Baking is slowly turning from a hobby to a passion for me. In the world of baking, the number of goodies you can make are so many that I don’t think I can ever complete all of them even if I bake all my life. 😅

But once you fall in love with it, it becomes your best friend ❤️. As I have said before, the immense happiness of baking can only be understood by bakers, be it a home baker like me or a pro baker like many chefs.

I always loved tutti frutti bread as a kid and my dad used to bring it along with regular bread. If people from Cochin remember, this used to come in a small packet from Modern Breads and was so soft and delicious (A precious food memory for me ❤️).

And with few attempts, I got this perfect loaf of tutti frutti bread and that too with wheat flour. The texture is super soft and the taste is so yummy that it definitely took me back to my childhood days. Never had I thought I would bake the same as an adult. Life surprises! 😍

This bread is perfect for kids as snacks and if your kids are like mine who demand for food whole day, this bread will be your lifesaver. Also much healthier than store bought bread since it uses wheat flour and no preservatives.

Hope you all try and love it too. Happy and healthy baking!

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

2 Cups whole wheat flour/ Atta { I use Pillsbury brand }

1 Cup Milk (may require a little more depending on the brand of wheat flour)( can also use milk powder+water)

1/4 Cup Tutti frutti

20 grams Butter (keep at room temperature for sometime till it turns soft)

2 Tbsp Custard powder

2 Tbsp Milk powder

2 Tbsp Sugar

2 tsp Instant yeast OR 2 1/2 tsp dry active yeast

1 tsp Salt

Little milk and butter for brushing over the pav

Oil to brush the pan and dough

Step by step recipe:

1. Warm milk in a pan or microwave. It should NOT be very hot or cold. Just lukewarm. Add in sugar and yeast. Mix once and allow to proof (ie keep aside for about 5 mins).

Note: See how well it has proved. If it does not rise like this, it means the yeast is no longer active. Discard and use good quality yeast. Else the bread will turn hard.

2. Now take wheat flour in a large mixing bowl. Add custard powder, milk powder, salt and tutti fruti. Mix once with a spatula.

3. Add the proved yeast to it and form a dough using hands just like you form regular chapati doughs. Now add softened butter.

4. Start kneading till the butter blends well into the dough and keep kneading for about 8 to 10 mins till it forms a soft and smooth dough.

Note: If the dough is hard and dry at this point, add little milk while kneading so that it turns into a soft dough.

5. Apply oil on the surface of the dough and keep covered in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours till it doubles in size.

6. Now punch lightly and keep this dough in a greased loaf pan. No need to knead the dough before placing.

7. Allow it to rise above the rim of the pan. It took mine 1 hour of resting in a warm place to rise well. Brush the surface with milk and add some tutti fruti on top.

8. Preheat the oven at 200 C for 15 mins and bake the bread at 200 C for 15 to 20 mins or till done in the center rack of the oven. (Insert a toothpick in the center to see if it comes clear.)

9. Brush with butter and allow it to cool completely. I usually keep it to rest overnight and it turns soft by next day morning.

10. Slice and serve.

Notes:

* This tutti frutti bread lasts well for a day at room temperature. After that, you can refrigerate and either microwave or fry in a pan with ghee and enjoy.

* You can skip tutti frutti to make plain whole wheat milk bread.

* Custard powder gives a very good colour and flavour to the bread. But if you don’t have, you can skip it. Same is the case with milk powder. You can skip if not available. It is for flavour too.

* If the dough turns hard even after adding butter, do add more milk and knead into a soft and smooth dough.

* Do proof the yeast even if it is instant yeast. It is to be on the safe side to find if the yeast is still active and so as to not waste the other ingredients.

* Be sure to rise both times well. First time atleast till it doubles in size and second till it doubles again and rises above the rim of the loaf pan (mine is 20 cm * 4 cm).

* Grease the loaf pan with oil or ghee before placing the dough.

* Preheat the oven well and bake till the surface turns golden brown or till a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

* Don’t open the over door before atleast 15 mins into the baking time or else it will lead to uneven temperatures and uneven baking.

* At 15 mins baking time, if the surface is turning black but inside still has to cook (ie if toothpick inserted in the center shows sticky), cover the surface with aluminium foil paper and bake for 5 more mins. This ensures the surface does not turn any more black.

* Don’t forget to brush with milk before baking and brush with butter after baking. This gives a very soft crust.

* Keep it to rest overnight if possible. Else one hour is enough to get good slices. Use serrated knife if you have. It gives perfect slices.

* This recipe is just a modification of my whole wheat Pav recipe which many readers have tried and loved. You can find the recipe here.

I have tried to note down as much points as possible so that it’s easy for you all to follow but if you still have any doubts, either comment here or message me on my Facebook page Healthy cooking with mitha or on my Instagram handle and I would be happy to help.