makin' cuca

Okay, confession time. Rosetta Stone and I have not been as friendly with one another as we should be. I'm committed to change that, though!

But...that doesn't mean I've abandoned my love for Brazil :)

So, though I don't have any new words to share -- enjoy this recipe for Cuca, a delicious, delicious bread they eat in South Brazil! I had a lot of fun making it with Mom Rachel during our time there a couple of weeks ago.

Lesson learned: when you ask a Brazilian for a recipe, ask to make it together to avoid confusion when you read something like "one spoonful" or "enough milk to make it look shiny." Oh, and the other perk is spending time together. Mom Rachel got this recipe from "Grandma Nelda", one of the ladies from the church.

Cuca Bread (makes 3 loaves)

Ingredients
dough:
7-9 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
3 c. sugar
2 heaping tbsp melted butter or oil
2 eggs & 1 egg yolk (save the white, you'll use it later!)
2 tbsp. yeast
3-4 c. warm milk

crumb topping:
1 tbsp. sour cream
1/4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. sugar

Instructions
1) Combine dry dough ingredients in a large bowl. Add in warm milk, mixing together until dough becomes smooth with pockets of air forming (It sounds confusing... there's a picture below!). Dough will not be firm. I like to think of it as somewhere between banana bread batter and biscuit dough.

2) Let rise until doubled in size. Grease bread pans.

3) Pour dough into pans and set aside let rise again. In small bowl mix a little water with the egg white and beat with a fork to make a light foam.
4) Preheat oven to 350F
5) Make cuts in the top of the bread to add desired toppings. Add toppings.
You can do this during step three when the dough is rising so that some of the topping sinks to the middle. Next time I'm going to see how it works to put the filling in the middle (pouring 1/2 the batter at a time into the pan. 

top: guava filling, middle: crumb topping,
bottom: strawberry & chocolate filling

6) Brush top of bread/topping of your choice with egg white foam. Sprinkle crumb mixture over top. 

7) Bake at 350F until "done" (another fun Brazilian thing! no cook times, and I forgot to watch the clock!). It should be golden brown and firm to the touch when "done".

8) Enjoy with coffee or tea. Or, slice a piece, spread a little butter on top and heat it up in a pan for a yummy breakfast treat.