Description
Sweet, easy to make, perfect for breakfast, & my childhood favourite! These vegan Portuguese bolos levedos are inspired by my avo’s!
Ingredients
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Scale
- 1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water (105-110 degrees F)
- 2 tbsp vegan butter, melted
- 1/2 cup soy milk
- 1/3 cup applesauce
- 1/3 cup cane sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting (see note for using whole wheat flour)
*All the ingredients for this recipe are from our pantry and freezer tips!
Instructions
- Combine the yeast with the warm water and ½ tsp cane sugar. Stir and set aside to activate for 5 minutes.
- Gently warm the milk and butter on the stove top or in the microwave until the butter is melted. Careful not to heat the milk too much as you don’t want it to boil. (You can just melt the butter and add it to your room temperature milk but heating the milk just a bit will help the dough rise a bit faster).
- In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, salt, and applesauce until combined.
- Add the milk and butter mixture. Stir.
- Then add the activated yeast mixture. Stir gently.
- Now, slowly add in the flour and gently mix it in with your hands. Gently turn the dough ball on itself to incorporate all the flour. This dough is meant to be sticky so it may seem like it’s too dry as you’re incorporating the flour but resist the urge to add more liquid, keep gently kneading, and when all the flour is incorporated it should be quite sticky again. Cover the bowl with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm spot for 30 minutes. (See the photos above for a reference).
- After 30 minutes tidy the dough by gently pulling the sides away from the bowl and folding the dough into a neater ball. Cover again and let rise an additional 1 hour.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, add about ¼ cup of flour in a mound on a clean work surface, spread it slightly to cradle 3-4 balls of dough at a time (see the photos above or watch our recipe video!).
- Dampen fingers with lukewarm water. Pull a handful of dough and separate it from the larger ball of dough. Pull and fold the sides of the dough you’ve separated so it forms a small, smooth ball and rest it in the flour. Form 3 or 4 of these smaller balls of dough at a time, resting them in the flour mound.
- Working one at a time with the small formed balls, flip them over to cover the other side in flour and then pat them between your palms to flatten them. Lay the flattened dough on a lightly floured surface.
- With all of the dough formed into individual flattened muffins, set them aside (with space between each) on a lightly floured surface and allow to rise for another 30 minutes. You can again, drape a clean cloth over them while they rise.
- After 30 minutes, heat 1 or 2 frying pans over low heat. Lay the bolos on the dry pans and cook for 8-10 minutes on the first side. I like keeping the heat low so you can be sure they are cooked through before the bottom gets too browned. You can lift them up with a spatula and peak underneath to monitor how much they are browning. After 8-10 minutes there should be a nice brown colour on the bottom and you can flip them over and cook the other side for 5-8 minutes until equally browned.
- Once cooked, allow to cool and then store on the counter for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for about 5 days, or in the freezer for longer storage!
- Enjoy as a morning muffin toasted with butter and/or jam OR use them as a sweet bun for sandwiches and burgers!
Notes
Approximate Cost: $2.29 CAD ($0.29/muffin) vs. $2.35 using dairy milk, dairy butter, and 1 egg.
I have tried this recipe using whole wheat flour and found that I had to add about ⅛ cup more milk since the flour is more absorbent but otherwise it worked well as written!
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Stove-top
- Cuisine: Portuguese