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freshly baked loaf of sunflower bread
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4.50 from 8 votes

Sunflower Bread

Sunflower Bread - a delicious bread that's shaped to look like a sunflower, sprinkled with poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Gorgeous!
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time35 minutes
Total Time1 hour 35 minutes
Course: Bread, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: bread, bread recipe
Servings: 18
Calories: 247kcal

Ingredients

For Bread

  • teaspoon active dry yeast (2 pkgs or 15 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • ¼ cup water warm
  • 5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup warm milk (250 ml)
  • ½ cup vegetable oil (125 ml)
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoon salt

Other

  • 8 tablespoon butter melted (1 stick)
  • 1 egg beaten (for brushing on top)
  • sesame seeds and poppy seeds (optional)

Instructions

  • Activate the yeast first by adding it to a bowl, then add the sugar and the 1/4 cup of warm water. Stir a bit then let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes or until it bubbles up. Add this to the bowl of your mixer.
  • Add the remaining ingredients for the bread, flour, milk, eggs and oil and using the hook attachment, mix for about 5 minutes, the sides of your bowl should be clean. If the mixture is too dry, add a bit more warm water, if it's too sticky add a bit more flour. The dough should be soft. Form the dough into a ball and place it in a oiled bowl, cover with clean damp kitchen towel, and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours.
  • You'll need a round pan, at least 14 inch in diameter, line with parchment paper and set aside.
  • Cut the dough in 2 equal pieces, use a kitchen scale if necessary. Cover one of the pieces with damp kitchen towel, and set aside.
  • Cut the one piece of dough into 5 equal pieces, use a kitchen scale if necessary, and shape each piece into a ball. Roll out each piece so that it's about 8 1/2 inches to 9 inches in diameter. Brush each piece with the melted butter, and stack all the rolled out pieces, do not brush the last piece with butter. Also I rolled out the last piece so that it was about 10 inches in diameter, so that I can cover the edges with it.
  • Place the stack in the middle of the prepared pizza pan. Using a sharp knife cut the stack into 8 slices, but not all the way through the end, leave about an inch from the end. Make sure you cut all the way down, if it’s easier use scissors. Next pull out and over each slice.
  • Take the last piece of dough and cut out 1/4 of it, shape it into a ball and set it aside. Take remaining dough and cut into 5 equal pieces, shape each into a ball. Roll each one, but now they only need to be 5 1/2 inches in diameter and as you roll each one, brush it with butter. Again stack them on top of each other, and the last piece roll it out so that it’s a bit bigger than the other 4, and place it on top of the stack covering the sides of the stack. Take this stack and place it in the middle of the pizza pan. It should fit nicely in the middle of the other dough.
  • Cut it into 8 equal slice, just make sure you now start to slice in the middle of the other pedals, so that these pedals fit between the bigger ones. Again pull out each slice and secure it in between 2 of the bigger petals. Place the last ball in the center. Cover with damp kitchen towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
  • Preheat oven to 350℉.
  • Brush with egg wash and sprinkle some poppy seeds on the middle ball, and sesame seeds on the petals.
  • Bake for about 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Notes

  1. Total time does not include time required to let the dough rise.
  2. Always check the expiration date on your yeast and make sure it hasn't expired. All your yeast products whether it’s in a jar or a package should be stamped with a “Best if Used by” date. Always make sure you check this date, even when you purchase the yeast, who knows it could have been on the shelf past its expiry date.
  3. To keep your yeast fresh and longer lasting, unopened yeast packages or jars should be stored in a cool or dry place such as your cupboard. However, you can also store your yeast in the fridge or freezer. If you do store it in the freezer and need to use yeast for your baking, make sure you take out the amount you need and let it sit at room temperature for at least half hour before using.
  4. Once your yeast package or jar has been opened, you must refrigerate the yeast or freeze it in an airtight container.
  5. One thing to remember about your yeast, is that it is a living organism and over time it will lose activity, even if you’ve never opened the jar or package. So if you don’t bake often, buy the smaller yeast packages rather than a big jar of yeast.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 247kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 277mg | Potassium: 75mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 219IU | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 2mg