Pandan Kaya Twist Loaf & Belated Easter Party!

Yes, another bread post. I bake bread faithfully at least once a week. But if time permits, twice or more times would be great! Some how it is quite therapeutic for me, not that I still do the kneading by hand anymore. But the whole process of baking bread takes me to a peaceful zone. And of course the best part is to enjoy the delicious end product! So I am always, seriously always looking for good bread recipes. The "addiction" never seems to go away, heehee! I guess it's not a bad one, so no harm in that right? So you can imagine, if I haven't thought about how boring it would be to my readers, I probably be posting bread recipes almost every post, lol! No worries, I still love cakes and cookies....

Today's bread post is sort of a "reborn" of the Pandan Kaya Loaf that I baked awhile back. This time round, I have used the 17hr pre-fermented dough recipe. This method has got me hooked and swear by it. The end product speaks for itself, so I am still very much baking bread using this method every time now...well until I find a even better recipe of course, lol!

If you have tried the previous Pandan Kaya Loaf recipe from me and liked it, then you should definitely try this new version. No regrets guaranteed, because you are gonna love it!

Ingredients for Pandan Kaya Twist Loaf (makes 2 of 8"X4.5"X5" loaves)

Pre-fermented Dough:

459g bread flour
262ml water
13g fresh yeast (I used 11g instant active dry yeast)
13g skim milk powder

Mix everything together and knead till forms a soft dough. Cover dough in cling wrap or large sip lock bag and chill in fridge to let it prove for 17 hrs.

Main Dough:

197g bread flour

20g skim milk powder

7g sea salt

98g sugar

26g beaten egg

105ml pandan juice (3 pine screw leaves blended with 120ml water and sieved)

56ml coconut milk (I used boxed version)

7g fresh yeast (I used 6g instant active dry yeast)

52g unsalted butter, room temperature

Filling:

Kaya spread

Method:

• Cut the pre-fermented dough into small pieces.
• Knead all the ingredients of main dough together except for the butter. Add pre-fermented dough one by one piece. Knead after each addition until soft and smooth. Finally add in the butter and continue to knead until it reaches window stage.
• Put the dough into a big bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it proof for about 30 to 45 minutes,
• Once proved, punch out the air in the dough. divide the dough into 6 equal portions. (in my case, I divided it into 9 portions and made into 3 smaller size loaves.) Roll each portion round and cover to rest for another 20 minutes before shaping.
• Flatten the dough to drive out the air. Roll each portion of dough into a rectangular with a rolling pin . After rolling out 3 portions into 3 almost equal sized rectangular, spread a layer of kaya on two of the rectangular. Then spread a layer of salted butter on the remaining rectangular surface. Place the buttered side facing down to one of the kaya spread rectangular. On the back side of the rectangular, spread some more butter and top if off with the last rectangular with the kaya spread. Seal the edges and cut it into 3 strips. Sealing one end of the 3 strips together, pleat the 3 strips and then sealing the other end.
• Gently place this pleated dough into a greased loaf tin to have its 2nd proofing. Repeat with the other dough portions till all is used.
• Let proof for a good 30 minutes or till the tin is 90% filled. Brush with egg wash.
• Bake in a preheated oven of 170 to 180C for about 25 to 30 minutes till golden brown.

I cannot say enough how yummy this loaf is, you probably need to bake one yourself to be fully convinced this is a truly delicious bread method. Even for the following day, the loaf stays soft and fluffy, definitely a plus over other recipes.

I would usually store my bread in the fridge on the 3rd day if there's still any left over. But trust me, it is still very good on the 3rd day, perhaps just needs to heat it up a little but I usually don't do it. :) Try it folks...its yum!

Before I end this post, I got an invitation for an Easter Party from Edith of Precious Moments. Really appreciate her inviting me. :) However I think Easter is already over and thus its probably a belated one? Anyways, just to join in the fun, here is the 5 food contributions from me for the party:

Pandan Chicken Wings

Chendol Agar Agar

Mung Bean, Yam & Peanut Ang Gu Kuehs

All American Chocolate Cake

Puen Kueh

Have a good week ahead all!