream until the bun is filled, then use a clean knife to scrape the cream flush to the bun.
- Roll little balls of black fondant and press on to white chocolate buttons. This makes the reindeer eyes.
- Press a glacé cherry into the middle of the front of the buns, into the cream and press the eyes above, either side of the cherry (refer to photos for reference).
- Melt some dark chocolate in a microwave or on the hob, transfer into a piping bag and snip off the tip.
- Line a tray or board with grease proof paper. Pipe antlers on the paper then place into the freezer to set.
- Make a hole in the tops of the buns and place in the antlers.
- Dust the buns with some icing sugar. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
To store: Keep the buns fresh by storing in an airtight / sealed container in the fridge. Allow to come to room temperature before enjoying.
Best eaten fresh, within 1-2 days of making.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10-15 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
