There are a million variations to this star bread, some sweet and some savory. I decided to make a savory version for Christmas because I wanted to try this technique of cutting and twisting the bread dough before baking to create this pretty star shape.
I chose to fill mine with a layer of garlic butter and another layer of marinara/mozzarella/parmesan so this had kind of a calzone flavor. I loved how tender and soft the bread was, and how much flavor this had. It was actually surprisingly easy to cut and twist the bread to make the shape. I watched a video and it was not at all complicated.
I’d like to try one of the sweet versions of this next. I saw a cinnamon/sugar one that is similar to monkey bread I really want to eat.
Garlic Butter Tomato Mozzarella Star Bread
Tender bread filled with layers of garlic butter, marina sauce and mozzarella
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 1 cup room temp milk or water
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 2 1/2 cups AP flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp butter melted
For the marinara sauce:
- 1/2-1 cup marinara sauce
- 1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan
For the garlic butter layer:
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp oil
- 10 garlic cloves minced
- 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Make dough first so it can rise: combine the ingredients in a stand mixer and mix on medium speed with a dough hook. Mix until the dough clears the sides of the bowl, adjusting the milk/water as needed to get a smooth, supple dough. Continue kneading until it passes the windowpane test, then transfer to a greased container and cover with plastic wrap.
- Allow to rise for 2 hours or so, until doubled. Time will depend on the temp in your kitchen. Since I made this in the winter, it took 2 hours or so to double. In the summer would likely only take an hour.
- For the garlic butter: heat the butter/oil in a skillet over medium. Add the chopped garlic and fry gently until just starting to barely brown. Transfer to a bowl. Mix in the mustard.
- When the dough is fully risen, separate into 3 equal pieces and shape each into a ball then allow to rest, covered for 10 minutes.
- Roll the first dough ball out on a lightly floured counter to about a 16 inch diameter (check to make sure you don't make it larger than your sheet pan you will bake it on). Spread the marinara and then the cheeses over this layer, leaving an inch clean around the outside for sealing. Roll the 2nd ball to the same size and place on top. Spread this layer with the garlic Dijon butter, again leaving a 1 inch clear edge, and roll out the final ball and place on top, pinching the edges of the circle to seal them well.
- Place a small bowl or ramekin in the center of the circle. This will help you not cut too far so that the center of the bread stays connected.
- You are going to end up with 16 dough strips, and the easiest way to do this is to first divide the circle into 4 equal quadrants. Using a pizza wheel or a sharp knife, make 4 cuts from the edge of the bowl to the edge of the circle so that you have 4 equal sections, connected by the dough under the bowl.
- Now take each section and cut equally into 2 so you have 8. Finally, cut each of the 8 into 2 equal ropes so you have 16 total ropes. Now take two adjacent ropes and twist each 3 times then bring the ends together and seal. There are many videos on youtube on shaping star bread and it was helpful to watch one first to get the idea.
- Continue to twist and seal until you have the 8 arms of the star shape. Cover with oil sprayed plastic wrap and allow to rise for 30-45 minutes. Bake in a 350 oven that has been preheated, for about 25-30 minutes, until the bread is browned and the internal temp of the twisted star points is around 200. Let cool for a few minutes and serve warm with extra marinara for dipping.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!