Daring Bakers - Yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake

 

It's March Daring Bakers reveal day, and I know that you have been waiting  for it.  So, without further ado:

The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake. 

It comprises a bread dough filled with a meringue and your choice of additional filling which can be sweet or savoury.  As our hosts described it as:

A gorgeous brioche-like dough is rolled jellyroll style around a whipped meringue and whatever filling you choose, shaped into a wreath and baked.

This recipe is quite unusual - I would never have thought of filling a bread with meringue.  In the baked bread, the meringue seems to melt into the dough, so that it adds flavour, but is not otherwise evident in the finished product.

I had picked up some sugar plums at the supermarket out of curiosity (heck, who hasn't wanted to taste a sugar plum?), so I chose to use those in the filling with a sprinkling of cinnamon:

Here is a peek inside my bread:

This bread was pleasant, but not my kettle of fish - I am not a bread girl in general.  They ate it at work, so I can only assume it tasted ok (although I note that it did not disappear as quickly as some other things).

Thanks to Ria and Jamie for hosting us this month.  You can check out the amazing variety of yeasted meringue coffee cakes by visiting The Daring Bakers Blogroll.