A Filipino variation on cinnamon roll. Ube swirl bread is a soft yeasted dough filled with sweet coconut and purple paste.
Ube is the Tagalog word for purple yam. It is pronounced “ooo-bay.”
Ube is a super popular tuber in the Philippines, widely used in desserts such as: ube ice cream, ginataang bilo-bilo, and ube cheese pandesal.
While purple yam is a relative of sweet potato, they’re not the same tuber. It is also not the same as taro root, although they are often mistakenly used interchangeably.
Ingredients
There are two components to this bread roll: yeast dough and ube paste filling. The yeast dough is your standard enriched cinnamon roll dough made with milk, butter, and flour and eggs. To dough includes sour cream for added tangy richness.
Ideally, the ube paste filling should be made with purple yam, coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and butter. However, fresh purple yam is very difficult to find in the United States. It is easier to find frozen ube, powered purple yam, or prepared ube jam (called ube halaya).
In this case, it is totally suitable to use purple sweet potato as an alternative! Thought it is not the same as ube, it works very well in this recipe.
Just like any other tuber, purple yams and purple sweet potatoes can be boiled, steamed, or baked. Once cooked, they don’t really taste like much. Its flavors are enhanced once it’s mixed with sweeteners and liquids.
I prefer the steaming method. I find it’s the fastest and cleanest way to get the job done. Steaming also helps to retain that vibrant purple color.
Prepare From Scratch Filling
- To make the filling, peel the outer skin of the purple sweet potato and cut the tuber into roughly equal chunks.
- Steam the purple yam until it can easily be pierced with a fork. Cool slightly and then mash it!
- Add sweetened condensed milk.
- Add coconut milk and mix together until well incorporate.
Recipe Tip
Use prepared ube halaya instead of making ube paste! Purchase jars or cans at Filipino supermarkets, large Asian grocery chains, or online.
Assembly
This ube swirl bread is earthy, nutty, sweet, and visually striking. I’ll always be in awe of that all natural purple filling. This recipe does not contact any ube extract or artificial food coloring.
You can bake it into a round like this, or use the same recipe to create individual rolls (like these ube bread rolls). It has quickly become a breakfast favorite in my house and I can’t wait to make another batch!
Serving Suggestions
For the best texture and flavor, enjoy ube swirl bread within 24 hours of baking. Fresh bread may be stored at room temperature for up to three days in a covered container left in a cool, dim place.
Eat bread at room temperature. I prefer this bread warm! Gently reheat in a microwave or toaster oven.
- To reheat in the microwave, place one bread slice on a microwave safe plate along with a mug filled with about a quarter to half cup of water. Cook for 20 second intervals until bread is soft and warm. *The cup of water will prevent the bread from getting gummy and dense!
- Alternatively, reheat in a toaster oven until warm.
More Ube Recipes
Ube Swirl Bread (Purple Yam Swirl Bread)
Ingredients
Ube Paste:
- 1 ½ pounds purple yam, peeled (or use purple sweet potato)
- 5 Tablespoons canned coconut milk, unsweetened, well shaken
- 4 Tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
Dough:
- 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast, (7 g)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, (50 g), divided
- 1 cup whole milk, warmed to 110 °F
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, , (76 g) melted
- ¼ cup sour cream, (58 g)room temp
- 1 large egg, room temp
- 4 cups all-purpose flour, (520 g)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, (3 g)
Filling:
- 1 cup ube paste, (recipe above)
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened
Instructions
Ube Paste:
- Wash and peel purple yams. Slice into equal sized large chunks. Place in a steam basket. Set over pot of simmering water. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes until yams can easily be pierced with a fork.
- Set aside and allow yams to slightly cool. Mash yams with condensed milk and coconut milk. Mix may be a little chunky. If you would like a smoother paste, pulse in a food processor. Keep chilled until ready to use.
Dough:
- In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tsp sugar in warm milk. Let sit for 5 minutes to allow yeast to activate.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together remaining 1/4 cup sugar, melted butter, sour cream, and egg. Add yeast mixture and stir to combine.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Attach dough hook to stand mixer. Add flour mixture to mixing bowl 1 cup at a time with the mixing running on low. Once all the flour has been added, increase speed to medium and knead for 2 minutes.
- Transfer dough to a lightly greased large bowl. Cover and allow dough to rest for one hour until dough has doubled in volume.
Filling and Assembly:
- Combine 1 cup of ube paste with softened butter. Set aside until ready to fill dough.
- Grease a 10-inch round cake pan (or 9-inch) and line bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Punch dough risen dough and transfer to a lightly floured work surface. Roll dough out to a 21 x 12-inch rectangle. Evenly spread ube paste over rolled dough, leaving an ½-inch border along the sides.
- Starting at the longer end, roll dough into a log. Pinch seams together and place log seam-side down on work surface. Use a sharp knife to slice log in half lengthwise, leaving about 1-inch uncut on top.
- Carefully twist the two pieces to allow the filling to face up. Gently braid the two pieces together. Take the two ends and pinch together to form a circle. Place in prepared cake pan. Cover and allow dough to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes until dough has puffed up.
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Remove cover and bake dough for 40 minutes. If dough is browning too fast, cover with foil to prevent bread from burning. Rotate pan and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until internal temperature of dough registers at least 185° F on a kitchen thermometer. Allow bread to remain in pan for 15 minutes before unmolding. Cool bread on wire rack. Serve bread warm, toasted, or at room temperature.
Notes
- Ideally, the ube paste filling should be made with purple yam, coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and butter. However, fresh purple yam is very difficult to find in the United States. It is easier to find frozen ube, powered purple yam, or prepared ube jam (called ube halaya).
- Use prepared ube halaya instead of making ube paste! Purchase jars or cans at Filipino supermarkets, large Asian grocery chains, or online.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Mmmm looks delish! Will have to try this one day. Have you made an ube macapuno cake? Would love to try that if you do :)
Thank you very for the recipe. Made it and it was a success. Very yummy bread,we love purple yam
That’s wonderful to hear! Thanks for trying out the recipe!
This bread is beautiful! May i know what type of flour do you recommend to be used in this recipe? I was thinking bread flour since i want it to be chewy. Do you recommend it? Thanks!
I used all-purpose flour in this recipe. (I use the brand King Arthur Flour because it yields the most consistent results in my experience.)
I LOVEEE that purple swirl!!
Thank you!!
I almost want to serve this today because it looks perfect for Mardi Gras
So gorgeous! A few years ago I ate a pastry in Vietnam that looked almost as purple as the ume paste, but the entire thing was colored purple:) It tasted very good, perhaps overly sweet, but looked shocking… Your swirl bread looks unbelievably beautiful!
Just when you think you’ve tried everything something new and delicious pops up. Love this.
What a simply stunning bread!! I can’t get over the purple color :)
Thank you! It’s hard to believe the purple color is all natural! :)
Oh my gosh! What a beautiful bread and not one I’ve ever seen before (with your use of ingredients). Your step-by-step photo tutorial is wonderful too. Makes this bread less intimidating to recreate. Kudos!
Thanks so much!
What a gorgeous braid! Definitely need to try using Ube!
Thank you!
The colors are beautiful! I have never tried yam paste, but I now want too!
Thanks so much! It’s hard to believe the colors are all natural!
Looks like a great recipe, but those are purple sweet potatoes, not yams, just fyi.