Sweet 'carnival crown' bread

Sweet yeast bread, or 'brioche', is a very versatile confection which lends itself well to both sweet and savoury combinations, and is thus ideal in many different circumstances, whether special (a finger buffet, birthday, or party) or everyday ( a quick lunch or snack). The version that we suggest here is sweet: the bread is stuffed with confectioner's custard rolled up in a creative and fun way. The strips of dough that decorate the exterior of the bread remind us of paper streamers, likewise the 'hundreds and thousands' that we used for decoration. So a 'carnival crown' bread it is!

Add the flour and sugar to your food mixer or Bimby, and then gradually all the remaining ingredients, ending with sugar, honey and salt. Mix well and then shape into a ball. Leave the dough to rise in the oven (turned off) for two hours. Meanwhile prepare a confectioner's custard (crème patissiere) as usual. When the dough has risen, roll it out into a rectangular sheet. With a plain non-serrated knife, cut half the dough into lots of strips which dangle off the uncut section, forming a kind of 'frill'. Fill the uncut rectangle with the confectioner's cream (not too much!), and then roll it up on itself so that it is enveloped by the strips which end up on the outside. Place the rolled-up dough in a well-greased doughnut-shaped cake tin. Decorate to taste with granulated sugar. Bake at 180°C for 35 minutes. Then add coloured sugar sprinkles. Serve!