This Star Bread is a sweet bread filled with a cinnamon sugar and butter mixture. With a slightly toasted crust, this dessert bread is sure to be a hit.
I’ve been making different flavored bread recipes for years. Quick breads, rising loaf breads, you name it. But, this Star Bread is one for the books!
It’s not just beautiful, but every bite is absolutely delicious and it really keeps you coming back for more, it’s one of those recipes that you can’t get enough of.
Made with enriched dough, filled with cinnamon sugar that forms this buttery and sweet treat. The dough is soft with a little crisp on the top.
Some of the melted sugar on the bottom of the star creates a little caramel crisp as well. Every bite is truly unique and irresistible.
Plus it is easier than it looks, trust me. I really don’t want people fearing baking bread because it is super easy once you get the hang of it, and I’ll give you a step by step process below.
If you are looking for a fun breakfast or dessert and have never tried this before, you absolutely must make this Star Bread, you will fall in love.
Some of our other favorite bread recipes we have on our site include: Sopapillas, Easy Banana Bread and Cinnamon Swirl Bread.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- Perfect for the holidays.
- Made with common pantry ingredients.
- The star shape and design is really eye catching, making it the hit of your dessert table.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT BOTTOM):
All-purpose flour
Instant yeast
Granulated sugar
Fine sea salt
Egg
Unsalted butter
Whole milk
Ground cinnamon
Powdered sugar, optional
HOW TO MAKE STAR BREAD, STEP BY STEP:
- In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients for the dough with a rubber spatula until it forms a shaggy dough. If you are using a stand mixer, mix the dough on low using a dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead the dough until it forms a smooth, elastic dough. If you are doing this by hand, it will take about 15 minutes. If you are using a stand mixer, continue mixing on low with a dough hook for about 5-8 minutes. If the dough is too sticky to handle, you can add a tablespoon at a time of flour, but only add the minimum required because too much flour will make the dough very tough.
- Place the dough in a greased large bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm area for about an hour or until doubled in size.
- While the dough is rising, make the topping. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and set it aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- Remove the risen dough from the bowl and divide it into 4 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a ball. Cover the dough you are not working with because it will dry out quickly.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one of the balls into a 11-inch circle and transfer it to the lined baking sheet.
- Brush the circle with 1/3 of the melted butter and sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon sugar mixture, leaving a 1/4 inch border around the circle.
- Roll out the second ball into an 11-inch circle and stack it on top of the first. Spread the butter and cinnamon sugar mixture in the same way on top of this circle. Repeat this process with the third ball, layering it on top of the second dough circle. Roll out the fourth ball and place it on top of the third dough disc, but do not top it with butter or the cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Place a 2 1/2- inch round cookie cutter in the center of the dough. A glass or any other round object will work here as well. Using a knife, cut the dough into 16 equal strips that radiate from the center. It is easiest to first cut the dough into 4 equal sections and then to divide each section into 4 smaller strips.
- Pick up two adjacent strips, one in each hand, and twist them away from each other twice. Lay them flat on the parchment. Repeat this process until all strips have been twisted.
- Press together the tips of each pair of strips to form a point. At this point, it should resemble a star.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place for about 25 minutes. The dough will become puffy and when lightly pressed, it will not spring back right away. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Right before baking, brush the top of the star with the beaten egg. Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes or until it is golden brown on top, including in the center. If the bread is browning before it has cooked through, loosely cover it with tinfoil and continue baking.
- Let the bread cool on the pan for about 5 minutes. Dust the bread with powdered sugar, if using, while it is still warm. Serve the bread warm or at room temperature. Store leftover bread tightly wrapped at room temperature for several days.
CAN I MAKE THIS AHEAD OF TIME?
Yes, you can make this bread earlier. Just make sure to store it properly, we recommend making it no more than a day in advance to keep it as fresh as possible.
WHY DIDN’T MY BREAD RISE?
If your bread didn’t rise, something likely happened with the yeast. Make sure you check the expiration date on your yeast.
If that is not an issue, it is also possible that your bread didn’t rise enough. Rising times can vary based on the environment, dough, and yeast.
It is best to follow visual cues, instead of the times, which should act as guidelines.
WHAT OTHER FILLING CAN I USE?
You can switch out the cinnamon for other spices you enjoy. You can also use cream cheese, jam, or nut butters!
Savory fillings, like pesto, would work great as well if you are looking for a more savory bread rather than sweet bread.
HOW TO STORE:
The bread will last for 3-4 at room temperature when it is tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container.
You can also freeze the bread after it has cooled. Wrap the bread in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer container or bag where it will keep for up to 3 months.
To defrost, remove from the freezer into the refrigerator or countertop until thawed. You can reheat the bread in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes until it is warm.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- Feel free to try other fillings, see my suggestions above.
- You can freeze leftover Start Bread for later, see above on how to do that.
- You can double this to make another Star Bread creation if desired.
- Making this ahead of time is totally doable, we suggest about a day before is the best timeline.
- This sweet bread can have other toppings, more powdered sugar, drizzle with a glaze, sprinkle cinnamon sugar, or just leave the toppings off and enjoy the bread itself.
Want a fluffy, unique, sweet bread to try this holiday season? Try out this incredibly easy Star Bread, once you try it it will be on your forever menu!
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried this STAR BREAD or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and what shenanigans I’m getting into!
Star Bread
Ingredients
Dough
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour plus more as needed
- 2 ¼ teaspoon 1 package instant yeast
- 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 large egg
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk
Filling
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
Topping
- 1 large egg beaten
- Powdered sugar optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients for the dough with a rubber spatula until it forms a shaggy dough. If you are using a stand mixer, mix the dough on low using a dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead the dough until it forms a smooth, elastic dough. If you are doing this by hand, it will take about 15 minutes. If you are using a stand mixer, continue mixing on low with a dough hook for about 5-8 minutes. If the dough is too sticky to handle, you can add a tablespoon at a time of flour, but only add the minimum required because too much flour will make the dough very tough.
- Place the dough in a greased large bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm area for about an hour or until doubled in size.
- While the dough is rising, make the topping. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and set it aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- Remove the risen dough from the bowl and divide it into 4 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a ball. Cover the dough you are not working with because it will dry out quickly.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one of the balls into a 11-inch circle and transfer it to the lined baking sheet.
- Brush the circle with 1/3 of the melted butter and sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon sugar mixture, leaving a 1/4 inch border around the circle.
- Roll out the second ball into an 11-inch circle and stack it on top of the first. Spread the butter and cinnamon sugar mixture in the same way on top of this circle. Repeat this process with the third ball, layering it on top of the second dough circle. Roll out the fourth ball and place it on top of the third dough disc, but do not top it with butter or the cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Place a 2 1/2- inch round cookie cutter in the center of the dough. A glass or any other round object will work here as well. Using a knife, cut the dough into 16 equal strips that radiate from the center. It is easiest to first cut the dough into 4 equal sections and then to divide each section into 4 smaller strips.
- Pick up two adjacent strips, one in each hand, and twist them away from each other twice. Lay them flat on the parchment. Repeat this process until all strips have been twisted.
- Press together the tips of each pair of strips to form a point. At this point, it should resemble a star.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place for about 25 minutes. The dough will become puffy and when lightly pressed, it will not spring back right away. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Right before baking, brush the top of the star with the beaten egg. Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes or until it is golden brown on top, including in the center. If the bread is browning before it has cooked through, loosely cover it with tinfoil and continue baking.
- Let the bread cool on the pan for about 5 minutes. Dust the bread with powdered sugar, if using, while it is still warm. Serve the bread warm or at room temperature. Store leftover bread tightly wrapped at room temperature for several days.
Notes
- Feel free to try other fillings, see my suggestions above.
- You can freeze leftover Start Bread for later, see above on how to do that.
- You can double this to make another Star Bread creation if desired.
- Making this ahead of time is totally doable, we suggest about a day before is the best timeline.
- This sweet bread can have other toppings, more powdered sugar, drizzle with a glaze, sprinkle cinnamon sugar, or just leave the toppings off and enjoy the bread itself.
Nutrition
Tornadough Alli is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value is important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and values can vary depending on which brands were used.
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