There was a time, towards the end of 2015, when I had so many recipes waiting to be posted. I’d really forgotten just what I had done and what was still waiting to be posted. It was such a hectic (and sad) end to 2015, I had to let many things go and blogging recipes was just one of them. This Nutella & Strawberry Braid was obviously only a couple of months ago with the abundance of fresh strawberries that were around. They’re starting to go up in price again and the quality isn’t that good but, from memory, the strawberries this last season were absolutely gorgeous. (In fact, I think I still have quite a few in the freezer ready for muffins, smoothies and other recipes.)
This recipe is based on my Nanna’s Fruit Plait recipe. I’ve made it before using plums and macadamias and it was delicious. I love how Nanna even drew a diagram of how to ‘plait’ the pastry.
For some people, the thought of making your own pastry can send shivers up your spine but let me tell you this recipe is made in no time with little effort. I don’t own a mixmaster so I make it all by hand. It’s just a matter of ‘rubbing’ butter and flour together until ‘breadcrumbs’ are formed. This really only takes a couple of minutes. I love hands on baking. There’s no better kitchen tool than your own hands and fingers.
Once mixed, turn the pastry onto a floured surface and roll out into a rectangle shape.
[Tweet “Tip: Roll dough in between two sheets of baking paper. It won’t stick and there’s less clean up.”]
Spread the surface with your favourite chocolate nut spread. I just happened to have a bit of chocolate and macadamia nut spread left which I mixed with Nutella. Sprinkle the chopped strawberries into the centre of pastry.
Cut the pastry as per the previous photo and then start ‘plaiting’. Brush with a little egg wash and baking in a moderate oven until golden brown.
I didn’t drizzle this one with icing and top with nuts as I found the Nutella filling was rich enough. What you get with this pastry braid is a soft but firm pastry filled with delicious ingredients. Bit like in between a cake and a biscuit. So, so good.
To serve I sprinkled a little icing sugar over it, purely for decorative purposes. It really doesn’t need anymore. If you wanted to serve with a dollop of cream and extra strawberries, who am I to say no?
This is such a good recipe to have in your ‘go to’ pile. It’s made in next to no time and it ‘fancies up’ fruit that is starting to turn bad. You can add chocolate, nuts, dried fruit, other spreads like jam or peanut butter. People might think you’re a French pastry chef when you bring this one out. Hope you give it a try.
Nutella & Strawberry Pastry Braid
Ingredients
Pastry
- 4 oz 125gm butter
- 11 oz 350gm approx Self Raising flour
- 4 oz 125gm sugar
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup Nutella or similar chocolate nut spread
- 1 cup chopped strawberries
Instructions
- Sift flour and salt, add butter and rub butter into flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add sugar and mix well.
- Add beaten egg and milk.
- Mix until a firm dough forms. (You may need to add more flour, as I did.)
- Knead slightly until pastry is smooth.
- Roll out dough on a floured surface to a rectangular shape (approx 20x25cm), trim ends to form rectangle shape.
- Spread Nutella all over the pastry and top with strawberries in the centre of the pastry.
- Cut strips approx 1.5cm wide on the diagonal on either side of the fruit.
- Wrap or 'plait' each strip over the fruit, forming a plait pattern.
- Optional: Brush with an egg wash before baking, if desired.
- Bake for approx 30 mins in a 180 deg C oven.
- Dust with icing sugar to serve.
Recipe Notes
Use any kind of fruit that might be starting to turn.
Use any kind of spread like jams, peanut butters, fruit curds etc.
Top with a drizzle of icing and/or nuts if desired.
