Pan De Muertos-bread Of The Dead

Total Time: 2 hrs 35 mins Preparation Time: 2 hrs Cook Time: 35 mins

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon orange zest, finely grated
• 1 teaspoon anise seed
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast (1 envelope)
• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon warm water
• 2 eggs
• 3 egg yolks
• 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Recipe

• 1 combine butter,1/2 cup sugar,salt,orange zest,and anise in a bowl,crushing the anise seeds with your fingers.heat the milk in a small saucepan to 180 degrees(f) or just to the boiling point.pour over the butter and spice mixture.let cool .
• 2 stir in yeast and a small pinch of sugar into 1/4 cup warm water.let it sit until the yeast is dissolved and frothy.
• 3 beat the eggs and egg yolks together.measure out 2 tablespoons into a bowl;to the 2 tablespoons of egg add 1 teaspoon water,and set in fridge.
• 4 add the remaining egg to the yeast mixture.mix yeast mixture with milk mixture.stir in enough flour to form a stiff dough-this may be all 5 1/2 cups or slightly less.
• 5 turn dough onto a lightly floured board and knead for 10 minutes.dough should be shiny and elastic.add more flour if the dough is too sticky to knead easily.
• 6 turn the dough into a greased bowl,turning the dough so all sides are slightly greased;cover with a cloth,and let rise until doubled in volume,about 1 hour.
• 7 punch down the dough,and let the dough rest while you grease 2 baking sheets.divide the dough into 2 parts.shape each half into rounds,using 1/3 cup of dough from each round to form a skull or crossbones to decorate the bread.
• 8 set the loaves on the baking sheets and let rise until doubled again,about 45 minutes;meanwhile preheat oven to 360 f.
• 9 before baking brush each loaf with the egg glaze you set aside earlier and sprinkle with the remaining2 tablespoons of sugar.bake 30 -35 minutes or until lightly browned and it sounds hollow if tapped on the bottom.
• 10 let cool completely before serving.