Sweet Fantans or tails?

Tired of the normal snail swirls? Then why don't you give these a cut.
These fancy fantails are a crowd drawer. Not only do they look great, but they are very easy to make. More importantly, they are fun to eat too - I just love peeling them off one layer at a time, especially since I layered each slice with a different topping!! :)

Wanna know how....here are some easy step-by-step guide.

All you need is some sweet dough, any fillings you like and you are set to go.

Roll dough out and cut up into strips - mine were very free-handed.
Preferably cut them into equal trips BUT if you are like me and can't follow anything straight even if your life dependent on it, not to worry (read on, it will work out just fine, believe me).

Sprinkle your filling onto the first base strip and keep repeating for each layer.

I added choc chip on one layer and then alternated with raisins with the other.

Keep going with the layers until the last one - 4 to 6 layers is fine, depends how big your muffin tins are.

Divide them up equally.

Prop them into a greased muffin pan. If you can, loosen the folds a little. Once proofed, bake as per recipe.

If you are not able to cut the strips up equally, not to worry, as you can see, once they are proofed and baked, it makes no difference. In fact, they give each serving their own individual and rustic look.

You can either serve them plain or if you are feeling generous or just 'low' on sugar, dust some icing power over them (quickest) or drizzle some icing glaze over them. I prefer them plain since they already have quite a lot of of sugar already!

Anyway, if you want to see how the 'professionals' shape them, here is an extract from J. Shapter's book:

Not too difficult right? You can shape these plain, sweet or savory - so what will it be? He he

Eric’s Fav Rye

With a title like that, wouldn’t you be intrigue - even just a little?? Ha ha

Since WildYeast tested this and with good praise, I ensued confidently. :)

All proofed and slashed, ready to be baked.

Was very pleased with the spring on the bread.

The bloom is definitely more pronounced with the aid of the poppy seeds. The slightly charred smell infused with the poppy seeds was just so intoxicating!!
In fact, I texted my parents in the morning to let them know that they didn't have to wait and could proceed to cut up the bread for their breakfast. A little stunned when they responded that they had already sliced it up!! Ha ha...looks like they just couldn't wait.

Verdict...The only grouse I had about this bread was that the poppy seeds were rolling everywhere as I was slicing it up. May be it was just my poor slicing skill. So be warned that it may get a little 'messy' but its all good and definitely easy to clear up (erm, except if some manage to escape onto the floor - well, then you have more to do, don't you??). ;)

But what is a little inconvenience for a truly awesome bread. Tip is to slice whole bread all at one go, then you will certainly love yourself for only cleaning up once.

I was trying to figure out what I thought of the bread so that I could post up my comment. 3 slices in (that was all I brought to the office) I was a little disappointed.....that I had no more. It has a nice crumb - soft light moist and Q-Q texture. As I had added a sprinkling of sunflower seeds and dates, each bite I took, emanated a different dimension - small crunch of goodness from the seeds and then a surprise sweetness from the dates. The poppy seeds on the crust also played its role - giving the bread a lovely roasted aroma and a hearty flavour and bite.

The bread can be eaten naked as it is, without butter or any condiments. In fact, it would truly be unjust if you did! Lolz

But don't take my word for it alone. I gave 2 slices of the bread to a friend of mine. She called minutes later to rave about how wonderful and healthy it tasted. And I quote, "You know, I just wanted to tell you that this is the best and tastiest bread I've ever eaten." Ha ha...I understand what she means especially since her normal staple surrounds commercially made bread. Homemade is always better, isn't it?? :) *blush, blush*

Good crumb! Big thanks to Eric for sharing. The recipe is here if you would like to sink your teeth into this delicious tasty bread.

Side notes – Scaled back the rye flour in the sponge to 60%. Autolyse the mixture for 20 min. I also added 3 extra tbsp flour as the mixture was on the sticky side. Brushed top with milk and then sprinkled the poppy seeds (which seemed to be running every where except staying where it should be!!). Slashed the loaf before popping into the oven. Baked for about 35 – 40 min with 10 min steam.