Festive Muffuletta Wreath
This is just one way to make a festive holiday Christmas bread wreath! But if you take these basic instructions, you'll be able to create your own version of this magnificent beauty!
Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 1 8g pkg quick-rising (instant) dry yeast (or 2½ tsp)
- 1½ cups warm water 100-110°F
- 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 1½ tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup muffuletta mix (in a jar) in the pickle sections of your grocery store
- 1 large egg beaten
- salt for finishing
- Rosemary, parsley, thinly sliced onion, prosciutto, tomatoes for decorating
Instructions
- In a large bowl, sprinkle yeast over warm water; let sit for 5 minutes.
- Once it begins to bubble, add flour, sugar and salt; mix together with a wooden spoon until it all comes together. Add the muffuletta mix and combine well (the dough will be sticky).
- Turn dough onto a well-floured surface and form into a ball. Cover the bowl and put in a draft-free place for a least a few hours, until doubled in size (you can leave it all day or even overnight in the refrigerator).
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- On a well-floured board, separate the dough into two portions; roll out each piece of into two long rolls and pinch the two ends together to form a circle. To make the wreath more decorative, snip the edges (see tip below) or make cuts and pull out pieces (see photos above); cover with plastic wrap and let rest for about 20 to 30 minutes.
- Lightly brush tops with egg and bake until golden on top and hollow sounding on the bottom, about 20 minutes.
- Decorate wreaths as you wish and serve warm!
Notes
If you would like the baguette to be more decorative, you can take kitchen shears (or clean scissors and make tiny snips (about ¼-inch) into the sides of the bread to create decorative cuts that resemble a pine cone). It adds a pretty touch to the bread!