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Spanish bread
Sweet buttery bread rolls
Spanish bread: soft Filipino panaderya rolls with a sweet butter-crumb filling
Despite the name, nobody in Spain would recognise these: they belong to the neighbourhood panaderya, sold warm from glass cases at dawn and again at four o'clock alongside pandesal. A soft milk dough is rolled around a paste of butter, sugar and breadcrumbs, then coated in more crumbs before baking, so the filling melts into a sticky, caramel-like ribbon. Dunk one in coffee for merienda. Chef's tip: roll the dough thin before adding the filling; thick dough swallows the butter paste and you lose that gooey centre.
- Total time
- 138 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
- ¾ cup whole milklukewarm
- ¼ oz instant yeast
- 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar
- 15 oz plain flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 ¾ oz unsalted buttersoftened
For the filling and coating
- 3 ⅛ oz unsalted buttermelted
- 3 ⅛ oz light brown sugar
- 4 oz fine dry breadcrumbsdivided
- 2 tbsp whole milk
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Whisk ¼ oz instant yeast and a pinch of 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar into ¾ cup whole milk and leave for 5 minutes, until bubbly.
5 minStep 2: Mix 15 oz plain flour, the rest of 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar and 1 tsp salt in a bowl, add the yeast milk and 1 egg, and bring together. Knead in 1 ¾ oz unsalted butter for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and springs back when poked.
12 minStep 3: Cover and leave in a warm spot until doubled, about 1 hour.
60 minStep 4: For the filling, stir 3 ⅛ oz unsalted butter, 3 ⅛ oz light brown sugar, 2 tbsp whole milk and 2 ½ oz fine dry breadcrumbs into a thick, spreadable paste.
3 minStep 5: Divide the dough into 12 pieces. Roll each into a thin triangle about 18 cm long, spread a tablespoon of filling over it and roll up from the wide end like a croissant, pinching the tip to seal.
15 minStep 6: Roll each log in the remaining 1 ⅔ oz fine dry breadcrumbs and set on a lined tray, seam down, 4 cm apart. Cover and prove for 30 minutes, until puffy. Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan).
30 minStep 7: Bake for 15–18 minutes, until lightly golden and the filling is bubbling at the ends. Cool for 10 minutes before eating; the filling is scalding straight from the oven.
18 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 300 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 44 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does spanish bread take?
- About 138 minutes in total: 120 minutes to prepare and 18 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
- What can I use instead of caster sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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