Chocolate Chip Turtle Bread

Wed, Jul 13, 2011

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I saw this cute idea of making turtle bread in The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook. I had some leftover sweet bread dough from making hot cross buns so I decided to give it a try. It turns out that it’s easy to transform any bread {sweet or savory} into little turtles. I kneaded chocolate chips into my dough to make the turtle extra special and I decorated it with a powdered sugar glaze. With this idea you could make smaller, individual turtles and use scraps from any bread dough that you have. Needless to say that my son was super excited when he saw a turtle coming out of the oven!

Chocolate Chip Turtle Bread

Recipe Type: Bread

Author: Itsy Bitsy Foodies

Prep time: 2 hours 30 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 2 hours 50 mins

Serves: 8+

Your family will love eating this sweet bread studded with chocolate chips. The best part is that it is in the shape of a turtle.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
6 3/4 tsp yeast (3 packages)
8-9 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1 cup butter
2 eggs
Roughly 1 cup chocolate chips
1 egg yolk
1 tsp water
Powdered Sugar Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp milk or water, to consistency

Instructions

Combine the sugar, salt, yeast and 2 cups flour in a large bowl.
Heat the milk and the butter in a saucepan over low heat until the butter melts and the mixture is very warm.
Gradually add the butter mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing them together at a low speed.
Once combined, increase the speed to medium and mix for two minutes more.
Add the eggs and 2 more cups flour.
Beat the mixture for two minutes.
Then stir in enough additional flour (roughly 4 cups) to make a soft dough.
Turn the dough onto a lightly-floured surface and knead it for 10 minutes or until it is smooth and elastic.
Form the dough into a ball.
Place the dough ball in a large, greased bowl and then flip the dough over so that the greased side faces up.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for one hour or until doubled.
Punch down the dough.
Then divide the dough into four pieces, shaping each piece into a ball.
If desired, knead chocolate chips into the dough balls at this point.
Working with one ball at a time, remove a 1/2-cup piece of dough from the ball and set it aside.
Form the remaining dough into a 5-inch ball {the turtle’s body} and place it on a greased baking sheet.
Roll the 1/2-cup portion of dough into a 7-inch rope.
Cut two inches off to make a head and five 1-inch parts for the legs and tail.
Shape the head, legs and tail and press them into the underside of the main body.
Using kitchen scissors or a knife, snip the eyes and the toes into the dough.
Cover the pan with a towel and let the turtle bread rise for one hour or until doubled.
Repeat the process with the other three balls of dough or reserve the remaining dough for another use.
Once the turtle(s) have doubled in size, mix 1 egg yolk with 1 tsp water and brush the dough with the egg glaze.
Bake the bread at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until the tops are light brown and glazed.
Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes.
Mix the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk/water until it reaches your desired consistency and decorate the turtle bread with the powdered sugar glaze.
With the icing, stick chocolate chips on the turtle’s head for the eyes.
Serve the bread warm or let it cool completely and store it in a sealed container.