Honeycomb Bun | Bee’s Hive Bun | Khaliat Nahal

Khaliat Nahal, or the Honeycomb Bun, is a common Middle Eastern confectionery that is typically filled and then glazed with sweet syrup. Also called Bee's Hive Bun, there are savory versions of the bun as well (which was what I made).

A delicious Paneer / Cheese stuffed Savory bread shaped like a Honeycomb. These easy-to-eat pull-apart rolls are perfect as an appetizer or as a side with soup.

This recipe for Khaliat Nahal makes about 18 small buns that can be easily peeled off and eaten. They were perfect for my kids because they really enjoyed peeling the buns off and eating.

My 3-year-old who is generally a little picky about what he eats, also loved eating this, and in fact, I was able to make this his dinner as well, along with ours, with a bowl of soup.

I baked a Honeycomb bun as a part of We Knead To Bake the bread, for the month of September, but was not able to post it on time. I am posting this recipe this month for my third day of the blogging marathon under the category Kids Delight - Nutritious food for sports enthusiasts.

The reason I chose the Honeycomb Bun recipe for the theme is that my kids loved this. I made the savory version of the Bee's Hive Bun, which was filled with paneer (cottage cheese). This paneer bun with a bowl of hot soup worked great as our dinner.

Preparation time - 15 mins plus 2 ½ hrs rising time
Cooking time - about 40 mins
Difficulty level - Medium

Ingredients to make Honeycomb Buns

For the dough -

• All-purpose flour - 2 ½ cups
• Luke warm milk - 1 cup
• Instant yeast - 1 ½ tsp
• Sugar - 1 tsp
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Butter (melted) - 40 gms
• Milk - 2 tablespoon (for brushing on top)
• Sesame seeds (white) - 2 tablespoon (for sprinkling on top)

For the filling -

• Onion - 1 (medium) - Chopped finely
• Garlic - 2 cloves (minced finely)
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Paneer (grated) - 1 cup
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Chili powder - ½ tsp
• Turmeric powder - ½ tsp
• Dhania jeera powder - ½ tsp
• Salt - to taste

Step-by-step Process To Make Bee's Hive Bun

To make the dough

• Combine the milk, sugar, and yeast in a small bowl and keep it aside for 5 to 10 minutes.

• In the bowl of a food processor or stand mixer, add 2 cups of flour, salt, and melted butter. Make sure that the butter has cooled down a bit before adding it to the rest of the ingredients. Mix it a couple of times to blend.
  
• Now add the proofed yeast to the flour mixture and knead it well, adding more flour (the remaining half a cup) until you get a smooth and elastic dough that is not sticky. I used all 2 ½ cups of flour to get the right consistency for my dough.
  
• Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a well-oiled bowl, turning it once to coat completely with oil.

• Cover and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, for about an hour.

To make the filling

• Heat oil in a wide pan and add the cumin seeds. Let it fry for a few seconds and then add the minced garlic. Fry it for a minute.

• Now add the onions and sauté until golden brown. Add all the spices and the salt. Mix well. Now add the crumbled/grated paneer and mix well to combine.

• Keep it aside to cool down.

To shape the buns

• Once the dough has doubled in volume, drop it onto the work surface and divide the dough into two.

• With your palm, roll out each of the halves into a rope about 9 inches long.

• Now cut each rope into equal one-inch pieces to get 18 pieces in all.

• Take each piece and flatten it in your palm. Now add about 1 teaspoon of filling to it. Pull up the sides and cover the filling. Pinch the seams tightly. If you have made kozhukattai (modak), this is more like that.

• Smooth each of the filled pieces into a round ball.

• Place these in a well-oiled 9-inch or 10-inch round cake tin. Repeat the same with the remaining 17 pieces. When arranging, place the balls in a concentric circle to get the honeycomb effect.

• Cover with a towel and let it rise for about 30-40 mins.

• Brush the tops of the rolls with milk and sprinkle the sesame seeds over this.

• Bake the buns at 350°F for about 25 mins.

• Let it cool in the tin for about 5 mins, and then cool it on a wire rack.

• Serve Khaliat Nahal Buns as a snack with tea/coffee/milk.

Expert Tips

• Use fresh yeast. If the yeast does not become bubbly when mixed with milk, discard it and start with a new batch.
• We can use any kind of filling to make these Khaliat Nahal buns.
• If you love sweetbreads, then absolutely give the sweet version of this bun a try.

Frequently asked questions

More rolls and buns

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Recipe

HoneyComb Bun or Bee's Hive Bun | Khaliat Nahal

The recipe makes about 18 small buns that can be easily peeled off and eaten. They were perfect for my kids because they really enjoyed peeling the buns off and eating.

5 from 6 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Baking, Bread Buns, Buns and Rolls, Snacks

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Vegetarian

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes minutes

Servings: 18 Rolls

Calories: 142kcal

Author: Sandhya Ramakrishnan

Equipment

• ▢
  bowl
• ▢
  pan
• ▢
  food processor
• ▢
  Cake tin
• ▢
  Wire rack
• ▢
  plate
• ▢
  Brush

Ingredients

For the dough -

• ▢ 2 ½ cups All purpose flour
• ▢ 1 cup Luke warm milk
• ▢ 1½ teaspoon Instant yeast
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Salt
• ▢ 40 gms Butter melted
• ▢ 2 Tablespoon Milk for brushing on top
• ▢ 2 Tablespoon Sesame seeds white - (for sprinkling on top)

For the filling -

• ▢ 1 Onion medium - Chopped finely
• ▢ 2 cloves Garlic minced finely
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
• ▢ 1 cup Paneer grated
• ▢ 2 teaspoon Oil
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Chili powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Dhania jeera powder
• ▢ to taste Salt

Instructions

To make the dough -

• Combine the milk, sugar and yeast in a small bowl and keep it aside for 5 to 10 mins.
• In the bowl of a food processor or stand mixer, add 2 cups of flour, salt and melted butter. Make sure that the butter has cooled down a bit before adding it to the rest of the ingredients. Mix it a couple of times to blend.
• Now add the proofed yeast to the flour mixture and knead it well adding more flour (the remaining half a cup) until you get smooth and elastic dough which is not sticky. I used all the 2 ½ cups of flour to get the right consistency for my dough.
• Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a well oiled bowl, turning it once to coat completely with oil.
• Cover and let it rise in a warm place until double in volume, for about an hour.

To make the filling -

• Heat oil in a wide pan and add the cumin seeds. Let it fry for few seconds and then add the minced garlic. Fry it for a minute.
• Now add the onions and sauté until golden brown. Add all the spices and the salt. Mix well. Now add the crumbled/grated paneer and mix well to combine.
• Keep it aside to cool down.

Assembly -

• Once the dough has double in volume, drop it on to the work surface and divide the dough into two.
• With your palm, roll out each of the halves into a rope about 9 inches long.
• Now cut each rope into equal one inch pieces to get 18 pieces in all.
• Take each piece and flatten it in your palm. Now add about 1 teaspoon of filling into it. Pull up the sides and cover the filling. Pinch the seams tightly. If you have made kozhukattai (modak), this is more like that.
• Smoothen each of the filled piece into a round ball.
• Place these in a well oiled 9 inch or 10 inch round cake tin. Repeat the same with the remaining 17 pieces. When arranging, place the balls in a concentric circle to get the honey comb effect.
• Cover with a towel and let it rise for about 30-40 mins.
• Brush the tops of the rolls with milk and sprinkle the sesame seeds over this.
• Bake the buns at 350 F for about 25 mins.
• Let it cool in the tin for about 5 mins and then cool it on a wire rack.
• Serve Honey Comb Buns as a snack with tea/coffee/milk.

Nutrition

Calories: 142kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 157mg | Potassium: 68mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 98IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 1mg

Tried this recipe?Mention @Sandhya.Ramakrishnan or tag #MyCookingJourney!