Orange & Anise Snowflake Bread (Vegan Gibassier)

Orange & anise snowflake bread - This Christmassy vegan version of Gibassier are soft, sweet, light and buttery orange and anise flavoured breads.

Shaped like snowflakes they are perfect for Christmas and the festive season.

These vegan orange and anise snowflake breads are a great festive bake which are perfect for breakfast, brunch or snacking on.

I based them on Gibassier, which is a French sweet bread from the Provence region; it is sort of similar to panettone and is enriched with both olive oil and butter and is flavoured with anise, orange blossom water and candied peel.

It is beautifully soft, light, buttery, fragrant and full of flavour; It makes a fantastic breakfast, especially around Christmas, and can be eaten as it is or smothered in butter.

I got the idea for the snowflake shaping from here; it is easy to do and the result is an impressive festive loaf; it also makes for a great tear and share style bread.

What Do I Need To Make Orange And Anise Snowflake Bread?:

Bread flour: White bread flour helps to give this bread it's soft, fluffy, chewy texture. Plain (all-purpose) flour will work in a pinch though the texture isn't quite the same. I don't recommend using wholemeal flour as that will make the bread too dense.

Instant/fast action yeast: I always use fast action yeast but you can also use active dry, just up the quantity to 9g.

Salt: You simply cannot make good bread without salt. Don't omit it.

Non-dairy milk: Soy milk is always my favourite for baking as it has the highest protein content so most closely resembles dairy milk. Any variety of non-dairy milk will work however, but go for an unsweetened one if you can.

Sugar: I use caster sugar in the dough as it dissolves easily; it can be swapped for granulated if that is all you have. You will also need some for sprinkling over the breads once they are baked to give them a frosty appearance.

Vegan butter: While in most cases I only recommend using a block butter for baking, in this case a tub variety is fine as well (but not one of the low-fat ones!). I used Flora Original.

Olive oil: Use a good quality olive oil for the best flavour; though do feel free to use a mild flavoured one if you aren’t keen on a strong olive oil flavour.

Orange blossom water: You can swap this for orange extract if you can’t get hold of any.

Ground star anise: This works really well with the orange but if you can’t get hold of it or don’t like anise flavour then you can use mixed spice or pumpkin spice instead.

Orange zest: The finely grated zest of 1 large orange helps to up the orange flavour. Make sure to buy unwaxed ones.

Candied peel: This can be left out if you aren't a fan. Or swap it for chocolate chips, raisins or dried cranberries.

How To Make Orange And Anise Snowflake Bread:

(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)

To make the starter, mix together the flour, yeast and milk in a large bowl then cover and leave in a warm place until bubbly.

To make the dough, beat the rest of the milk, olive oil, orange zest and orange blossom water into the starter.

Add the flour, sugar and salt and mix until the dough is smooth and elastic.

It should stretch to a windowpane without tearing.

Add the butter and mix until smooth. It will look greasy and messy at first but it will come together eventally!

Finally add the star anise and candied peel and mix until fully combined.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Knock back the risen dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into two equal pieces and shape each one into a ball. Flatten each ball of dough into a disc about 1.5cm thick.

Cut the disc into six sections, leaving them connected at the center. Make a cut through the center of each section.

Pull the sections outward to separate and elongate them a little. Use your fingers to open out the slits and form a V-shape in the top of each section.

Cover each loaf loosely with oiled clingfilm and set aside to rise until puffy.

Brush each loaf with a little milk then bake until golden and cooked through.

Top Tips:

As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!

As it is enriched with milk, sugar, olive oil and butter the dough is very soft and sticky so if you have a stand mixer I advise using it, otherwise prepare for some very messy kneading!

Make sure that your yeast isn't out of date! Old yeast can lead to bread that doesn’t rise.

The amount of flour needed may vary a bit as different brands absorb different amounts of liquid and the weather can also affect it. Start with the quantity given in the recipe and add a little more as needed if the dough is too wet. This is meant to be a soft sticky dough however, so don’t add too much as that will make the bread dry.

If you want, you can give the dough it’s first rise overnight in the fridge rather than at room temperature. This breaks up the workload and gives the bread an even better flavour.

The rising time of the dough will vary depending on how warm it is; on hot days it will rise much faster than on cold ones. If you refrigerate the dough for it's first rise, the second rise will take longer than if it's first rise was at room temperature.

If you want to serve it for breakfast I would advise baking it the evening beforehand then storing it in an airtight container overnight and gently re-warming it in a low oven before serving; it wont be quite as soft as if it were freshly baked but is still delicious and you don't have to wait around hungrily for it or start baking ridiculously early in the morning.

It can also be frozen, pop it in the freezer as soon as it is cool then when you want to serve it, allow it to defrost then re-warm in the oven for 5-10 minutes.

Can I Make Them Gluten-Free?:

No, I’m afraid that you cannot use gluten free flour. Making gluten free bread is tricky and the entire recipe would need reworking. Gluten free baking is not my area of expertise so I cannot advise you.

It is best to use a recipe that is designed to be gluten free rather than trying to adapt a non gluten free recipe.

More Vegan Christmas Breads:

• Almond bread twist
• Vegan stollen bars
• Gingerbread cinnamon rolls
• Maple pecan bread wreath
• Vegan stollen wreath
• Mincemeat, marzipan and apple bread wreath
• Vegan garlic dough balls
• Vegan chocolate babka

If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess

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Original (non-vegan) Recipe:

I originally published this recipe in 2015 and have since updated and veganised it. For anyone who loved the original recipe I have included it below.

Ingredients:

Starter:

• 100ml (⅓ cup + 1tbsp + 1tsp) full fat milk
• 80g (⅔ cup) strong white bread flour
• 7g (2 tsp) fast action yeast

Dough:

• 2 eggs
• 50ml (scant ¼ cup) olive oil
• finely grated zest of 1 large orange
• 2 tsp orange blossom water
• 280g (2 + ⅓ cups) strong white bread flour
• 85g (⅓ cup + 1tbsp) caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 60g (¼ cup) softened butter
• 1 tsp ground star anise
• 75g (2.65 oz) candied peel
• 1 egg, beaten, to glaze
• melted butter and caster sugar to finish

Instructions:

To make the starter, heat the milk until it is lukewarm (not hot), mix together the flour and yeast in a large bowl (the bowl of your stand mixer if you have one), beat in the milk until smooth then cover and leave in a warm place for 30 mins - 1 hour until risen.

To make the dough, beat the eggs, olive oil, orange zest and orange blossom water into the starter (use a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook). Add the flour, sugar and salt and mix on low for 6 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Increase the speed to high and mix for 2 more minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add the butter gradually while the mixer is on medium speed and mix until smooth. Finally add the star anise and candied peel. You can mix the dough by hand if you don't have a stand mixer but it is very sticky and messy and will need to be kneaded for at least 10 minutes until very smooth and elastic before mixing in the butter then the anise and peel.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 ½ to 2 hours.

Knock back the risen dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into two equal pieces and shape each one into a ball. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment. Flatten each ball of dough into a disc about 1.5cm thick and place each one on one of the baking sheets. Cut the disc into six sections, leaving them connected at the center.

Make a cut through the center of each section; don’t cut all the way through to the edge; it is best to use a straight, rigid piece of metal or plastic to press straight down through the dough, guillotine-style rather than dragging a knife through the dough. Pull the sections outward to separate and elongate them a little. Use your fingers to open out the slits and form a V-shape in the top of each section.

Cover each loaf loosely with oiled clingfilm and set aside to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hour until puffy, if you press the dough lightly with a fingertip it should feel light and spring back slowly, if it springs back quickly it needs to rise for a little longer. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.

Brush each loaf with a little beaten egg then bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and cooked through (a skewer inserted should come out clean and the internal temperature should register 94C/200F), rotate the trays halfway through baking.

Slide the loaves onto a wire rack and brush with melted butter and sprinkle with caster sugar (or dust with icing sugar) while still warm.