Cranberry Cream Cheese Bread

Prep work: ① Make the cream cheese filling: 200g cream cheese + 20g heavy cream + 25g sugar. Soften, then mix until smooth and set aside. (Note: You can make this during the bulk fermentation.)

② Make the Mexican topping (cookie crust): Formula: 70g butter, 70g powdered sugar (reduce to 40g if you prefer less sweet), 70g whole egg (beaten), 70g cake flour. Mix softened butter with powdered sugar until well combined. Add the beaten egg in 2–3 additions, mixing well after each addition. Sift in the cake flour and mix until combined. Fit a piping bag with a flat piping tip and fill with the Mexican topping. Set aside. (Note: You can make this during the final proof.)

③ Soak the dried cranberries: Mix 150g dried cranberries with 36g rum and soak until the fruit softens. (Note: You can soak them the night before making the bread.)

Combine all dough ingredients except the butter in the mixing bowl of an M6 stand mixer. Mix on low speed until no dry flour remains and a dough forms. Switch to speed 5–6 and knead until the dough becomes smoother and slightly fine in texture, then add the softened butter. PS: Beginners should reserve some of the liquid for adjustment. Some mixers don’t handle very high-hydration doughs well, so you can add the liquid in portions while mixing. If you already have some experience, it’s not recommended to reduce the liquid, as it will affect the final texture.

Knead on speed 3 until the butter is fully incorporated into the dough.

Switch to speed 5 and continue kneading until you can pull a thin, translucent windowpane with good elasticity.

The dough should look like this.

Add the soaked cranberries (drained of excess rum).

Mix on speed 2 for about 30 seconds until evenly distributed, then remove and round the dough. Place it in a container and bulk ferment at 28°C with 75% humidity for about 60 minutes.

Ferment until the dough is about 2.5 times its original size.

Turn the dough out and divide it.

Divide into 80g portions.

Round each piece and let rest at 28°C with 80% humidity for 20 minutes.

Take one relaxed dough piece and roll it out as shown. Gently pat out any large air bubbles on the edges.

Flip it over and spread on the cream cheese filling, leaving the far edge uncoated.

Roll up from top to bottom and pinch the seam tightly. Place seam-side down into a boat-shaped paper mold.

Proof at about 32°C with 80% humidity until doubled in size. When you gently press the surface with a finger, it should spring back slowly.

Pipe the Mexican topping over the surface.

Bake on the lower-middle rack of a preheated C76 oven at 180°C top / 200°C bottom for about 18 minutes. For convection ovens, try about 170°C for 14 minutes. For other oven models, please refer to the time and temperature you usually use for similar breads.

Tap the tray lightly after taking it out of the oven, then remove from the molds.