This is a combination of two of my favorites, star bread and an everything bagel with cream cheese. One of the great things about a star bread is that you can play with the flavor by baking them with sweet or savory fillings. I was craving an everything bagel, which is topped with a combination of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, onions, garlic, and salt. It is everything I love on a bagel, hence the name! I had a bucket of challah dough in the fridge, a block of cream cheese, and the bagel topping mix. Why not layer them all together and create a fun version of the classic breakfast? Not only is it fun to make (get the kids involved in the shaping) and beautiful, but it’s DELICIOUS.
If you like this recipe, be sure to check out my challah, cinnamon star bread and 16 bread recipes for every occasion.
Ingredients
- Challah Dough
- 6 oz cream cheese softened
- Egg wash egg whisked with 1 teaspoon water
- 3 tbsp Everything Bagel Topping
Instructions
- Make challah dough as directed.
- Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off three 6-ounce pieces (about the size of a small orange). Dust with more flour and quickly shape them into balls by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Cover and allow the dough to rest for about 15 minutes.
- Roll out the dough balls into rounds about 8-inch wide. As you roll out the dough, add flour as needed to prevent sticking.
- Place one of the dough rounds on a piece of parchment paper. Top with 1/2 the soft cream cheese. Repeat with next layer of dough and the remaining cream cheese. Top with the final layer of dough.
- Place a 2½-inch biscuit cutter or anything that size and round in the center of the dough. Use a pizza cutter or bench scraper to cut 16 equal spokes from the edge of the biscuit cutter to the outer edge of the dough.
- Brush with egg wash and sprinkle on the everything bagel topping.
- Twist two of the sections away from each other with two rotations, then pinch the two sections together at the end to form a point. Continue with the rest of the sections until you have 8 point.
- Loosely cover the star and rest for about 90 minutes (60 minutes if using fresh dough that has not been refrigerated).
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush the exposed dough with egg wash.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and set. Allow to cool on a rack.
Does this recipe require all of the challah dough which is for two loaves? Or just 1/2?
Thanks
Hello! It requires 18 oz of dough, so a little more than 1 lb. Happy baking!
How long does the finished bread keep for?
Hi Linds, the star bread is best eaten fresh, the same day it is baked. Enjoy!
thank you for this great inspiration. I had a bunch of extra challah dough (long story short – messed up proportions and had to remedy by adding extra flour). remembered your post and decided to give it a try. what a great idea!!! next time will add chives to my cream cheese layer. I am dreaming of all kinds of options inspired by the bagel-cream cheese options. Brilliant.