Japanese Melon Pan

I have to admit I almost didn't make this months We Knead to Bake bread as two weeks back we were watching in BBC the food programme The Hairy Bikers Asian Adventure and  they were in Japan and they ate Melon Pan and they didn't like it, both of them were making such a horrible face that Hans remarked isn't that the bread you were saying you are going to make.

And I was like oh No if I make this no one is going to like it here.
Ok now the Hairy Bikers didn't eat fresh Melon Pan they ate from a pack which I think is made in a factory and theirs were looking green ( maybe Match tea)

But then in the group every one was saying the bread is soft and yummy , I decided I will make them.
Ok I have no Idea how a melon pan originally taste, these were really good.

Here we loved the inside soft bread, but both Hans and I didn't like the cookie dough around it.
But then I guess the bread is made like that.

I have been looking for Pink Praline for long, when I went to Paris with Nisha and Ananda I looked in the shops there and I coudn't find them.
And then One day I got a parcel from Ananda, she had gone to Lille and there she found pink praline so she bought for me and sent to me in post. How sweet was that .

So as we had the choice of adding chocolate, I thought why not add pink praline.

 

Melon Pan (Japanese Melon Bread) Adapted from A Bread A Day


For bread dough:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus extra as required)
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus extra as required)
2 tbsp milk powder
1 tsp instant yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup cold water
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp sugar
25gm butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup chocolate chips

For cookie dough:

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
A large pinch of salt
60gm butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup castor sugar (increase to 1/3 cup for sweeter dough)
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Castor sugar for dusting (granulated sugar will do too)

Method:

Please watch this video, before you start on this bread so you have a good idea on how to shape the Melon Pan. Whisk together the flour, powdered milk, yeast, and salt in the bowl (or the bowl of your machine if using one). In a smaller bowl, beat the egg and cold water together with a fork till well blended. Add this to the flour mixture in the bowl.
Knead (on low speed in the machine) till it all come together as a dough and then (on medium speed) until you have a somewhat stiff dough. Add the sugar and knead well.
Now add the butter and knead (first at slow speed and then on medium) until the butter is completely incorporated into the dough and the dough becomes smooth and elastic. The dough should well-kneaded to develop the gluten.

Shape the dough into a round, and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and let it rise till double in volume (about an hour or so).

During this time make the cookie dough. In a bowl, cream the soft butter and sugar till fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat till combined. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt and add this to the bowl. Also add the lemon zest. Beat together until just combined.
Shape the dough into a cylinder (this will make the dough easy to divide and flatten out later), and wrap in cling film. Refrigerate the dough until required.
Now go back to the bread dough. Once it has doubled in volume, place it on a lightly floured work surface. Lightly grease your baking sheet or line it with parchment. Deflate the dough gently and divide it into 8 equal portions.
Shape each portion into a smooth ball like for bread rolls. Work with one portion and keep the others covered so they don’t dry out.

Unwrap the cookie dough. It should be reasonably firm now and easy to work with. Slice the cylinder of cookie dough into 8 equal portions. Use two pieces of plastic sheets or cling film to flatten the cookie dough. Place one slice/ round of cookie dough on a piece of plastic sheet/ cling film. Cover with another piece, and using a flat bottomed pan, press down on the dough to flatten it, until it is reasonably thin but not very much so.

Carefully take on ball of bread dough (it will have puffed up a little so don’t deflate it), and place the circle of cookie dough on top of it. Gently press the cookie dough edge to the bread dough ball so that it covers the top and sides of the ball, but leaves the bottom open.

Gently, holding the covered
bread dough by the underside, press it into some castor sugar. Then using a scraper, or the blunt side of a knife, mark the top of the cookie dough side of the bread roll with a cross hatch/ diamond pattern. The pattern should be deep enough (otherwise it will disappear when the bread rises and bakes) without cutting through the cookie dough layer into the bread.

Place this on the greased or parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat this with the remaining cookie dough and bread dough balls. Let them rise for an hour.

Bake them at 180C (350F) for about 25 minutes, until the tops of the Melon Pan just start turning brown. If you let them brown too much, the underside of the bread will burn. Transfer to a wire rack to cool thoroughly.
This recipe makes 8 medium to largish Melon Pan. Melon Pan are best eaten the day they are made. However warming them slightly before serving the next day is also fine.

Apricot couronne

I have been wanting to make this Apricot Couronne, from the time when I saw them making last year in Great British Bake off and ofcourse the recipe was from the Judge Paul Hollywood, who I think when it come to baking he is a real master Baker :-)

So while planning to make this Twisted bread  last month for we Knead to bake I was talking to my sis and she was asking me which recipe etc... so I was telling about Paul Hollywood etc.... so the enxt day I get a phone call from her telling she already made the bread and it was so Delicious. And I was telling her I only told you yesterday about the bread and you al ready made them.

She was so much in praise I had to make them too.

OK i must say the bread is just SUPER DELICIOUS. And the filling with apricot and orange juice etc... give such a lovely taste that I am so gonna make this bread again and also will try to make them with other fillings too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apricot Couronne

Ingredients

For the dough
250g/9oz strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
5g salt
7g/⅓oz instant yeast
50g/1¾oz unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
105ml/3½fl oz milk
1 free-range egg, lightly beaten

For the filling:

90g/3¼oz unsalted butter, softened

70g/2½oz light muscovado sugar

120g/4½oz ready-to-eat dried apricots, chopped and soaked in orange juice

35g/1¼oz plain flour

60g/2¼oz raisins

65g/2¼oz chopped walnuts

1 orange, zest only

To finish

50g/1¾oz apricot jam

200g/7oz icing sugar

25g/1oz flaked almonds

Preparation method

Tip the flour into a large mixing bowl and add the salt to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other. Add the butter, milk and egg and mix to combine, using your hands. Continue to mix until you’ve picked up all the flour from the sides of the bowl. Use the dough to clean the inside of the bowl and keep going until you have a soft dough.

Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and begin to knead. Keep kneading for 10-12 minutes. Work through the initial wet stage until the dough starts to form a soft, smooth skin.

When the dough feels smooth and silky, put it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave to rise for one hour, or until doubled in size.

 

While the dough is rising, make the filling. Beat the butter and muscovado sugar together until smooth. Drain the apricots and add to the butter mixture along with the flour, raisins, walnuts and orange zest. Mix to combine.

 

Line a baking tray with baking parchment or silicone paper.

Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface. Taking care not to knock the air out of it, roll out the dough into a rectangle, approximately 33x25cm/13x10in. Turn the dough 90 degrees if necessary, so you have a long edge facing you. Spread the apricot mixture evenly over the dough. Roll up the dough tightly (like a Swiss roll). Roll it slightly to seal, then cut it in half lengthways (you can leave one end joined to help you twist the dough and form the circular crown).

 

Twist the two dough lengths together to make a rope, then join the ends of the rope to form a circular ‘crown’. Transfer to the baking tray.

 

Put the tray inside a clean plastic bag and leave to prove for 30-45mins, or until the dough springs back quickly if you prod it lightly with your finger. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.

 

Bake the couronne for 25-35 minutes, or until risen and golden-brown. Set aside to cool on a wire rack.

 

Gently heat the apricot jam with a splash of water, then sieve it and brush it over the warm loaf to glaze. Mix the icing sugar with enough water to make a thin icing, drizzle over the loaf and sprinkle with the flaked almonds. Leave to cool before serving.
Sending this to Yeastspotting.