Moist Gluten-Free Chocolate Yeast Braid

gluten-free

Recipe by: Johanna from www.glutenfreierezeptwelt.de

Everything you need for the gluten-free chocolate yeast braid

Makes 1 large chocolate yeast braid (the dough is exactly the same as for the classic yeast braid)

• 340 g Ruut cassava flour
• 130 g white rice flour
• 50 g potato starch
• 50 g ground almonds
• 3 tbsp (23 g) arrowroot flour
• 10 g psyllium husk powder
• 2 tsp (5 g) xanthan gum
• 350 ml milk
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 42 g fresh yeast (1 cube)
• 100 g sugar
• 80 g melted butter
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, size M, at room temperature!

For the filling:

• 50 g dark chocolate
• 100 g milk chocolate
• 70 g butter
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp ground almonds

You will also need:

• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tbsp cream

Tip :) Always use a kitchen scale for our recipes and for weighing the flour.

How to braid and bake a gluten-free yeast braid

1. Warm the milk to approx. 32 degrees (not too warm!), pour it into a mixing bowl, crumble in the yeast and sprinkle 1 tsp sugar over it. Cover and leave to rise in a warm place for approx. 15 minutes. Bubbles should form.
2. Mix the flours, arrowroot starch, psyllium husk powder and xanthan gum in a separate bowl. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the apple cider vinegar. This cools the butter down a little so it is not too hot for the yeast.
3. Add the flour mixture, the remaining sugar, the salt, the eggs and the butter with the apple cider vinegar to the yeast and knead everything well. This works best with a stand mixer, but a hand mixer will also do. The dough will still be quite sticky and moist.
4. Cover the dough and leave it to rise in a warm place, ideally wrapped in a blanket, for at least 1 hour. It should have increased noticeably in volume. Depending on the room temperature, this can take 1-2 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling:

1. Melt the chocolate with the butter in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Stir in the cocoa powder, sugar and ground almonds and set aside.

Braiding the loaf:

1. Once the yeast dough has doubled in volume, turn it out onto a floured work surface and knead it lightly. To do this, flatten the dough, fold all sides into the middle and repeat the whole process 2 more times.
2. Now roll out the dough into a rectangle of approx. 40 x 55 cm. Spread it with the chocolate cream, leaving a small border free. Roll up the dough from the long side. Cut the roll in half lengthwise, leaving the top end joined. Turn the two strands so that the cut sides face upwards, then twist them around each other (see photo).
3. Push the braid together until it is the length of the short side of a baking tray. When you place it on the tray, it will then lie between the top and bottom edges of the tray – in other words, lengthwise on the tray as you slide it into the oven later. This helps the braid keep its shape so it does not "spread out".
4. Now leave the braid to rise uncovered in a warm place for approx. 40 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 180 °C, top and bottom heat. Mix the egg yolk and cream and brush the braid with it very carefully.
6. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 30 minutes. Leave to cool on the tray for approx. 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
7. The braid stays fresh for 3-4 days. It is best stored in a plastic bag (or first in paper and then in plastic).