That is exactly my favorite!
The peaches we’ve been getting have been spectacular this year.
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An easy way to support the site:
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Toronto Blueberry Buns.
There seem to be two widely distributed versions of this regional treat – one by Mark Goodman (supposedly with ties back to the Open Window Health Bread Bakery) and one by Marcy Goldman. For my initial foray I went with the Mark Goodman version (traditional), calculating 115 g. per cup of flour.
Goodman’s recipe is rather vague about the length of the initial proof. I gave it about 45 minutes at 78 degrees before scaling and rolling out the buns – dough was noticeably puffy, but not doubled. I gave it 30 minutes for the second proof, as per the recipe.
I used my empanada press to form the buns, although ended up re-pinching the seal. A half-recipe made 6 five-inch buns with 2 T. filling each.
I really liked these – more than I expected to. Not pie, not pastry, not gooey or jammy – just light, sweet and very berry-ful. I can see trying apples in the fall.
You can read a little more about the history of the Toronto blueberry bun here.
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never heard of this treat. they look tasty!
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I expected this to be one of those weird things I was compelled to pursue out of an interest in heritage recipes, and didn’t have high hopes (especially after my recent two cake disasters). I loved them!
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I was reading the article you linked and I was struck by the claim that bluebs are native to North America and therefore wouldn’t have been a traditional food in the old country. I went hiking in the mountains in southern Poland when I lived there and the wild bluebs in those mountains were a well-oiled cottage industry; all the places to stay and eat featured them for supper (in pierogis and on crepes) and everyone talked of almost nothing else in the summer season. I assumed they were native, but now I wonder.
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Wow, those look amazing! I have been in Toronto for over 20 years and never heard of these ( but also read the link and… it seems very niche!)
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I haven’t dug too deeply into this, but my understanding is that the blueberry buns originally were Polish.
Interesting, the various takes on the origin of this one…
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Very much so, if the article is correct.
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Right, on first read of the article, I picked up on a sentence that says blueberries are not native to Poland, which would make the “from the old country” claim specious. So I went back and read the section again:
I asked Kip if he knew the origins of the recipe, but he did not know. “Now I’m not one hundred percent sure about this,” he says, “but I think my mother used to make blueberry buns in Poland.” He explains that wild blueberries grew there, and that his mother must have brought the recipe with her from the Old Country. Blueberries as we know them, however, are native to North America, so perhaps the wild blueberries that Kip talks about are a European species of the berry. Curiously, Kip recalls his customers asking for the buns by several Yiddish names, one being ‘yagedes.’ "
I am familiar with the wild blueberries there, and in fact they were called jagodas, which is v similar to the Yiddish above. Googling now suggests that jagoda is the word for specifically American blueberries, vs borówka for the native wild ones. Anyway, big rabbit hole for me, sorry. This made me remember picking and eating those wild blueberries from a literal mountain top, and how transformative it was, and then I realized this was probably a turning point for me in terms of becoming a person who is obsessed with picking and eating local fruit.
ANYWAY. Those buns continue to look delish 
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Joan Nathan also has a version in King Solomon’s Table with a link on EYB.
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Sourdough
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Memory food, indeed!
Thank you for that reference. I was able to find the write up and recipe in the Amazon preview. Am making some additional notes in my recipe file… 
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Here is the link from King Solomon’s Table that is on EYB. This version puts raw blueberries in the dough rounds instead of cooking them with sugar first, and has a streusel topping.
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Those are beautiful! Welcome!
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Thanks for posting this. I’ve never heard of these buns but I’m sure going to try them.
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Thank you for the link! I feel myself tumbling down the well of blueberry buns (Finnish blueberry buns anyone?)!
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