"While living in the US, my family craved the chocolate yeast Kugelhopf we had left behind in Bondi. They nagged me until I created a recipe that tasted just as good and cured their nostalgia." Shereen Aaron (recipe developer). From the Monday Morning Cooking Club cookbook: The Feast Goes On
80g (2 3/4 oz/1/3 cup) caster (superfine) sugar, plus extra, for sprinkling
450g (1 lb/3 cups) bread flour, plus extra, for kneading
1/2 teaspoon salt
115g (4 oz) butter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash
Filling
300g (10 1/2 oz) best-Quality dark chocolate, chopped
60g (2 1/4 oz) butter
115g (1/2 cup) caster (superfine) sugar
25g (1/4 cup) cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Dough
You will need a large angel (chiffon) cake tin with a removable base. Carefully line the side, base and funnel with baking paper
Gently warm 1/4 cup of the milk. Sprinkle with the yeast and 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Allow to stand for 5 minutes to allow it to froth. Add 3 teaspoons of the flour and stir. Allow to stand for 15-20 minutes, or until frothy and thick
Mix the remaining flour and sugar together with the salt in the bowl of an electric mixer
Warm the remaining milk and melt the butter
Beat the eggs with the vanilla. Add these and the yeast mixture to the flour mixture and knead with the dough hook for 10 minutes
You may need to add extra flour but do so a spoon at a time, kneading after each addition. You will have a very sticky dough that just comes away from the side of the bowl
Put the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel (dish towel). Put the bowl in a warm place and allow to rise until doubled in size. This will take at least 2 hours
Filling
Once the dough has risen, make the filling. Place the filling ingredients in a large heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (or use a double boiler) and melt, stirring until smooth
Cut the dough in half. Roll out to form a large rectangle (30 x 45cm/12 x 17. inches) and carefully spread half the filling mixture on the surface from edge to edge
Roll up the dough to make a large snake and place it into the prepared tin, curling around the funnel, seam side up. Repeat with the other half of the dough. Place it on top of the first roll, seam side down
Cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel and allow to rise in a warm place until at least doubled in size, about 1 hour. It will rise almost to the edge of the tin. Brush gently with the egg wash and sprinkle with the extra sugar
Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F/Gas 3)
Bake the Kugelhopf for 40 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown on top. If not eating immediately, allow to cool out of the tin but with the baking paper still attached
Best eaten on the day of baking or reheated the next day. Freezes well for up to 3 months
