Chocolate Chestnut Bread with Red Star Yeast

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire is such an iconic image of Christmas. If you’ve never had roasted chestnuts, they are one of the sweetest and creamiest of nuts and the absolute perfect pairing with chocolate. This elegant bread is from our new Holiday and Celebration Bread in Five Minutes a Day book and is super easy to make. If you have a tall panettone mold, it makes a really festive loaf for the holidays or a great gift, along with our newest book. You can also bake this in a loaf pan or even muffin cups.

I also used this loaf to make a wonderful bread pudding (recipe link at the end). Watch our video on instagram of how we made the bread and tips for kneading ingredients into dough you have stored in the refrigerator.

2 pounds – from a batch of Brioche dough made with Platinum Yeast from Red Star

1 cup chopped Roasted and Peeled Chestnuts

1 cup finely chopped chocolate

Egg yolk wash (1 yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon water)

Mix the dough in a 6-Quart Round Food-Storage Container with Lid with a Danish Dough Whisk or with a Stand Mixer, as directed in the recipe. You can certainly use any of our enriched doughs, from any of our books.

A single batch of dough will make about 2 large loaves.

Once the dough has rested on the counter for 2 hours, refrigerate it until it is thoroughly chilled.

Pull out a 2 pound piece of dough, roll it out to a 1/4-inch rectangle, distribute the chestnuts and chocolate and then knead until thoroughly combined.

Form the dough into a ball and place in a well buttered 6-inch Panettone Pan . If you are using a Paper Mold, you will want to make sure it is tall enough or use a wider one.

Let the dough rise for 90 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F with the rack in the middle of the oven.

Bake for about 60 minutes or until caramel colored and set when tapped on the top.

Allow the loaf to cool for about 20 minutes in the pan, then remove and cool completely on a cooling rack.

Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

To make any of the leftovers into bread pudding, you’ll find the recipe on Zoë’s website.