Cinnamon Star Bread From Kaf Recipes

CINNAMON STAR BREAD FROM KAF

Steps:

• To make the dough: Combine all of the dough ingredients and mix and knead - by hand, mixer, or bread machine - to make a soft, smooth dough.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 60 minutes, until it's nearly doubled in bulk.
• Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, cover the balls, and allow them to rest for 15 minutes.
• On a lightly greased or floured work surface, roll one piece of dough into a 10" circle. Place the circle on a piece of parchment, brush a thin coat of beaten egg on the surface, then evenly sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon-sugar, leaving 1/4" of bare dough around the perimeter.
• Roll out a second circle the same size as the first, and place it on top of the filling-covered circle. Repeat the layering process - egg, cinnamon sugar, dough circle - leaving the top circle bare.
• Place a 2 1/2" to 3" round cutter in the center of the dough circle as a guide. With a bench knife or sharp knife, cut the circle into 16 equal strips, from the cutter to the edge, through all the layers.
• Using two hands, pick up two adjacent strips and twist them away from each other twice so that the top side is facing up again. Repeat with the remaining strips of dough so that you end up with eight pairs of strips.
• Pinch the pairs of strips together to create a star-like shape with eight points. Remove the cutter.
• Transfer the star on the parchment to a baking sheet. Cover the star and let it rise until it becomes noticeably puffy, about 45 minutes.
• While the star is rising, preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Brush the star with a thin coat of the beaten egg. Bake it for 12 to 15 minutes, until it's nicely golden with dark brown cinnamon streaks; the center should register 200°F on a digital thermometer.
• Remove the loaf from the oven and allow it to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
• Yield: one star loaf, about 8 to 12 servings.

KAF SOURDOUGH CINNAMON APPLE FLATBREAD

Steps:

• Combine all of the dough ingredients, and mix and knead them - by hand, mixer, or bread machine - to make a smooth, fairly soft dough.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, and let it rise for 1 hour. Gently deflate it, and allow it to rise for another hour; it should have at least doubled in bulk, or come close to it. While the dough is rising, prepare the topping.
• For the topping: Core the unpeeled apples, and cut each into 8 wedges; an apple corer/slicer works well here. Cut each of the wedges into 3 pieces; you'll have 7 to 7 1/2 cups (about 27 ounces) of apple chunks.
• Put the chunks in a shallow microwave-safe bowl, and drizzle with the boiled cider and maple syrup. Don't have boiled cider or maple syrup? Drizzle with 1/3 cup honey, 1/4 cup agave syrup, or the sweetener of your choice.
• Microwave the apples till they've softened, but still hold their shape. In our microwave here, that took about 9 minutes.
• Drain the apples, reserving the juice. Set them aside to cool while the dough is rising.
• Lightly grease an 18" x 13" rimmed baking sheet (half-sheet pan), or two 9" x 13" pans. Drizzle olive oil atop the spray; the spray keeps the bread from sticking, while the olive oil gives the bottom crust great crunch and flavor.
• Gently deflate the risen dough, then pull and shape the dough into a rough rectangle, and place it in the pan. (Or divide it in half, and put in the two smaller pans.) Pat and stretch to fill the bottom of the pan. The dough will shrink back; as soon as it doe, cover it and walk away for 10 to 15 minutes. Return, and pat it towards the edges of the pan again. You may have to give it another rest; that's OK. Your ultimate goal is to stretch the dough to cover the bottom of the pan, with perhaps just the very corners uncovered.
• Arrange the apple chunks atop the dough.
• Mix 1/4 cup of the reserved syrup with 1/4 cup Baker's Cinnamon Filling or 1/4 cup cinnamon-sugar. The Baker's Cinnamon Filling will yield a richer, creamier topping. Drizzle the syrup over the apples.
• Cover the bread, and let it rise for 1 hour, till it's nice and puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Uncover the bread, and sprinkle with coarse white sparkling sugar, if desired. Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, till the crust is golden brown around the edges and feels set in the center. Remove it from the oven, turn it out onto a rack, and serve warm.