This Christmas Star Bread recipe with a unique chocolate chestnut filling will quickly become your favorite holiday bread. Flavorful and so impressive!
2tablespoons turbinado sugaroptional, for sprinkling
Instructions
The sweet dough:
In a large mixing bowl (of a stand mixer) combine 1½ cups of flour with yeast. Set aside.
Combine milk, potato, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat on medium heat until butter starts to melt.
Remove from heat and add the orange zest.
Add to flour mixture and mix on low speed for about one minute.
Add eggs and continue beating until well incorporated (2-3 minutes). Scrape down sides of bowl.
Switch to dough hook.
Add the rest of the flour (3 cups) and mix for about 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Alternately, you can knead by hand. See note.
Divide the dough into 3 equal balls.
Place the balls of dough in a lightly greased bowl. Make sure to turn the dough in order to completely coat it with the grease.
Cover with plastic wrap.
Let rise for about 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
While waiting, make the filling.
Chocolate chestnut filling:
When processing the pureed chestnuts in the blender, do not add the cooking liquid. Puree the chestnuts, then add the honey, espresso, evaporated milk, rum, cocoa, room temperature butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, orange zest and a pinch of salt.
Blend until smooth. If too thick, add a few tablespoons of the leftover liquid from boiling the chestnuts.
Add 4 ounces of melted and slightly cooled dark chocolate.
Blend again until it becomes a thick paste that is smooth and creamy.
Taste and if necessary, adjust the level of sweetness.
Stacking the star bread:
Preheat oven to 375° F (190°C).
On a very lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, with a floured rolling pin, roll out one ball of dough until you get a 12-inch circle.
Brush 1 tablespoon of room temperature butter over the entire surface of the dough.
Spread about 1 cup of the chocolate chestnut filling over the entire surface of the dough.
Slide the parchment paper with the first layer of the star bread on a large baking sheet.
On another lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, with a floured rolling pin, roll out the second ball of dough to a 12-inch circle.
Gently remove from the parchment paper. Transfer and place it directly on top of the first layer.
Brush with 1 tablespoon of room temperature butter and spread another 1 cup of the filling over the top.
Finally, use the same parchment paper and roll out the final ball of dough. Remember to lightly flour both the rolling pin and the parchment paper.
Once again, gently transfer and place it directly on top of the second layer.
Slicing the star bread:
Place a glass, cup, or round cookie cutter, with a diameter of 3 inches, on the center of the dough.
Use a very sharp knife, a bench scraper or a pizza cutter, to cut the dough from the edge to the center into 16 even strips.
More specifically, begin by cutting the dough into 4 equal parts like in the photo above.
Working with each section, first cut in half; then cut each of these newly formed sections in half one more time.
Repeat with the other three sections.
Once this process is complete, you will create 16 equal strips of dough.
Twisting the strips of dough:
With your fingers, pick up two side by side strips of dough. Gently make two complete twists away from each other. That is to say, you are twisting one strip in a clockwise direction, and the other counterclockwise.
Press the ends together. Continue until you have formed 8 points.
Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest in a draft-free space until almost double in size for 25- 30 minutes.
Baking the bread:
With a pastry brush, lightly brush the entire surface of the bread with egg wash. If desired, sprinkle with 1-2 tablespoons of turbinado sugar.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool down.
Notes
Prep time does not include inactive time.
Always test your yeast to make sure it is still active.
When kneading the yeast dough in the stand mixer, it should pull away from the bowl. If not add 1-2 tablespoons of flour.
The texture of the chestnut filling should be thick and creamy. If too thick, add a few tablespoons of the leftover liquid from boiling the chestnuts. If too thin, add a little almond flour.
Roll out one ball at a time while leaving the rest of the balls covered in plastic wrap to prevent the dough from drying out.
Brushing the surface of the bread with egg wash ensures a golden shiny crust.
Use a very large baking sheet as the bread needs plenty of room to rise properly.
As every oven heats up differently, place a piece of foil loosely over the top of the bread if it is browning too quickly. Also consider lowering the oven to 350° F (175° C).
Best served the day it is made.
The leftover chocolate spread can be used as a decadent breakfast spread. Refrigerate and use within 3 days.
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is just a rough estimate and variations can occur depending on the specific ingredients used.