This crusty Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread is perfect to serve with a selection of soft cheeses or can be enjoyed on its own.
*drum roll* please! My second ever attempt at baking bread and I have to say I am pretty pleased! Even more so because the bread is chocolate flavoured and dotted with a mixture of dark chocolate chips and, my favourite, dried sour cherries.
But since the loaf is neither really sweet nor savoury, it poses a question: what do you eat it with?
Well, I’ve tried it with a little butter and honey – it worked well, made myself a cheddar cheese sandwich – a little different but was delicious too, and that’s when I got the best serving idea of all! Cheeseboard. It is extremely versatile and goes well with most cheeses: cheddars, cream cheese, goat’s cheese and blue vein. They all tasted fantastic combined with the light flavour of chocolate and the tartness of cherries.
Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread
Ingredients
For the Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread:
- 4 cups plain flour sifted
- 1/4 cup caster sugar
- 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa sifted
- 3/4 cup dried sour cherries
- 1/4 cup real dark chocolate chips
- 300 ml milk at room temperature
- 2 x 7 g sachets of dried yeast
- 2 eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
- 1 egg yolk lightly beaten
Instructions
To make the Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, caster sugar, cocoa, dried cherries and chocolate chips.
- Place milk in a large jug. Add yeast and eggs to the milk and whisk together.
- Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk egg and yeast mixture.
- Mix with a wooden spoon to form a soft dough, the knead for a few minutes using your hands.
- The dough should becomes smooth and elastic.
Resting the dough:
- Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic film and set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Proving the dough:
- Line a tray with baking paper.
- Punch down dough and knead until smooth.
- Roll out the dough into a 50cm log and arrange into a ring on your baking sheet, press the ends together to join.
- Set aside for another 1 hour to prove.
To bake the Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread:
- Brush egg yolk all over the bread.
- Bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when tapped.
19 comments
Cheering!! This did turn out beautifully! And I love how you tied it with a pretty ribbon.. perfect for Easter I think!! xo Smidge
Wow, looks moist too!
Do you hear the clapping? That is my round of applause as this bread turned out divine. I love its versatility. A great one to have on a bread board for a brunch.
Only your second attempt? Wow! That is a RIDICULOUSLY good looking loaf of bread…
Thank you *blush*
Thank you *blush*
Looks stunning. I love sour cherries, they go so well with chocolate.
Oh yum, look at that crust! Amazingly good job. I’ve been bitten by the bread baking bug lately too. It’s so satisfying!
This only your second time? You’re a natural!
I wish that was true, I don’t have much patience to be a natural :-)
This is beautiful! I am not a big fan of cherries, but I am bookmarking this for the future.Something this pretty must be good.
The sour dried cherries taste different to the fresh variety. A little like dried cranberries actually, tart with a hint of sweetness. You could use those, or raisins.
Just look at this bread.. it really looks amazing. And of course I love that chocolate is in this recipe :)
It looks and sounds fantastic. I love everything with sour cherries and I since I have never had bread with them, I am dying to taste yours one day. I have recently had awful yeast baking experiences, so I will wait a bit before further attempts.
You should be very proud…this looks really fantastic! Sour cherries and chocolate…what a brilliant combo!
[…] Chocolate and sour cherry bread (wholesomecook.wordpress.com) Rate this: Share this:TwitterFacebookLinkedInDiggRedditStumbleUponTumblrEmailPrintLike this:LikeBe the first to like this post. Posted by Spoon Feast. Categories: Recipes, What every good cook should know. Tags: Bread, Chocolate Cherry Bread, cook, Dough, Flour, no knead bread. Leave a comment […]
Hello, Martina! I am Natalia, I am from Ukraine. Very much intrigued taste of this bread and I decided it to bake. Fortunately, the result didn’t disappoint.Thanks for recipe.
[…] Chocolate and sour cherry bread | Wholesome Cook Chocolate and sour cherry bread. Posted on April 4, 2012 • 18 Comments · Pin It. *drum roll* please! My second ever attempt at baking bread and I have to say I am pretty pleased! Even more so because the bread is chocolate flavoured and . « […]
Nice post which It is extremely versatile and goes well with most cheeses: cheddars, cream cheese, goat’s cheese and blue vein. They all tasted fantastic combined with the light flavour of chocolate and the tartness of cherries. Thanks a lot for posting.