Beehive Sweet Buns (Honeycomb Buns)
These honeycomb patterned beehive sweet buns, also known as Khaliat al Nahl, are feather-light soft and tender. They are stuffed with cream cheese filling, then soaked in sweet honey sugar syrup. Addictive!
I made beehive sweet buns the other day. Okay, I have to confess that these buns are addictive so be aware of it. Otherwise you will keep gobbling up these little buns.
They are not just the plain old buns, but honeycomb patterned buns with cream cheese filling inside soaked in sticky honey syrup. They are sweet Arabic dessert called as Beehive Sweet Buns (aka honeycomb buns or Khaliat al Nahl).
If you like sweet bread or buns, these little buns will surely satisfy you. They are feather light soft and tender and so delicious.
The good news is that they are easy to make with the ingredients most people already have in their pantry. Nothing exotic!
And the bad news…? You can’t stop eating once you put one piece in your mouth. They are light, moist, sticky, and just right amount of sweetness to indulge your sugar craving.
How to make beehive sweet buns
You will be surprised how light these buns are when you taste it. Even though they hold the filling inside and the syrup all around, the buns have a feather-light texture.
One of the interesting ingredient on the dough recipe is the baking powder. They are yeast buns, but the addition of baking powder makes them light and extremely soft.
The dough comes together on the sticky side, which helps them very tender.
The cream cheese filling makes them even more special. You will need to make 20 pieces (although I only used 19), and it didn’t take that much time to complete. The dough is very forgiving and you don’t need to try to make them pretty.
The egg yolk wash will bring an attractive golden hue to the buns.
I used 10-inch carbon steel pan to bake these beehive sweet buns. You can use a cast iron skillet or 9-10 inch round cake pans instead. Make sure to grease the pan thoroughly before adding the dough balls.
Honey syrup
When the buns are in the oven, you can make the simple honey sugar syrup. You can add other flavors, such as vanilla, cinnamon, and etc, to the syrup mixture for variety of flavor if you want, but I kept mine plain.
And when they are done? Behold, the sticky shiny glory!
You will want to eat them when they are warm. So heavenly delicious!
I honestly intended to eat only 2 buns, but it soon became 3, then quickly 4, and then I ended eating more before I knew it…!!!
I don’t even remember how many I ate. I think I ate the half batch all by myself. So, what do you think? Do you think you want to try them?
More Sweet Bread Recipes
Need more sweet indulgent ideas? Try my sweet bread recipes. Some of my favorites are;
- Sugar and Butter Brioche Galette (Brioche Tart)
- Kolaches Recipe
- Club Med White Chocolate Bread
- Carrot Oat Bread
Beehive Sweet Buns (Honeycomb Buns)
Ingredients
- 2 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup lukewarm milk
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 4 oz cream cheese
- toasted sesame seeds
For honey syrup
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/2 cup water
Equipment
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine milk, oil, honey, and yeast; mix well.
- Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together and add to the wet ingredients. Mix with a spoon, then knead the dough for 5-8 minutes until it becomes elastic. You can add a little more flour if your dough seems too sticky. Cover the dough with a towel and let it rise for 1 hour or until it becomes double in volume.
- Turn the dough onto a wooden board dusted with a little amount of flour. Bring the dough together and knead a few times. Divide the dough into 20 balls.
- Flatten each ball and stuff with a teaspoonful of cream cheese. Pull up the sides of the ball and wrap around the filling, pinching it closed at top. Arrange the balls in a greased 9 or 10-inch oven proof skillet or round cake pan in honeycomb pattern. Cover and let them rise again for about 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Brush the top of the buns with egg wash. Bake the buns for 25 minutes.
- To make the honey syrup, combine sugar, honey, and water and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes or until the syrup starts to reduce a little bit. Set aside until needed.
- When the buns come out of the oven, pour the syrup over the hot buns, and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds on top immediately. Cover the buns with a piece of foil and wait for 10 minutes. Serve warm or at a room temperature.
Ive made this countless times! Recipe never fails, very delicious!
Same!
I added chopped fresh strawberry’s to the cream cheese. Absolutely delicious!
Are you meant to use up all the syrup on the buns?
Hi Nishitha
Yes, pour all the syrup to the buns. The buns themselves don’t have mush sweetness, so the syrup will help sweeten them up. Hope you like them.
I’ve made this recipe several times and LOVED it. Do you think this could be made using frozen dinner roll dough to save time? Thanks!
Hi Amy
Yes, you can use frozen dinner roll dough. Depending on the brand, the texture might be slightly denser than the recipe here, but it is definitely doable. I am glad that you love these buns. Thank you very much!
Do you think this recipe could be made using frozen dinner roll dough? Thank you!
made two batches of sugar/honey glaze exactly as stated..neither did not thicken..Why?
Hi Janet
The syrup is not supposed to thicken. It will be runny like a syrup so that it will be absolved into the buns. However, if you prefer it to be thicker than the very runny consistency, let the syrup cool down. It will thicken more, but it won’t absolve to the buns very well.
Thank you so much for this recipe. My husband is Middle Eastern and I am always wanting to try recipes that bring his taste buds back to his homeland. This recipe was easy to follow, the dough easy to work with (although I did have to add almost an extra cup of flour), and the outcome amazing. I love that they are not overly sweet, although I hate that too because it means I want to eat more!
I’ve been searching how to make this for almost 4 years, since the last time I visited my in-laws in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia! Thank you sooooo much! Mine turned out so delicious. As soon as I took the first bite, it transferred me right back to Saudi for a brief moment. My husband is from Yemen and he loved them. Bless your heart for giving us a taste of family tradition right here in Minneaota! Right in time for Carina Ramadan 2020. #ComfortFood #Grateful
Why do my buns deflate after putting syrup? I’ve tried waiting a couple mins too
Hi! I love making these they are so delicious and finish right away! But I have one problem. When I pour the syrup my buns deflate. I have even tried waiting a couple mins before putting the syrup
Can we leave out the cream cheese?
yes.
Thank you for the receipe.. i tried it turned really good everybody loved it
I tried these once made by a friend and have been looking for the recipe ever since! Your recipe didn’t disappoint! Super Yummy!
I literally just took these out of the oven and ate two with wanting more! They are so delicious. I did add a hint of orange blossom water to mine but with or without that hint its freaking good, amazing! I’m suppose to take some later to a friend but I seriously doubt any will make it!!! Thank you for this recipe! I am a picky foodie! My husband is Arabic so I love trying recipes!
That is so great that you liked these little buns. Aren’t they so tasty? Thank you so much for leaving the sweet comment. It made my day happy!
Such a sticky dough!
Ok… this looks absolutely amazing. I know I just told you that I’m a savory person but these buns… OMG. I’d benefit from your baking too…. if I live next door to you. :p