As St. Valentine’s Day approaches - it seems only fitting that a sweeter sandwich come to mind. That’s right - take a moment and consider the sweeter side of the sandwich repertoire. Cinnamon bread, Banana Nut bread, Cinnamon Raisin bread, Chocolate bread and more! Sweet sandwiches make great gifts and desserts that go well with teas, coffees and cocoas! Chocolate bread, a popular choice, allows your inner chef to be creative.
This is a simple project, great for dads and kids who want to surprise Mom or make a Valentine treat for the whole family! First, you’ll need to make a bread “starter” - this will take some time and planning. For 10 days you will “feed“ your starter mixture. Do not use metal utensils, metal bowls or metal containers - they will cause an adverse reaction, change the dough’s coloration to an unappetizing gray and can keep your dough from rising while adding a distinct metallic flavor to your mix. Once the 10 days has ended - you will then move forward to make the chocolate bread. Remember - this starter can be used as the base for any bread - sweet or savory.
· 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
· 1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
· 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
· 3 cups white sugar, divided
· 3 cups milk
In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Let it stand for10 minutes.
In a 2 quart glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar. Mix thoroughly or flour will lump when milk is added. Slowly stir in 1 cup milk and the dissolved yeast mixture. Cover loosely and let stand until bubbly. (Consider this day 1 of the 10 day cycle.) Leave loosely covered at room temperature.
On days 2 thru 4; simply stir the starter once each day with a spoon.
Day 5; stir in 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk. This is “feeding” your starter.
Days 6 thru 9; stir once each day only.
Day 10; stir in 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk.
Remove 1 cup to make your chocolate bread, give 2 cups to friends along your favorite Bread recipe (I hope it‘s this one!)
Store the remaining 1 cup starter in a container in the refrigerator, or begin the 10 day process over again (beginning with step 2).
You can also freeze the starter in 1 cup measures for later use. Frozen starter takes at least 3 hours at room temperature to thaw before using.
· 2 cups all-purpose flour
· 1 cup white sugar
· 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
· 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
· 1 teaspoon salt
· 1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
· 1 cup BREAD STARTER
1 cup vegetable oil
· 1/2 cup milk
· 3 eggs
· 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, chocolate pudding. Make a well in the center of this mixture. Add your bread starter, vegetable oil, milk, eggs and vanilla extract; mix well. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.
Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean, about 60 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan.
This recipe yields (2) - 9x5 inch loaf pans.
Once the bread has cooled, you can then slice it as needed for making your sweet treat! Gift a loaf to your sweetheart. Or use a cookie cutter to cut out heart-shaped slices then spread on your favorite jam or preserve. Children will enjoy decorating Valentine bread slices too - give them tube frostings from the grocery store aisle and their favorite sprinkles and other cookie accessories. These make unique, sweet treat gifts that are as much fun to make as they are to eat! Build your very own petit fours with layers of thinly-sliced chocolate bread alternated with sweet cream cheese spread. Then cut into small, bite-sized pieces and even dip them into chocolate or drizzle with frosting. Voila!!! Bite-sized Valentine decadence ready for gifting.....and eating! Once again you can see how versatile the “sandwich” can be with just a nudge from your imagination.
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