Rich Chocolate Soft European Bread

Taste: Sweet; Technique: Baking; Time: Several hours; Difficulty: Advanced.

Detailed Steps for Cooking Rich Chocolate Soft European Bread

Prepare the ingredients and weigh them.

Except for cranberries, chocolate chips, and butter, put all ingredients into the stand mixer and knead until smooth and elastic.

Cut the kneaded dough into small pieces, add butter, and knead until a thin, stretchy film can be pulled out.

Pat dry the rum-soaked cranberries with kitchen paper and set aside.

Then add chocolate chips and rum-soaked cranberries to the stand mixer, knead briefly, and shape into a ball.

Shape the kneaded dough into a ball, place it in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it ferment once.

Take out the fermentation basket, sprinkle a thin layer of high-gluten flour, and set aside.

Ferment the dough until it doubles in size, poke holes with your fingers dipped in flour, and it should not shrink or bounce back.

Press down the fermented dough to release air, divide it into 2 portions, round them, cover with plastic wrap, and let them rest for 20 minutes.

Shape the rested dough again, then place it with the sealed side up in the fermentation basket.

Place it in the oven for the second fermentation, with a bowl of hot water in the oven, until it doubles in size.

Remove the fermentation basket, preheat the oven to 200°C (top heat) and 190°C (bottom heat), place the bread dough back on the baking tray, sprinkle a thin layer of high-gluten flour, and shape it with a bread shaping knife.

After preheating for ten minutes, place the bread dough in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Remove the baked bread, let it cool, brush off any excess flour on the surface, dust with a thin layer of cocoa powder, and your Rich Chocolate Soft European Bread is ready.

Finished product.