Bread Made from Dough with Cocoa-Honey Emulsion

Bread Made from Dough with Cocoa-Honey Emulsion

Alexandr Piatkov



Bread made from scalded yeast dough with a cocoa-honey emulsion of olive and

sunflower oil. The essence of baking bread using this technology lies in its

simplicity and low calorie count. The bread is flaky and crispy; in shape,

structure, and taste, it resembles both a croissant and a muffin. Yet, it

contains no rich or pastry ingredients. This is not a confection; it is bread for

everyday enjoyment.


The bread is baked in silicone molds for cupcakes, cookies, or muffins. This

makes it easier to shape, and you don’t even need to dip your hands into the

dough. In fact, the entire kneading process is done with a spoon or a knife. No

lengthy hand-kneading, gluten "development," or similar techniques are required.


The dough consists of an emulsion, a preferment (sponge), and the main dough

itself. The preparation steps are as follows.


The emulsion is made from water, honey, and cocoa powder. Once it is ready, salt

is added to stabilize the emulsion and give the dough greater elasticity. Into a

vessel resembling a small milk can, we pour about 800 ml of warm water, stir in a

spoonful of honey and a teaspoon of cocoa. We cool this mixture to room

temperature and pre-blend the liquid with an immersion blender. This operation

creates a certain structure in the liquid medium, which will later incorporate

the oil molecules. This process takes a few minutes, during which the liquid

becomes slightly cloudy.


The choice of a tall vessel with a small diameter is dictated by the use of an

immersion blender. The rotating liquid rises, so a certain height margin is

needed; a 1.5-liter can is quite sufficient for the amount chosen in this recipe.

We add oil to the prepared liquid. The variety was chosen for subjective reasons—

a blend of olive and sunflower oil. We add about 100 ml and blend everything

until smooth. As a result, no oil droplets are visible on the surface; instead, a

small layer of foam forms, and the color of the emulsion turns lighter. Finally,

we add a teaspoon of salt and blend once more. This completes the preparation of

the emulsion.


The starting factor that determined the quantities of all components is an

aluminum basin. It holds three sieves of the simplest flour, which is

approximately 1.5 kg. For this amount, 800 ml of water for the emulsion, 150 ml

of water for the preferment, and 100 ml of vegetable oil are sufficient. The

yield is 40 muffins, baked in silicone molds on baking sheets, 20 pieces on each.

The baking time is 20 minutes, with the upper and lower oven racks swapped

halfway through. The silicone molds are pre-dipped in a baking soda solution; the

knife and spoon used during kneading are also dipped into it if necessary.


The process of preparing the dough begins with mixing the preferment, which is

done in the usual way. In parallel, the flour is scalded, which deserves a more

detailed description.


The emulsion, while being stirred slightly, is brought to a boil and poured into

the flour. If necessary, we immediately begin stirring it with a spoon so that

all the liquid is incorporated into the dough at once. We continue stirring from

the bottom and edges upward and toward the center, trying to form a cone of

slightly moistened pieces of flour inside the basin. Gradually, all the flour

will be saturated with the emulsion, and the desired structure will be built.


By this moment, foam forms on the surface of the preferment, indicating that the

yeast is ready to develop the entire mass of dough. We make a crevice at the top

of the cone and pour the preferment into it. The temperature of the dough by this

time must be acceptable for the vital activity of the yeast. The dough, which

previously seemed somewhat dry, becomes noticeably softer after adding the

preferment, and now it forms an almost perfect ball. Dipping a spoon into the

baking soda solution, we give it a smooth surface and cover it first with plastic

wrap and then with a cloth. We place the basin in a warm place and leave it to

rise.


Once it rises, we stir the dough again, which has become noticeably even softer.

Three or four such cycles of rising and stirring, with a period of about 40

minutes or an hour, can be carried out until the dough stops sticking to the

spoon. This will mean that the dough is ready.


Shaping the finished dough is done with a rolling pin on a board. We roll out a

sheet on a floured surface, sprinkle it with flour on top to create the flakiness

of the products, and cut it with a sharp knife into the required number of

rectangles. We roll them into logs and place them upright in the molds.


If desired, you can make four or five one-centimeter cuts on one of the long

sides of each rectangle. When placing the log into the mold, these cuts should be

on the top end. This creates what is known as a "cruffin": the bottom end,

sitting in the mold, embodies the muffin, while the top end, cut into several

parts, represents the croissant. During baking, this structure bakes through to

form numerous crispy surfaces. If anyone is interested, after baking, we place

the finished products on a wire rack to cool, a process that takes place under a

cloth.


To everyone inclined toward healthy eating and avoiding excess weight, I wish you

to use the described technology to achieve these very important qualities in

life. This topic is the fruit of personal bread-making over many decades.

Sometimes, heuristic thinking mechanisms simply kick in, and a truly magnificent

idea arises, opening a new path in the millennia-old practice of bread-making for

millions of people. This is exactly that kind of case. Good luck and health to

everyone!




Publication Details / Реквизиты опубликования
Author / Автор: Alexandr Piatkov
Original Source / Источник оригинала: proza.ru/avtor/alexanderan
Original Copyright: © Александр Пятков, 2025
Publication Certificate / Свидетельство о публикации: № 225121000866
Translation / Перевод: Литературный художественный перевод выполнен искусственным интеллектом (AI Translator).