Guava Bread (Mojicon - Columbia)

Ingredients

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour(plus more as needed)
• 6 ounces guava paste, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 egg white, beaten with 1 teaspoon water (for glaze)
• 1 tablespoon decorator's sugar (for garnish)

Instructions

1. Sprinkle yeast over warm water in a large mixing bowl. Let stand until soft, about 5 minutes.
2. Scald milk in a small saucepan. Stir in the butter until it melts. Remove the milk from the heat and allow it to cool to about 110 degrees F.
3. Mix the milk-butter mixture, sugar, egg, salt and 1 cup of the flour into the yeast until blended, and then beat at medium speed with electric mixer for 5 minutes.
4. Gradually stir in the remaining flour with a plastic spatula to make a smooth, elastic dough.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until silky smooth, about 5 minutes. If the dough is sticky, add a little more flour. Put the dough into a large, lightly greased bowl, and then flip it over so that the top is greased. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and a towel, and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
6. Punch down the dough, turn it out onto a floured surface, and divide it into 4 equal portions. Roll one into a 15 x 5-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Leaving a 1/4-inch border, sprinkle one fourth of the diced guava paste evenly over the dough. Roll up the dough from the long side, like a jellyroll, to form a long rope. Transfer the rope to one end of a greased baking sheet, form it into a ring, and pinch the ends to seal. Repeat until all the dough pieces are shaped into rings. Place 2 rings on each baking sheet. Make 5 evenly spaced crosswise cuts, 3/4 inch deep and 2 inches long, in each ring to expose the filling (as if cutting each into 5 chunks, but do not cut through the bottom layer of dough). Cover the rings with towels and let them rise in a warm place until almost doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.
7. Brush each ring with egg white glaze and dust with decorator's sugar. Bake the rings on the upper rack of a preheated 350 degree F oven until they are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped gently, about 30 minutes.
8. Transfer the bread to wire racks to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 4 small bread rings, serving 8.