Star Bread
This soft, fluffy, fluffy pull-apart bread is perfect for holiday gatherings, weekend brunches, or cozy moments at home. Made with five layers of dough and can be filled with fillings as desired. See the FAQ for how to make it ahead of time and the recipe notes below for filling options.
Servings 8 servings
Ingredients
dough
- 4 cups, minus 2 tablespoons (500 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200ml) milk
- 3 tsp (10 grams) instant or active yeast
- ⅓ cup (70 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup (55 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp and ½ tbsp (20 grams) sour cream
- ½ tbsp (8 grams) salt
Filling (see the note for other filling options)
- 8 tbsp (160 grams) nutella, at room temperature
- 1 cup (100 grams) hazelnuts
Topping
- 1 tbsp (8 grams) confectioners sugar
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Prepare the ingredients: Weigh all your ingredients. Cut the butter into cubes. Heat the milk in the microwave or on the stove until warm to the touch, about 105°F (41°C).
- Prepare the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, pour the warm milk, flour, yeast, one egg, sugar, salt and sour cream. Begin mixing the ingredients with the dough hook at low speed. Add the butter cubes one at a time and mix the dough for about 3 minutes, until the dough forms and the butter is well combined. *If you don't have a stand mixer, mix the ingredients in a large bowl using a wooden or silicone spatula.*
- Knead the dough: Set the speed of the stand mixer to medium, knead the dough for 4-5 minutes until the dough becomes soft and smooth, and sticks to the dough hook. The dough should not stick to your fingers when touched. If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour. *If you are working by hand, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough with your hands until you reach the desired texture.*
- 1st Rise: Shape the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover with kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Allow to rise for 1-1.5 hours or until doubled in size.
- Prepare the filling: At the end of the rising time, chop the hazelnuts until very fine using a nut chopper or blender. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. For other filling options, see the recipe note below.
- Punch down the dough to release gas, Divide the dough into 5 equal pieces. You need to be precise, so using the kitchen scale is helpful at this stage. Weight the amount of the total dough and divide it into 5. In my case, the total weight of the dough is 32.5 ounces (925 grams), so each piece should weigh 6.5 ounces (185 grams). Shape each piece into a ball. Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes. (This will make it easier to roll it out.)
- Fill the bread: Roll each ball into a 10-inch (25 cm) circle. (You can use your hands to form the circle, if you can't use a rolling pin.) Place the first circle on the lined baking sheet. Using an icing spatula, brush the top of the circle with 2 tablespoons of Nutella and then sprinkle with hazelnuts. Lay out the next circle layer, stretch it slightly if it's shrunk to make it evenly sized and fill in the top. Continue with the remaining circles. Does not fill in the top of the last circle. Pinch the edges of the circles to seal them together.
- Shape the star bread: Place a 3-inch (8 cm) round cup in the center of the stacked dough and press down lightly. Take a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut the outer edges into 16 equal strips, but don't cut in the center. Using the fingers of both hands, take two strips and twist them away from each other 3 times and press the two ends together. Repeat until all strips are twisted and formed into an 8-pointed star.
- 2nd Rise: Cover the Star Bread with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let rise for 20 minutes until puffed.
- Preheat your oven to 320°F (320°C).
- Egg wash: Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the top of star bread with beaten egg.
- Bake: Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Cover with aluminum foil if you notice that your bread is going brown quickly after 10 minutes from the start of baking.
- Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. Dust the top with confectioners sugar and enjoy it warm.
Notes
Yeast: You can use either instant or active dry yeast in this recipe. If using active yeast, whisk the active yeast with warm milk and let sit for 10 minutes before using.
Rising time: I made this star bread recipe at 61 Fahrenheit (16 Celsius). So the rising time may be shorter or longer depending on your kitchen temperature.
Special Tools (affiliate links): Stand mixer or silicone spatula and mixing bowl for combining the dough | Measuring Cups and spoons or Kitchen Scale | Rolling pin | Nut chopper or 3 in 1 blender | Pizza cutter | Icing spatula | Pastry brush. Filling:
Special Tools (affiliate links): Stand mixer or silicone spatula and mixing bowl for combining the dough | Measuring Cups and spoons or Kitchen Scale | Rolling pin | Nut chopper or 3 in 1 blender | Pizza cutter | Icing spatula | Pastry brush. Filling:
- Cinnamon sugar star bread: You will need 4 tablespoons of very soft unsalted butter and 4 tablespoons sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon cinnamon. Spread 1 tablespoon of butter over each of the 4 circles, then sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar on top of each.
- Pesto star bread: To make pesto star bread, you will need 6 tablespoons of prepared basil pesto, 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, and 4 tablespoons sun-dried tomato pesto. Spread the first circle with 3 tablespoons basil pesto then sprinkle with 2 tablespoons parmesan. Place the 2st circle on top, spread with 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato pesto then sprinkle with 2 tablespoons parmesan. Repeat with the remaining circles.
- Nutella star bread: You will need the same amount of Nutella in this recipe without the hazelnut sprinkles.
