Ensaimadas
By: Helen Pitlick
Published: Thursday, December 10, 2009 - 5:28pm

Ingredients




2 tablespoons caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
2/3 cup warm water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
4 cups white bread flour
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 egg yolks
6 tablespoons to 8  warm milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Preparation

1 Dissolve 1 tsp in the warm water, then sprinkle in the yeast. Stir, then set aside for 10 minutes or until frothy. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. 2 Cream the softened butter with the remaining sugar in a large bowl. When it is fluffy, beat in the egg yolks and a little sifted flour. Gradually stir in the remaining flour with the yeast mixture and enough milk to form a soft but not sticky dough. Transfer to an oiled plastic bag. Close the bag loosely, leaving plenty of room for the dough to rise. Leave in a warm place for about an hour, until the dough doubles in bulk. 3 On a lightly floured surface, knock back (punch down) the dough, then roll it out in a large rectangle. Brush the surface with half of the melted butter; sprinkle with the cheese, then roll up from a long side like a jelly roll. Knead the dough thoroughly, then divide into 10 to 12 pieces. 4 Roll each piece of dough into a thin rope, 15 in long. On greased baking sheets, coil each rope into a loose spiral. Leave to rise for about 45 minutes or until doubled in size. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Bake the ensaimadas for 15-20 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven, then brush with remaining melted butter and sprinkle with caster sugar. Serve warm.

About


This bread is popular in the Philippines. From India’s Best 500 Recipes by Shehzad Husain, Rafi Fernandez, Mridula Baljekar and Manisha Kanani.