I always wanted to use some cool adjective like “life altering” or “life changing” to one my creations. And, I finally have it. MIND BENDING! Ok, its not the same as changing the course of your life but it definitely makes you look differently…. at the bread at least. And, definitely for my toddler who was very fascinated by the waves and thus christened it “Zebra Bread”. From the mouth of babes and all that! :)
TF proudly holding the pan that she tucked the racks of dough into!
It started out as a minor craving on my part when I remembered making this pull apart bread. Savory as it was, I have learnt bakes run sweet after kids - both because they prefer that but also I prefer that, because sugar is energy, of a sort! Anyway, I also had a babka in mind. So, I went with sweet.
TF has been interested in baking with me since our Thanksgiving day making scones. What she really likes is getting her hands messy mixing and working the dough. And, who can blame her; that is the best part of bread baking! She also feels this sense of accomplishment and team effort with mommy that is simply adorable.
What I was curious about is whether she would have the patience for a multi step process. Never underestimate the will fo a toddler! She was all in. I staggered it so, the mixing was before her gym class, and it was all done first proof by then time she was home, ready to roll, fill and stack. For the spread, I gave her a choice of cinnamon sugar or chocolate. Unsurprisingly, she said “yes”!Ha! Why not? So, we had both, half of chocolate and half of cinnamon sugar. It is all about choices, isn’t it?!
I let her help me with slicing, with a dough scraper and it was a delightful novelty and then she stacked them into the pan. Fascinated she was with how they stacked in, and, the similarity with the stripes on her favorite animal - the zebra. That was the shift. To me, it was simply a reformatted pull apart bread. For her, it was so much more animated and wondrous! Thus the name “Zebra Bread”, for its reminder that looking through a child’s eyes can definitely be a mind bend, often for the positive! And, a note to self to do it more often!
ZEBRA BREAD
For the Dough:
2-1/2 cups flour
2 tsp sugar
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 ounces unsalted butter + 4 T for brushing
1/2 cup + 2 T whole milk
2 large eggs, at room temperature
For the Filling:
1/4 cup chocolate spread and/or 4 T cinnamon sugar
2 T cinnamon sugar for dusting
In a large mixing bowl sift together 2 cups flour, sugar and salt and set aside.
Whisk together eggs and set aside.
Meanwhile, melt the butter with the milk. Cool the mixture until it registers 115 to 125 degrees F. Add the yeast to the mixture and let it sit for 7 minutes or so until it gets foamy.
Whisk in the eggs into the milk mixture. Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula.
Add the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time until you get a sticky dough.
First Proof
Place the dough is a large, greased bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Place in a warm space and allow to rest until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Grease and flour a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan.
Degas the dough and knead about 2 tablespoons of flour into the dough. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 5 minutes.
On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out. Just roll it as large as the dough will go. Brush the dough with 2T of softened or melted (and cooled) butter and sprinkle/spread the filling mixture evenly.
Slice the dough vertically, into six equal-sized strips. Stack the strips on top of one another and slice the stack into six equal slices once again. You’ll have six stacks of six squares.
Layer the dough squares in the loaf pan on the side.
Second Proof
Place a kitchen towel over the loaf pan and allow in a warm place for 30 to 45 minutes or until almost doubled in size.
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Bake the bread for 25-30 minutes, until the top is very golden brown. Remove from the oven and immediately brush the tops with butter and sprinkle more cinnamon sugar.
Rest on rack for 15-20 minutes before peeling!
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