Italian Chocolate Chip Bread for Chocolate Lovers Month

This Italian Chocolate Chip Bread is a great way to celebrate your love of chocolate and bread.  It’s also a great way to share the bread love.

February is Chocolate Lover’s Month, and although you don’t need a special month to celebrate chocolate or bread, chocolate and Valentine’s Day do seem to go hand-in-hand.

I decided to celebrate Chocolate Lover’s Month and Valentine’s Day by making this Italian Chocolate Chip Bread for some special people in my life.

The original version of this bread calls for all-purpose flour, but I decided to make it a little more nutritious by adding some all-purpose spelt flour. Spelt is one of the super grains and can be used in anything in which wheat flour is used so I figured I’d share the love with chocolate and spelt.

I doubled the recipe for this Chocolate Chip Bread so I could ship one loaf to my son at college and give the other to a friend.

Italian Chocolate Chip Bread

Adapted from: Making Fresh Bread from your oven to your table from LOVE FOOD

Makes: 1 loaf

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1/2 cup white spelt flour
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tablespoon butter, cold cut in cubes
• 1 tablespoon superfine sugar
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 2/3 cup lukewarm water
• 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 tsp. butter, melted for brushing

Directions:

Brush a baking sheet with oil or line with parchment paper.  Whisk the flour, cocoa, and salt together into a bowl. Add the butter and cut it into the dry ingredients. Stir in the sugar and yeast.

Gradually add the lukewarm water, stirring well with a wooden spoon or dough whisk until the dough begins to come together.  Knead with your hands until it leaves the side of the bowl.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured counter and knead for about 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Fold the chocolate chips into the dough, then form into a round loaf.

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size. About an hour.

Shape the loaf into a tighter round boule and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in a plastic bag or cover with wrap. Let rise in a warm place for 1 – 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in volume.

Preheat the oven to 425ºF/220ºC.  Bake the loaf for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 375ºF/ 190ºC, and bake for 15 minutes more.

Transfer the loaves to a wire rack and brush the tops with the melted butter.  Cover with a dish towel and let cool.

After brushing the loaf with butter, I was ready to pick up one of the loaves and just take a big bite, but I refrained. The loaves actually made it to the intended recipients.  I did slice one loaf so I could get a crumb shot, but I didn’t eat the slice.  The receiver didn’t mind.

Thanks for celebrating Chocolate Lover’s Month with me.  Now go share the chocolate bread love by making this chocolate loaf.

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy