Christmas Star Bread Recipes

CHRISTMAS STAR TWISTED BREAD

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in warm water until foamy. In another bowl, combine milk, egg, butter, sugar and salt; add yeast mixture and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough., Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 4 portions. Roll 1 portion into a 12-in. circle. Place on a greased 14-in. pizza pan. Spread with one-third of the jam to within 1/2 in. of edge. Repeat twice, layering dough and jam, and ending with final portion of dough., Place a 2-1/2-in. round cutter on top of the dough in center of circle (do not press down). With a sharp knife, make 16 evenly spaced cuts from round cutter to edge of dough, forming a starburst. Remove cutter; grasp 2 adjacent strips and rotate twice outward. Pinch ends together. Repeat with remaining strips., Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°. Bake until golden brown, 18-22 minutes. (Watch during final 5 minutes for any dripping.) Remove from oven; brush with melted butter, avoiding areas where jam is visible. Cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

STAR BREAD

Steps:

• Combine the warm milk, water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl and let it proof for 5 minutes until foamy.
• Add the proofed yeast, butter, egg, salt, and 1 cup of the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix using the paddle attachment until combined. Add another cup of flour and mix in until smooth.
• Switch to the dough hook and knead in the remaining flour, about 1/2 cup at a time, until a smooth, soft dough forms. Knead for 5 minutes on medium speed, then transfer to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm spot for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until doubled in size.
• Punch down the dough and divide into 4 even pieces. Roll into balls.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out one ball of dough into a 10-inch circle. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with a piece of parchment paper.
• Spread 1/4 cup of the nutella on the dough, then repeat with the next ball of dough, carefully placing it on top of the first layer of dough and nutella. Spread it with another 1/4 cup of the nutella. Repeat with the third ball of dough and remaining nutella. Roll out the final ball of dough and lay it on top.
• Use a 3-inch cup, jar, or small bowl as a guide in the center of the stacked dough. Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to slice lines through all four layers of dough in towards the guide, leaving a 3-inch circle of dough in the center. It's easiest to cut 4 lines on each side first, then another 4 lines between the first four, dividing the dough into 8 segments, then between each of those so you end up with 16 sections.
• Working with 2 sections at a time, twist the dough away from each other TWICE, then pinch the ends together really, really well. If you don't really pinch them together well, the bread will start to untwist and spoil the effect as it bakes. Repeat to create an 8-pointed star or snowflake shape.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F while the bread rests for 20 minutes. Don't let it rise too much longer than that or it will lose it's shape when baked.
• Brush the dough with an egg wash made by whisking the egg with a tablespoon of water or milk. Bake for 25-28 minutes until golden brown on top. Let cool for 5-10 minutes, then dust with powdered sugar. Serve warm.

STAR BREAD

Steps:

• Add milk to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and add cubed unsalted butter to the hot milk, stirring until the butter melts completely. Pour the hot milk mixture into a stand mixer bowl and set it aside to cool to below 110°F.
• When the milk mixture is cool enough, stir in the instant yeast and let it sit for 5 minutes to rehydrate.
• In a medium mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, and salt, stir to distribute evenly. Transfer the flour mixture to the stand mixer bowl with the warm liquid mixture, and knead with the dough hook on speed 2 for about 7 - 10 minutes. The dough should start pulling away from the side of the bowl.
• Oil a glass bowl and your hands. Scrape the dough out of the mixing bowl and shape it into a ball in your hands and place it in the oiled bowl. Cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1 - 2 hours until at least double in size.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and cut into 4 equal portions. Shape into balls.
• Roll one dough ball out into a circle about 9"-10" in diameter. Place it on a piece of parchment paper and spread 2 tablespoons of apple butter over it. Roll another dough ball out to the same size as the first one and place it on top, spread another 2 tablespoons of apple butter over it. Repeat for the 3rd and 4th dough ball. You should end up with 4 layers of dough and 3 layers of apple butter.
• Mark a 3" circle in the middle with the back of a round cookie cutter or a cup. Cut the dough into 16 sections leaving the 3" circle in the middle untouched.
• Twist two sections away from each other and press the end together to form the star point. You should end up with 8-star points. Cover and let rise for about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Beat 1 large egg with a tablespoon of milk to make the egg wash. Lightly brush egg wash over the top of the bread and bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.
• Remove the bread from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
• Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

STAR CHRISTMAS BREAD

Steps:

• Heat 200ml of milk and butter together in a microwave or saucepan until temperature reaches 110°F or 45°C (warm to the touch). Add the yeast and let stand for 10 minutes, until frothy on top.
• While yeast is activating, combine flour, sugar and salt in a separate bowl.
• Create a well in the centre of the flour. Add the yeast mixture, egg yolks and vanilla into the well. Mix into the flour until combined.
• Knead by hand for 10-12 minutes until dough is soft and elastic. If the dough is too dry: warm up the extra milk, create a well in the dough and add in half of the milk. Knead and if you still feel it's still too dry, add in the remaining amount of milk.FOR A STAND MIXER: Mix for 5 minutes on medium speed until dough is soft and elastic.
• Lightly oil a large bowl with a pastry brush or your fingertips. Place dough into bowl, turning once to coat in the oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place for about 2-3 hours, or until doubled in size.(To check if dough is ready, gently press two fingers into dough. If an indentation remains, dough has not risen enough.)
• Punch dough down, cover and let rest for an additional 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
• While dough is rising, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Get your butter ready, make sure it is softened and spreadable. Then, in a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
• When dough is ready, divide the dough into 4 pieces. Lightly flour a clean work surface and use a rolling pin to roll one ball out into a 12 inch/30 cm disc.
• Place a plate on top and cut away any excess dough around the plate with a sharp knife. Remove the plate. Place dough disc onto prepared baking sheet.
• Spread dough with 1/3 of the softened butter and 1/3 of the brown sugar/cinnamon mixture. This is your bottom layer (the base).
• Roll out the second ball of dough, like above, and place on top of the bottom layer. Spread with 1/3 of the butter and brown sugar/cinnamon mixture.Repeat with the rest of the dough, layering each with butter/sugar/cinnamon. (The top dough will not have any butter or brown sugar/cinnamon on it.)
• Place a small cup in the middle of the layered dough and very lightly mark a ring in the centre to use as a guide.
• Cut the dough first with four lines: 3 o'clock, 6o'clock, 9o'clock and 12 o'clock. Cut each quarter into 2 pieces, then cut each of those into 2 pieces so you end up with 16 strands connected to the middle circle.
• Take 2 strands that are side-by-side and twist them away from each other two times. Connect the two strands at the end, pinching the ends together to form a point. Do this with all of the strands and create a star flower!
• Cover star bread loosely with a damp cloth or towel and let rest one more time for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Beat egg whites leftover from the yolk and brush whites evenly over the surface of the bread.
• Bake bread for 20 minutes or until lightly browned and golden.
• Decorate with powdered sugar (confectioners sugar or icing sugar), and a little ground cinnamon.Serve warm!