Pains au Lait - Testing

I've started to experiment with coffee cake, which we mostly eat with coffee in the morning. Which seems like a very Continental thing to do, so I searched to find out what exactly is considered a Viennoiserie; I now have a list! Pains au Lait is a simple sweet bread favorite to children, usually served with Nutella. Of course, this means I have to make home-made Nutella, next.
I've taken some liberties in interpreting these recipes, so the level of experimentation is more than following instructions. Whatever happens, I'll eat it!

0 - Try it with Chocolate Spread until you can get hazelnuts to make home-made Nutella.
1 - Never having eaten (not that I can recall) Pain au lait from a bakery, I'm not precisely sure what I'm aiming for. I'm pleased to say that my first attempt produced little loaves that rose. The texture is a bit dense, but that might be fine with chocolate spread or nutella (when I make either). I only used egg white to brush the tops and, in a covered container overnight, the crust feels sticky... which is fine, but is that right? Next time, I will brush with milk, then the time after that, a combination of the egg white and milk, just to see. Oh, and I'll also increase the amount of sugar; I suspect a bit more sweetness would be welcome.

https://cuisine.journaldesfemmes.fr/recette/342946-pains-au-lait
https://www.yumelise.fr/pains-lait-extra-moelleux/

This is all by weight:
500 grams flour (400gr?)
10 grams dry active yeast
1 rounded tsp of salt
35 70 grams white sugar
1 egg yolk
80 g of butter
250 milliliters of milk
1 egg white, beaten, a Tbsp of milk

In a large bowl mix together the flour, yeast, salt and sugar. Create a well in the center.
Melt the butter then warm the milk in it but to no more than 110F. Quickly whisk in the egg, then pour into the flour well.
Mix and knead until the dough coalesces into a sticky ball.
Cover with a damp towel and leave in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles in size, maybe an hour, depending on ambient temperature.
Loosen the dough and weigh it; this will help to divide it to make 12 little buns. Divide the weight by 12 (it should be about 75gr each). Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut into 12 pieces of about 75gr.
With minimal handling, roll each piece into a ball. Again, using as little flour as possible, roll each ball into a fat sausage and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Score each little bun with three slashes of a sharp blade or lame.
Again, allow to rise until double its size in a warm spot, about 40 minutes.
Whisk the egg white and brush the buns with it (try not to let any dribble down onto the paper).
Bake 15-20 minutes in a 350F oven. Let them cool at least 5 minutes. After 20 minutes, wrap in a dish cloth and keep in a sealed tin to enjoy whence thou wilt.