Do you want to build a snowman snowflake? Okay I know the whole Frozen thing is getting old and overhyped but lil’ bun has been singing that song nonstop for the past few days and it’s been stuck in my head. I WOULD be more irritated about it but her singing that song sparked a creative nerve and I came out with this gorgeous looking snowflake bread!
I know snowflakes are supposed to be white but I decided to make it chocolate flavored because I figured that it would be funner than plain bread. Oh and before I forget, instead of sandwiching brown sugar between the layers, you can sandwich jam or a spread of your choice in it instead. Actually, it’ll probably end up looking even more decadent if you do that because the color of the spread will peak through in the design!
Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1/3 cup warm milk of choice
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
1/2 cup warm water or more milk for a richer taste
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
3 tablespoons oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Bake!
1. Prepare the dough in a bread machine according to your manufacturer’s instructions.
If you don’t have a bread machine, combine the yeast, warm milk, warm water, oil and a teaspoon of sugar in a measuring cup; set aside to foam. In a large bowl sift together the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Add yeast mixture to the large bowl and stir until combined. Knead the dough for 3-5 minutes on a lightly floured surface and let it rise for 1.5 hours until it doubles in size.
2. When the dough is ready, divide it into four pieces. Roll each dough out into a 1/4″ thick circle and sprinkle some brown sugar on top of 3 of them. Stack each circle on top of each other making sure that the one without the brown sugar topping goes on last. Slice the circle with a knife into 16 equal pieces.
3. Take two slices that are beside each other and twist them in OPPOSITE directions. Then pinch the two ends together so they hold in place. Let the loaf rise covered for 30 minutes in a warm place.
4. Bake at 350F for 20 – 25 minutes until the bottom is golden brown. Then munch!
Initially I was planing to dust a nice generous coating of powdered sugar on top of the snowflake bread to give it that white colour but it wasn’t until it was done baking that I realized that I used up all the powdered sugar for a different baking project so I had to settle for it looking like this. Mother deer came home and said that it looked gorgeous.
Wow this is so beautiful! 🙂