This dough produces a crispy crust, inner moisture, predictability of the final shape, AND it holds flavors very well. I saw a similar bread on an Italian chef's Instagram account, and when I asked how he did it, I never received a response. So this is my way of recreating what I saw. I used pesto and sun dried tomatoes to create the red + green. The white bread is just the unseasoned dough itself. You can braid tricolor doughs many ways....here I feature two. This bread takes a lot of cutting and dividing, but each bite is bursting with flavor.
Yield: 8 braided breads
Ingredients:
For the all the dough:
175ml water
200ml yogurt
1.5 Tsp salt
500g all-purpose flour
2 Tsp powdered sugar
1 1.4 Tsp instant yeast
For the colored doughs (added later):
4 Tsp pesto
4 Tsp sun dried tomatos (in oil)
Directions:
1) Place the sun dried tomatoes on a paper towel and allow the oil to drain from them. Mix all of the dough ingredients EXCEPT the salt in one medium/large bowl— by hand or mixer — until it begins to form strands and come together. THEN add the salt. Continue to mix (about 2min) until a slightly sticky dough is formed. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead 3-5 minutes until smooth and silky.
2) Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. Designate one dough as the plain (white) dough. Knead the pesto into a second dough until fully incorporated. Knead the sun dried tomatoes into the other dough, until fully incorporated.
3) Place each dough in its own lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest in warm place for about 1 hour, until puffy and doubled.
4) Gently deflate the doughs, and transfer each to a lightly floured surface (keep them separate!). Divide each dough into 8 pieces (so your total will be 24 pieces).
If you want to make breads that look like three scoops of sorbet (see photo above), roll each of the 24 pieces of dough into balls. Then, grease a muffin tin. Each muffin hole will get 3 balls--one of each color. They will rise and fuse together.
If you want to make braided tri-color bread, form each of the 24 pieces into ropes of the same thickness and length (as you desire, but be consistent). Pinch a red, green, and white rope together at one end and do a simple braid, bringing the outside strands over the middle strand, repeatedly. Then, place the finished tri-color braids on a greased cookie sheet, about 2" apart.
5) No matter what the shape you decided to make, cover and let rest for 20 minutes (they will puff a little). Preheat the oven to 370°F.
6) Place breads in oven for 20-25min. All ovens cook differently, so keep your eyes on the bread intermittently. They should become slightly brown on top, and will sound hollow when tapped on the underside. Transfer to rack for cooling.
NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the breads taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.
Ingredients:
For the all the dough:
175ml water
200ml yogurt
1.5 Tsp salt
500g all-purpose flour
2 Tsp powdered sugar
1 1.4 Tsp instant yeast
For the colored doughs (added later):
4 Tsp pesto
4 Tsp sun dried tomatos (in oil)
Directions:
1) Place the sun dried tomatoes on a paper towel and allow the oil to drain from them. Mix all of the dough ingredients EXCEPT the salt in one medium/large bowl— by hand or mixer — until it begins to form strands and come together. THEN add the salt. Continue to mix (about 2min) until a slightly sticky dough is formed. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead 3-5 minutes until smooth and silky.
2) Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. Designate one dough as the plain (white) dough. Knead the pesto into a second dough until fully incorporated. Knead the sun dried tomatoes into the other dough, until fully incorporated.
3) Place each dough in its own lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest in warm place for about 1 hour, until puffy and doubled.
4) Gently deflate the doughs, and transfer each to a lightly floured surface (keep them separate!). Divide each dough into 8 pieces (so your total will be 24 pieces).
If you want to make breads that look like three scoops of sorbet (see photo above), roll each of the 24 pieces of dough into balls. Then, grease a muffin tin. Each muffin hole will get 3 balls--one of each color. They will rise and fuse together.
If you want to make braided tri-color bread, form each of the 24 pieces into ropes of the same thickness and length (as you desire, but be consistent). Pinch a red, green, and white rope together at one end and do a simple braid, bringing the outside strands over the middle strand, repeatedly. Then, place the finished tri-color braids on a greased cookie sheet, about 2" apart.
5) No matter what the shape you decided to make, cover and let rest for 20 minutes (they will puff a little). Preheat the oven to 370°F.
6) Place breads in oven for 20-25min. All ovens cook differently, so keep your eyes on the bread intermittently. They should become slightly brown on top, and will sound hollow when tapped on the underside. Transfer to rack for cooling.
NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the breads taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.
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