There are small ways to add a festive touch to a holiday table.
Bread is one of them
Here's an example excerpted from Bread, 'Over 60 Breads, Rolls and Cakes Plus Delicious Recipes Using Them' (Kyle Books, October 2012) by Nick Malgieri which i finally received after a long post Sandy voyage.
Swiss Braided Bread
Like fried potatoes in
Belgium, this Sunday morning braided bread might be the only food that truly
unites Switzerland’s diverse ethnic and linguistic groups. I’ve given the
recipe name in the country’s four languages: German, French, Italian, and
Rumantsch Grischun, this last a compiled language of ancient dialects spoken in
Canton Graubuenden. The version here comes from Zurich baker Reto Hausammann,
acknowledged by critics and the public alike for preparing one of the very best
versions of Zopf in the country. The precise and creative Swiss have
figured out dozens of ways to braid a Zopf. This version is what I consider the
most popular and widely seen: a
four-stranded braid that has an attractive woven shape.
Makes
one 12- to 14-inch braid
SPONGE
1/4
cup/62 grams warm water, about 100˚F
2 1/4
teaspoons/7 grams fine granulated active
dry
or instant yeast
1/2
cup/66 grams unbleached bread flour
DOUGH
All
the sponge, above
1/2
cup/112 grams whole milk, warmed to about
100˚F
2
large eggs, at room temperature
2
tablespoons/30 grams sugar
3 1/3 cups/450 grams unbleached bread flour
(spoon
into a dry-measure cup and level off)
2
tablespoons/30 grams unsalted butter, softened
1
teaspoon/6 grams fine sea salt
Egg
wash: 1 egg well whisked with a pinch of salt
One
cookie sheet or jelly-roll pan lined with parchment
paper
1.
For the sponge, whisk the water and yeast together in the bowl of an electric
mixer. Wait 30 seconds and whisk again. Use a rubber spatula to stir in the
flour until smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the sponge ferment
until it more than doubles, 30 to 45 minutes.
2.
Use a rubber spatula to stir the sponge down, then stir in the milk, eggs, and
sugar.
Stir
in the flour and the butter, cut into 10 or 12 pieces, on the surface of the
dough.
3.
Place the bowl on the mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix on low speed
until smooth. Stop and let rest for 10 minutes.
4.
Sprinkle in the salt and beat on low/ medium speed until the dough is smooth
and elastic, 2 to 3 minutes. Cover the bowl again and let ferment until almost
doubled in bulk, 30 to 45 minutes.
5.
Once the dough has risen, scrape it onto a floured work surface and divide it
into 4 equal pieces and round each according to the instructions in step 6 on
page 186. Set aside covered to rest for 5 minutes.
6.
To form the strands for the braid, invert the pieces of dough to the work
surface and use the palm of your hand to flatten them to disks. Roll each disk
of dough from the far end toward you and seal the edge and set
aside, covered, for 5 minutes.
7.
Roll each piece of dough under the palms of both hands to lengthen them to
about 14 inches, slightly tapering them at the ends. Arrange on the prepared
pan side by side.
8.
To braid the loaf, weave the left strand over the one to its right, under the
next one, then over the far one. Repeat with the strand that is now on the far
left. Continue repeating until you come to the end. Once you see the photos,
opposite, it’s easy. Tuck the ends under at both ends and cover the Zopf with a
towel or oiled or sprayed plastic wrap and let proof until almost doubled in
bulk, about 30 minutes.
9.
Immediately set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 375˚F.
10.
Gently brush the risen Zopf with the egg wash, making sure to clean the brush
against the side of the bowl or cup to eliminate excess egg wash every time you
dip the brush. Bake until well risen and deep golden, with an internal
temperature of about 190˚F, 40 to 45 minutes.
11. Cool on the pan for a few minutes, then
slide on the paper to a rack to cool. Loosely cover to serve on the day it’s
baked or wrap and freeze for longer storage. Defrost and
reheat at 350˚F for about 5 minutes, then cool.
(* Recipe excepted from 'Bread' by Nick Malgieri-published by Kyle Books, October 2012- photography by Romulo Yanes, all rights reserved)