[Braided Chocolate Ganache (Nutella) Bread] An Easy-to-make bread with a beautiful star shpe

When somebody showed me a photo of this beautifully twisted bread at work, I already was decided to bake this bread on that night. And, of course, I did. I must have said before that baking is, for me,  not only for eating the end result, but more for enjoying the process of baking. I enjoy piping macarons, shaping bread, and decorating cupcakes. 

Therefore, it was only natural for me to like this star bread recipe, as soon as I set my eyes on it. Believe me, it looks more complicated than it looks. I made two in a row. I had to substitute (?) Nutella with real chocolate ganache, because of Pablo's allergy to all the tree nuts and peanuts. As you might have known, Nutella is a chocolate hazelnut spread. Pablo had a hard time accepting the fact that he couldn't have Nutella. 

Instead, I've been making chocolate ganache which is a pure chocolate spread, as a substitute for Nutella. This time was not an exception. I made chocolate ganache to spread between two discs of bread dough. I am glad I made chocolate spread myself  because Pablo loved the bread a lot. When I made it for the first time, I doubled the ingredients and made two braided chocolate ganache breads with two different star shapes. We ate one at home, and I brought the other one to work where the bread was a big hit. It's surprisingly easy to make, but it sure is a crowd pleaser. If you use Nutella spread instead of making your own, the process of making this bread becomes even easier.

Oh, by the way, I used the "dough" function of my bread machine up to the first rise. You can do it in an analogue way which is totally fine.

This braided bread is very soft, tender, but not so sweet. I would say it's a perfect breakfast bread. :)

Here goes the recipe.

(adapted from Good Home Design)

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour;

1/2 teaspoon of yeast;

1cup of water;

1 teaspoon of salt;

1 tablespoon of sugar;

some Nutella (or chocolate Ganache cream: recipe will follow)

cornmeal;

1 egg;

Directions

1. I put flour, yeast, water, salt and sugar at once in the bowl of the bread machine.

Alternatively, 

2. Dissolve yeast with a quarter of a cup filled water, poured into a small bowl. Let it rest for 10 minutes.

3. In another bowl mix in the appropriate amount of flour, salt, and sugar. 

4. Add the yeast and mix at a low speed. Smoothly turn the speed to medium and keep turning for 6-7 minutes.

5. Cover it with a plastic wrap  in a warm place it will double in size.

 6. Roll half of the dough in order to make a circle. 

7. Place it on a parchment-lined or silicon-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle the sheet beforehand with cornmeal so that it will not stick to the baking sheet.

Take the Nutella or chocolate gahache cream and pour an even layer on the surface.

half an inch of margin of dough all around, should be left.

Place another roll off dough (Nutella free) on top. 

Afterward, place it on a lined baking sheet.

Use a scissor to cut the dough down the middle, but keeping one end intact. 

Turn the cut side toward the top, then twist the ends of the dough overtop each other. 

Do this for every cut you made. 

Cover it with plastic wrap and let the dough sit in a dry place for 20 minutes or so.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180 °C)

Brush with egg wash. 

Then, bake at this temperature for about 20 minutes.

Raise the oven temperature to 425°F (210 °C) and bake for another 5-7 minutes.

It's a delicious bread everyone likes!

And now here is the recipe for the Chocolate ganache.

(adapted from Martha Stewart Living)

INGREDIENTS

2/3 cup heavy cream

6 ounces semisweet chocolate (or 180 g), finely chopped

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

DIRECTIONS

a. Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan. 

b. Remove from heat, and add chocolate and corn syrup. Let stand for 5 minutes. 

c. Whisk until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, and let cool, stirring often. Use immediately

It's not difficult at all, is it?

Enjoy baking and the end-result!

Braided Chocolate Bread