Holiday Star Bread

In a bowl whisk together 2 cups of flour, yeast, sugar, and salt until combined

To the flour mixture add the very warm milk, butter, and egg. Mix with an electric mixer until combined completely. Add in the remaining 1 1/2 cups flour and beat until combined completely.

If you have a stand mixer change the attachment to a dough hook and let it knead for 5 minutes. If you don’t have a stand mixer, knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes

After 5 minutes add the kneaded dough into a bowl lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until double in size, around 40 minutes. To check if it has doubled, press a finger into the dough. If the indentation remains that means it is ready

Press down the dough, cover it up, and let it rest for another 5 minutes

Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and divide it into four equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and let it rest another 5 minutes

Roll out the each of the pieces of dough into a 10 inch circles and place a round of dough on a parchment lined sheet tray

In a small bowl combine brown sugar, ground cinnamon, ground cardamom, and orange zest 

Brush the round of dough on the sheet tray with melted butter and sprinkle a good amount of the sugar mixture to the top. Add another round of dough over that and keep repeating this step until you put the last round of dough on top

Lightly put a 2-3 inch cookie cutter or glass in the center. Using a knife cut the dough into 4 equal sections, then another 4, and another 4- totaling 16 sections

Taking two strips of the dough at a time, twist them towards each other 2 times. Firmly pinch the ends together and keep repeating this until all of the strips are done

Cover the dough and let it rest in a warm place until puffy, about 25 minutes

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F while the dough is rising

After the dough is done rising brush the top with melted butter and put it into the preheated oven. Bake until slightly golden brown- about 25 minutes

Once the dough is cooked through take it out of the oven and let it cool slightly. Once cooled dust the ends with powdered sugar and serve!

This beautiful bread is a perfect holiday gift or just a delicious gift for yourself. Happy holidays!