In my last post I mentioned that I am trying to follow this AtoZChallenge and make recipes alphabetically everyday. I wasn’t sure if I could do this but I must say it has really helped me explore new recipes and try them out. Each day is an adventure trying to make something which is different from the regular food. I have actually made a list of recipes from A to Z 😉 Not that I make everything but try to make as much as I can.

Coming to the alphabet N, first thing that came to my mind was Nutella. Hence started the search for the recipe that would be perfect for the challenge 😉 I look at this challenge as not just making things alphabetically but also pushing myself to do something which is simple yet complicated. After thinking for a while I decided to make this Nutella Star Bread. Had made this one earlier but wasn’t very happy with the shape. After that hadn’t tried again. So thought it was the best time to give it a go. Its simple as its just a Nutella bread but complicated as getting the shape right is a task. But if you get it right, its an effort worthwhile. And this time I made myself proud. I can say I did a fairly good job 😉

The result made me happy and also the kids as who doesn’t love Nutella 😉

Ingredients:

• 3 cups Plain Flour/Maida
• 2 tbsp  Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/3 cup Butter softened
• 1 cup Warm Milk
• 2 tsp (7 g) Instant Yeast
• 1 Cup Nutella

Method

• In a bowl, add in the milk, yeast and sugar. Give it a stir. Let it rest for 10 minutes until the yeast proofs well.
• To the flour, add salt, softened butter and the yeast mixture and using a spatula combine together until you get a sticky mass.
• Then transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough for around 15 mins until it is soft and elastic. If using a stand mixer simply knead for 5 mins.
• Oil a bowl and place the dough in it to rise for first proofing – 1 hour.
• After the proofing time, punch down the dough to de-gas. Softly knead it and divide evenly into four portions. Roll out one portion into a circle with 10 inch diameter whilst keeping the rest covered to prevent it from drying.
• Take 1/4 cup of Nutella and spread it all around the circle leaving just an inch of gap at the end.
• Roll the next portion too into a circle and place it on top of the Nutella layer. Repeat the steps until you reach the bare top and you will have 4 layers of circles with 3 layers of filling.
• Take a cookie cutter or any lid or simply a glass which is 2.5 inch in diameter and make an indent in the centre. This is the centre of the star and then make 16 slits across the dough .
• Twist the adjacent two sections outwards twice and pinch the edges to seal together.
• Cover with a cloth and allow it for second proofing – 30 mins.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200°C. After the second proofing, if you find that the bread has lost some shape then again seal the edges first then brush the bread with some milk and bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown.
• Apply some butter once baked and dust with icing sugar (optional) and simply enjoy.

Tips

1. Make sure the milk is warm else the yeast will not proof well. If the yeast does not proof nicely, do not use that one. The milk has to be warm and not hot. Proofing of the yeast is the most important step for making any kind of bread.
2. Make sure you knead the dough really well and keep it in a warm place. Give it enough time to rest. Do not rush.
3. You can try different variations of fillings with this bread like Jam, Cheese, Pizza toppings, herbs or anything that you like.

If you give this a try, make sure you give me a feedback 🙂