Elsa sure knows how to make a transformation. This snow queen may have had an icy shell, but on the inside a heart of gold was there all along, kinda like this bread! Drizzled with snow white icing, this panettone-like black tea loaf hides gems of golden raisins and supreme apricots. And if that’s not enough, Elsa’s power flurries through the air into the ground of this bread with a swirl of cinnamon spiraling in fragrant fractals all around. Bake this for your next tea party and we’re sure you’ll be just as hair-whipping cool as Elsa.

Here’s to number 3 of 6 in our Frozen inspired bread series!

Elsa’s Iced Royal-tea Loaf

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:

• 400 g bread flour
• 40 g sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 10 g rapid rise yeast
• 1 1/2 cup strong black tea, divided
• 2 tbsp cubed butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup cold milk
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup supreme apricots, cubed
• 1 tbsp milk
• 2 tsp cinnamon + 3 tbsp sugar, mixed
• Powered sugar + milk

Directions:

1. Set a kettle of water on the stove to boil. Mix together flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a large vessel. Steep four black tea bags with 1 1/2 cups of hot water for 10 minutes. Measure out 1/2 cup of the strong black tea and combine with 1/2 cup cold milk. Add softened butter to the flour mixture followed by the warm milk tea mixture. Stir together initially with chopsticks and then knead dough together by hand for 10 minutes (adding about a teaspoon of strong black tea at a time as needed; dough should be quite firm).
2. Leave the dough in the vessel, cover, and let rise for 1 hour (or until doubled). Meanwhile, let the golden raisins and supreme apricots plump in the remaining hot tea.
3. Drain plumped fruit well before adding to the risen dough (additional flour may be needed to help incorporate the plumped fruit). Knead until well incorporated.
4. On a well floured surface, roll the dough out into a long, rectangular piece and moisten top with 1 tbsp milk.
5. Sprinkle cinnamon-sugar mixture evenly across and roll up dough tightly starting from the short side.
6. Place into a loaf pan with the seam face down. Cover loosely with cling wrap and let dough rise for 1 hour (or until doubled).
7. Set oven rack to the lower third (dough should rise in the loaf pan to be quite tall, so this cautions against the loaf top from browning too quickly) and preheat oven to 375 F. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer loaf to a wire rack to cool.
8. While the loaf is cooling, make the icing by combining powdered sugar and just enough milk to achieve the appropriate consistency.
9. Drizzle the icing over the top of the tea loaf and enjoy sliced.

A bread fit for a queen.

Elsa: Iced Royal-tea Loaf
Olaf: Steamed Buns (Mantou)
Anna: Chocolate Ban-anna Bread