FOOD
Leopard Print Bread Loaf
Take your leopard print obsession to new heights with this delicious chocolate-filled leopard print bread.
FOOD
Leopard Print Bread Loaf
Take your leopard print obsession to new heights with this delicious chocolate-filled leopard print bread.
Ingredients
Bread Starter
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons bread flour
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup water
Bread Dough
- 2 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 packet active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup warm whole milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon milk plus 1 teaspoon milk, divided
- 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
Steps
Bread Starter
- In a small saucepan, whisk together flour, milk and water.
- Bring to a simmer, whisking continuously until mix has thickened, about 6 to 8 minutes.
- Pour into a small heatproof bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside to cool slightly.
Bread Dough
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, yeast and salt, and mix well.
- Add egg, milk and cooled starter mix.
- Knead the mixture until it comes together, and continue for another few minutes.
- Add butter and knead for another 10 to 15 minutes until the dough becomes uniformly smooth and springy.
- Divide the dough into two parts, one slightly larger than the other. Roll the larger portion into a smooth ball and place it in a buttered bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap.
- Cut the remaining portion of dough into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other. Incorporate the cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of milk into the larger piece, kneading until you achieve a uniform light brown color.
- Form the dough into a smooth ball, and place into a buttered bowl then cover with plastic wrap.
- Incorporate the dark chocolate cocoa and espresso powders with a teaspoon of milk into the remaining dough ball, kneading well until you have a uniform dark brown color.
- Form the dough into a smooth ball, place into a buttered bowl, then cover with plastic wrap.
- Allow all three doughs to rise, covered, until they have doubled in size, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.
- Butter a 9x5-inch loaf pan well.
- Once doubled, remove each dough ball from its bowl one at a time and punch it down.
- Portion each ball of dough into seven equal parts, forming the parts into smooth balls and then covering all of the dough with plastic wrap to keep it moist.
- Take a light brown dough ball and roll it out into a small rectangle. Roll the long side of the rectangle up tightly to form a long log, taking care not to allow any air to become trapped inside.
- Next take a dark brown dough ball and roll it into a small rectangle, as long as the light brown log. Wrap the dark brown rectangle around the light brown one and set aside.
- Finally take one of the lightest dough balls and roll a rectangle. Roll the light and dark brown dough log inside of the rectangle and stretch a bit if necessary to match the length of the pan.
- Place the log in the pan and continue with the remaining dough in the same fashion.
- When all dough is rolled, cover the loaf pan in plastic wrap, set a sheet pan on top and set aside to rise for another 40 to 50 minutes.
- Halfway through the proof, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- When dough has risen again, remove the sheet pan and plastic wrap, brush the top of the loaf with whole milk and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.
- When loaf is done, remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then turn out loaf and finish the cooling process on a wire rack for at least one hour before slicing and serving.