Butterfly Pea and Earl Grey Strawberry Sando

Recipe

Adapted from:

• Hokkaido Milk Bread

• Fruit Sando

Ingredients

Butterfly Pea Dough

Whole Milk - 63g
Cream - 37g
Egg - 8g
All purpose flour - 100g
Powdered sugar - 13g
Dry milk powder - 6g
Instant yeast - 3g
Salt - ¼ tsp
Butterfly pea flower petals (for steeping) - ¼ cup

Strawberry Sando

Butterfly pea and Earl Grey bread - 2 thick slices
Strawberries - 10
Heavy whipping cream - 1 cup
Sugar - 5  tsp
Bowl of iced water

Technique

Earl Grey Dough

1 - Mix whole milk with cream and bring to a simmer in a small saucepan. Once at a simmer, remove from heat and mix in 6g of Earl Grey tea and steep for 15 minutes.

2 - Grind up an additional 6g of Earl Grey tea leaves.

3 - Combine flour, sugar, milk powder, yeast, salt and ground Earl Grey tea in a mixing bowl.

4 - Beat an egg in a separate bowl or ramekin and measure out 17g. Add it to the mixing bowl.

5 - After 15 min, strain the milk and cream mixture and measure out 133g into the mixing bowl.

6 - Mix the ingredients in the mixing bowl until a shaggy mass forms. Let it rest for 20 minutes.

Butterfly Pea Dough

7 - Mix whole milk with cream and bring to a simmer in a small saucepan. Once at a simmer, remove from heat and mix in ¼ cup of butterfly pea petals and steep for 15 minutes.

8 - Combine flour, sugar, milk powder, yeast, and salt in a new mixing bowl.

9 - Add 8g of beaten egg to the bowl.

10 - After 15 min, strain the milk and cream mixture and measure out 67g into the mixing bowl.

11 - Mix the ingredients in the mixing bowl until a shaggy mass forms. Let it rest for 20 minutes.

Knead Doughs

12 - By hand or by stand mixer, knead the Earl Grey dough for about 20 minutes until soft and smooth. A translucent ‘windowpane’ should form without tearing when stretched. Cover and set aside.

13 - Repeat with the Butterfly Pea dough.

Bulk Fermentation

14 - Let both doughs proof, covered, in a warm environment, about 80-85°F or 27-29°C, for 1 to 1.5 hours.

15 - To check if the doughs are ready, perform the indentation test. Moisten a finger and gently press the dough. If the doughs spring back, more proofing is needed. They are ready if they leave an indentation.

Shaping

16 - Roll the Earl Grey dough out into a 8 in x 12 in / 20 x 30 cm rectangle.

17 - Roll the Butterfly Pea dough out into a 6 in x 8 in / 15 x 20 cm rectangle.

18 - Place the Butterfly Pea dough on one half of the Earl Grey dough and fold the Earl Grey dough over to encase it.

19 - Cut the dough into half cross-wise and stack the two doughs on each other. Roll it back out into a 8 in x 12 in / 20 x 30 cm rectangle.

20 - Repeat step 19 twice more.

21 - Cut the dough into 3 strips lengthwise. Roll each strip into a log and braid them into a plait.

Final Proof

22 - Place the plait into a greased bread pan. Cover the pan and let the dough proof for another 1 to 1.5 hours. Perform the indentation test again to check if the dough is ready.

Baking

23 - 45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 325°F / 160°C.

24 - Lightly spritz the dough with water. If using a Pullman pan, place the lid on the pan.

25 - Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 min. If using a Pullman pan, remove the lid and replace the pan in the oven. Rotate the pan and bake for another 10 to 20 min.

26 - Once the bread is golden brown, remove it from the oven and turn it out of the loaf pan onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Strawberry Sando

26 - While the bread is cooling, prepare the strawberry sando ingredients.

27 - Thoroughly rinse the strawberries. Cut off the tops and remove the cores. Pat very dry.

28 - Pour heavy whipping cream into a mixing bowl, and set the bowl inside a larger bowl filled with cold water and ice cubes.

29 - Using a hand mixer, or by hand, begin whisking the cream. Gradually add in sugar while whisking. Continue to do so until stiff peaks form.

30 - Cut two thick slices of bread from the bread. Spread a thick layer of whipped cream on each slice.

31 - On one slice, arrange strawberries in an X formation. Spread more whipped cream on top, filling in the gaps, then cover with the other bread slices.

32 - Tightly wrap the sandwiches and weigh them down slightly. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

33 - Unwrap the sandwiches and cut each one diagonally to reveal the strawberry cross sections. Carefully cut off the crust on each of the edges and the sandos are complete!

Butterfly Pea Blue

Growing up in Singapore, it was common to see kueh (dessert snacks) dyed with a rich indigo blue with the butterfly pea flower. When steeped in hot water to make a tisane, the petals impart a bright blue colour accompanied by an earthy aroma.

I thought that the earthy but sweet flavour of butterfly pea made a lovely complement to the lemony bergamot of Earl Grey tea. Specifically I used a French Earl Grey tea blend from TWG that I’d picked up from the airport on my trip home.

Pastels in Spring

I’m really happy with how the marbling of the bread turned out. This was achieved by first laminating the two doughs together, then braiding them before baking. The way the butterfly pea dough peeks through the braids is a delight.

It being strawberry season, I thought I’d pair the marbled butterfly pea and Earl Grey bread with the equally pastel combination of strawberries and cream. The decadent creamy-vanilla-earthy flavour combination is more sweet than snack, and the sando-style presentation is definitely a dessert for the eyes.

I’ve been really suffering from springtime allergies recently so it’s nice to have some floral pastels around that don’t cause my sinuses to swell up!