- Yield: 12-24
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Serving: For Family
Traditional Newfoundland Molasses Buns
HI and Welcome to our website!
If you are looking to make some delicious molasses tea buns you are in the right place, so sit back and make yourself a cup of tea and enjoy our blog and video tutorial. Some people like making these delicious molasses buns like they did back in the day, using pork fat in the making of them replacing the butter or margarine. ( Pork Fat is the same as lard )
You first fry small pieces of fat pork and the oil from the fat pork you put in a bowl only using 1/2 cup of the oil to replace the butter. Also you can use the fat pork scrunchions instead of the raw fat pork in this recipe.
Continue following the recipe below for the other ingredients, you can also add a cup of raisins of choice to this same recipe if you like to have that too.
These molasses buns was made so many ways back in the day and I'm bringing you one way that I like making them.
I will share with you our first and second cookbook link with more delicious recipes.
https://www.bonitaskitchen.com/cookbook
Ingredients
- Molasses - 1/2 Cup
- Butter - 1/2 Cup
- Flour - 3 Cups
- Water - 1/2 Cup Boiling
- Baking Soda - 1 1/2 Tsp
- Brown Sugar - 1/2 Cup
- Egg - 1 Large
- Milk - 1 Tbsp
- Allspice - 1 Tsp or more
- Ginger - 1/2 Tbsp fresh or powder
- Cinnamon - 1 Tbsp
- Sea Salt - 1/2 Tsp
- Pork Fat - 1/2 Cup ( optional ) fry or raw
- Raisins - 1/2 Cup ( optional )
Instructions
1- In a large bowl add molasses, boiling water and baking soda, mix together with a spoon until it starts to fizz.
2- Then add brown sugar, room temperature butter, and all spices mix in to mixture until all combined.
3- In a small bowl add egg and milk mix together then add to large bowl with the other ingredients mix together.
4- Then sift flour and salt into mixture and blend together, you may need to use your hand now to fold all together. Dust with more flour if it's to soft, form into a ball.
5- After sprinkle flour on your counter top or board then place the dough ball mixture on it and cut in half.
6- Take one half and add the pork fat piece into mixture, then roll out on counter top.
7- Take a small cookie cutter or glass and cut out small round pieces of dough and place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Continue doing this until all buns are cut out, then roll out the other half of your dough and continue doing the same thing.
8- Preheat your oven to 350° and set your timer to 15 minutes, when baked place on a cooling rack or serve hot.
Prep time- 10 Minutes
Baking time- 15 Minutes
Buns baked- 12 to 24 depending on the size.
If you would like to make these molasses buns like they did back in the day when they used pork fat in the making of these buns replacing the butter or margarine.
You first fry out the small pieces of pork and the fat from the pork you put in a bowl only using a 1/2 cup of the fat and replacing the butter in this recipe. Also you can use the pork scrunchions instead of the raw pork in the molasses bun recipe.
Continue following the recipe above for the other ingredients, you can also add a cup of raisins of choice to this same recipe if you like to have that too.
These molasses buns was made so many ways back in the day and I'm bringing you one way that I make them and my mom made them.
Allergens
These molasses buns are packed full of allspice, ginger, cinnamon and of course molasses.
They are a soft tea bun with big flavours that leaves a lovely taste in your mouth.
Try making these delicious molasses buns they only take a few minutes to make and fifteen minutes to bake.
I remember when I was a young girl when my mom or dad made molasses buns we were so excited! These molasses buns was a treat, I can remember pouring extra molasses over the top with lots of melted butter on them. ? Sometimes we would make three different types, one batch with raisins another with fat pork and plain.
I was told Molasses buns are also called ” Khaki Buns, pork bangbelly, old time molasses buns, jay buns, so many names from different parts of Newfoundland.
I hope I’ve convinced you to make these delicious molasses buns and if you like a little more heat you can add extra spices in them and if you like to have them bigger make twelve or a double batch. They also would be nice shaped like a scone and drizzled with vanilla icing with a little bit of lemon zest. Now I’m hungry for them” they also go lovely with a nice cup of tea.
Last but not least, they are good for work or school lunches, just wrap them or put them in a little container with the butter already on them. After you can warm them again in the microwave 30 seconds, enjoy.
Thank you for stopping by and please leave us a message before you go we would love to hear from you.
I have been making molasses buns for my husband to take on their moose hunting/salmon fishing trips for years. For their salmon fishing trip this year, I used your recipe. They were the BEST ever!!! I even had a request yesterday, from my husband’s brother, to be sure to make those molasses buns for their upcoming moose hunting trip.
Hi Brenda: Thank you so much for your message and for visiting my website, this is so great I’m glad they are enjoying them and that you found my recipe. My Mom have been making these for years for us and this is one of my reasons for starting Bonita’s Kitchen to help anyone that is looking for our Traditional Newfoundland Recipes. Have a lovely Thanksgiving Weekend ? Bonita
Hello Bonita..my very first attempt today!
They are so delicious and the passed the Newfie boyfriend test!! Yayyy 🙂
Thank you for this easy and variated recipe. So flavourful and you can’t eat just one!…well, unless you make them as large as I did..haha
Hi Shelley: Thank you for your message and for visiting my website, I’m so glad you and your boyfriend enjoyed those molasses tea buns. 🙂 Have a lovely weekend. Bonita
Just made a delightful batch .. 20 plain molasses buns. Love the recipe! Thank you, Bonita… It won’t be my last. Yum.
HI: Carol thank you so much for your lovely message, I’m so glad you are enjoying our cultural recipes. These little tea buns are so lovely and they are great when you are expecting company, quick and easy to make. :)Have a lovely day. Bonita
Hi Bonita
I can’t thank you enough for your recipe. They are delicious and very much like the ones my nanny in Stephenville used to make when I was a little girl.
I actually tried to get my nanny’s recipe many years ago. Since she made them from scratch so she couldn’t tell me the measurements for the ingredients. I tried measuring everything she put in them but when I made them they were not how I remembered them tasting. Anyway, now thanks to you I feel like I have a recipe that is very much like my nanny’s. I will be making them for my grown children and grandkids.
Hi Jeannine: You are very welcome and thank you so much for your lovely message and for visiting our website. I can relate to your message, over these last 4 years I have asked many of our elders for recipes they used when they were young and every answer is the same. I never used a recipe I always made it the some way and by memory, this don’t work with most of our generation they need a recipe and something to give to their kids and grandkids. I started Bonita’s Kitchen for those reasons my kids would say to me mom can you show me how to make this or that and I didn’t have recipes, so I guess now I do and over 160 recipe now posted to youtube and my website. Thank you once again for your recipe and please check out my other recipes you may enjoy too. 🙂 Bonita
Hi Bonita,
One of the first items I purchase when I go home is lassy buns. They are my favourite. Another Newfie friend of mine asked me if I had a recipe and I found yours. So I made these today for the first time. Delish!!! I’m looking forward to trying other recipes of yours. And I’ll pass the word! Thanks so much!
Grace
Hi Grace: Thank you so much for your lovely message and for visiting my channel,I’m so glad you found us and your enjoying my recipes. Thank you for passing my website along to your family and friends, Enjoy Bonita
Thank you so much for preserving the past ?. There are so many things that we think we will always remember but time dulls the edges. This is a happy blast from the past in my Nan’s kitchen – such a warm memory. Now to get a good jam jam recipe!! ?
Hi Juanita, Thank you for your message and for stopping by, I’m so glad you enjoyed our recipe and I loved your story. I do have a recipe for Blueberry Jam Jams on here I haven’t got the link for you but just use the search bar. I hope this helps and enjoy. 🙂 Bonita
Hi Bonita,
I have a recipe for my Nannies molasses bread and have made it a few times. I was wondering why there is no yeast in the recipe for your molasses buns ? Do they come out puffy or more dense, like a bagel ? I guess I could use Nan’s recipe and do half of it bread and the other half buns. I am enjoying your website and will be trying more of your recipes to hopefully pass down my Newfie traditional meals to my sons.
Thx
Shawn
Hi Shawn: Thank you for your message and for stopping by, the recipes are two different styles. I have a recipe here as well for molasses bread with yeast https://youtu.be/ujOU6XE0xss but the molasses buns it a tea bun not a bread bun. I hope this helps and if you wish you can make bread molasses buns with your nans recipe if you wish. Thank you and have a wonderful day. 🙂 Bonita
Hi Bonita,
Thanks for getting back to me. I’m gonna try your molasses tea bun recipe and the hard tack bread. It’s hard to find in the grocery store, so I’m just gonna make it and vacuum seal it. Thanks for the link on molasses bread as well.
Shawn
That is so wonderful I’m glad to help and thank you once again for stopping by and vacuum sealing the hard tack bread will be great. 🙂 Enjoy Bonita
My family has a traditional recipe for molasses drop cookies that uses bacon fat. I think that if and when I make this recipe, I will use bacon-fat as it seems traditional in molasses recipes from “Down East”. My people came from PEI.
Hi Wilf, thank you for your message and for stopping by, bacon fat some lovely to replace pork fat for sure. It sounds like it would be lovely. 🙂 Bonita
Hey Bonita, made these buns and they were delicious. I have also made your strawberry rhubarb jam many times and everyone goes crazy for it! I have one question with the buns. When sifting the flour / sea salt, the salt is bigger so it stayed in the sifter? Am I supposed to toss the salt in with the mixture?
Hi Natasha. Thank you for your message and I’m so glad you are enjoying our channel and recipes, when sifting the dry ingredients if the salt is not going through just toss it in, sometimes our sea salt is bigger grains and thats totally ok. Thank you once again for stopping by 🙂 Bonita
Hi Bonita.
I made these buns today and they are absolutely delicious…the best buns ever!
Hi Debbie, Thank you for your message and for stopping by….I’m so glad you made and enjoyed our molasses buns recipe. This is a old recipe, one our elders would make at these once a week. Thank you for letting us know and we post a NEW recipe and video every Sunday is you wish to stop back or join our email list to get a notice each week. 🙂 Bonita
Hi Bonita, I have tried many molasses bun recipes over the years but I was never totally satisfied with the results. Today I tried your recipe and all I can say is “DA DEAR LORD, THEY’RE DELICIOUS”
Needless to say I have finally found my go to recipe for molasses buns and I can’t wait for my hubby to get home to try them, they are his favorite and I know he is going to absolutely love them as much as I do. Thank you for sharing your recipes and keeping the newfoundland traditions alive.
I made plain and raisin today but I’ll definitely be trying the pork as well!
Hi Debbie: Thank you so much for stopping by and for letting us know you made and enjoyed our recipe. Molasses buns was a popular recipe years ago here in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is so lovely to hear you love them and thank you for sharing that with us. The fat pork molasses buns is one our elders enjoyed eating, but mine is the raisin ones.
We post a NEW recipe every Sunday if you wish to stop back, join our news letter to get a reminder.
Have a lovely day!!!
Bonita