Day of the Dead Bread

Day of the Dead Bread

Culinary Tools:

  • 1, 2 and 5-quart Mixing Bowls
  • 2 Pie Plates
  • Whisk

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup butter
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 teaspoons anise seeds
  • 6 cups all purpose flour
  • 5 eggs
  • 7 grams (1/4 oz) instant dry yeast
  • 1 orange, zested and freshly squeezed
  • 1 pinch sugar
  • Cooking spray

Preparation:

  1. In the 5-quart Mixing Bowl, add butter, ½ cup sugar, 1teaspoon salt, anise seeds and 1cup flour. Mix well with whisk, until all lumps are dissolved.
  2. In the 2-quart Mixing Bowl, add 4 eggs and 1cup lukewarm water. Mix well with the whisk. Combine this mixture with the previous one.
  3. Slowly add another cup flour and dry yeast, whiling kneading.
  4. On a (clean and dry) kitchen counter, sprinkle some flour. Place dough and slowly add 3 cups flour; keep kneading until all lumps are dissolved. Add orange zest and remaining flour. Knead until uniform consistency.
  5. Divide dough into 2 equal portions; set aside an extra portion for decoration.
  6. Preheat oven at 350 °F. Make 2 round breads with the dough, and place one on each Pie Plate, previously greased with cooking oil.
  7. Decorate breads with the extra portion of dough you had set aside, and bake for 40 minutes.
  8. In the 1-quart Mixing Bowl, add orange juice, 1 egg and a pinch of sugar. Mix well with the Whisk. Coat breads with this mixture and bake for 5 additional minutes.
  9. Let cool off and serve.

Chef’s Note: Our recipe a faster and less sweet version of the traditional Day of the Dead Bread. Normally, when you’re done kneading, you cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it set at room temperature for a minimum of 2 hours, so that it becomes fluffy. We didn’t do it to save time, and the results were similar. It’s also usual to eat the bread when it gets harder (a few days after baking it) and soak it in a warm drink such as hot cocoa.