Tips and doubts about the Roscón de Reyes

All the advice and recommendations for a perfect roscón de reyes .

We are already in the Roscón week, all the houses smell of orange blossom and it is no wonder. We are in crisis, and spending more than 10 euros on a Roscón, being able to do it at home for two, it shows.

But although it may seem that the most important thing is the price, the best thing is to be able to eat a homemade Roscón de Reyes (or Republican) , made by you, with a totally different flavor from the industrial one.

With a roscón flavor and not a sponge cake. Whoever tries it will repeat year after year, the difference is abysmal. Perfect to accompany your hot chocolate to the cup .

For two weeks, mails about doubts on the topic of the roscón have not stopped reaching my email, some of them with photos and thanking the result.

And it is that after four years preparing it I have come to an easy but laborious recipe and most importantly, fully tested, whoever follows the directions in the recipe will assure you that it will work out.

I have answered all the emails and little by little I have made a list with the most common questions, which are usually the same for everyone.

I preferred to make a separate post because if I include it in the Roscón recipe it gives me an encyclopedia-like feel. If you think that any more detail is necessary, you just have to tell me.

And remember that not even a crumb is thrown from a homemade donut. If you have too much (I doubt it) you can prepare our famous roscón pudding , a delight.

You can check here the Roscón de Reyes recipe step by step

Doubts about ingredients of the Roscón de Reyes

What is strength flour and why is it used ?

• In the blog we have an article about strength flour . This would be brief notes on this type of flour.
• It is a flour with a W value (W between 280-350) higher than other flours, such as the baker (W between 170-200) or the strong one (W of 200).
• Its main advantage is a higher gluten content, which is why we get a more spongy roscón and a softer crumb , which also rises more during fermentation and subsequent baking.
• This is due to a simple chemical process responsible for the fermentation of the dough. The starch, when reacting with the yeast (a live ferment), and in the presence of certain humidity, produces an anaerobic reaction that releases gas inside the dough and makes the bread rise.
• Of course, there are more values ​​and data that sets them apart, but the “W” value is a comfortable and easy way to tell them apart. Strength flour, both organic and non-organic, is highly suitable for making fat-enriched breads to which we add milk, butter, eggs, molasses, lard, etc.
• When carrying fat load, we need a flour that helps these breads rise enough and for this it is always better to use force flour.
• Some breads in which it is advisable to use force flour are: brioche , English bread ( sliced ​​bread ), croissant , roscón de reyes , panettones , etc. You can use less w flour but the result will be totally different.
• You can buy it in almost all supermarkets and department stores.

Where to buy and what brands do I use orange blossom scent or essence?

• The orange blossom aroma is easy to find in almost all super and large surfaces (it is a product that I have bought in Eroski, Consum, Hipercor, Alcampo, El Corte Inglés or Carrefour).
• You should not buy orange blossom water in pharmacies because it is not suitable for food. I use orange blossom scent sold in the bakery section.
• These two brands are usually found: “Aroma de Azahar” by Vahine (pastry section) and LAILA, 250 ml (in the international food or foreign products section, I think the latter is Moroccan and is used there for many of their dishes).

What yeast do I have to use to make the Roscón de Reyes? What is baker’s yeast, pressed or fresh? Does Royal type yeast work?

• For fermented doughs like bread, empanadas or buns, baker’s yeast is used , pressed or commonly called fresh . Bakery yeast is a living, essential and essential product for the manufacture of the Roscón de Reyes, it is the key ingredient that provides volume, fluffiness and an incomparable flavor to our Roscón.
• It comes in the form of cubes, they are sold in supermarkets (I have bought it in Mercadona, Eroski or in Ahorra Mas) in compact, crumbly and slightly moist 50 gr (2 × 25 g.) Cubes.
• This dose is ideal for a quantity of flour of 1Kg.) You will find it in the section of refrigerated products (near the butters and creams). Ask the super employees and they will kindly indicate you in which zone it is. It is essential that once at home you store it in the refrigerator so that it preserves its properties between 3 ° and 8 ° C.
• The one I usually use is from the LEVITAL brand. It is very easy to use, or we mix it with a little warm or lukewarm milk that will help to a better dispersion in the dough or crumble it with our fingers on top of the flour that we are going to use.
• The yeast has the ability to provide more flavor to the Roscón since it allows the flour to develop all its flavors. Yeast also contributes to the crisp, golden color of the crust.
• The main function is to transform sugar or starch (the main component of flour) into carbon dioxide and alcohol, which will evaporate during cooking. Carbon dioxide, a gas present in the air, is distributed throughout the mass and creates small air pockets that grow, giving volume to it.

Important: To make Roscón de Reyes you should not use Royal baking powder . This is a gasifying agent, different from yeast, they are chemical yeasts that only act during the baking phase so that the Roscón de Reyes will not grow in either of the two fermentation phases.

Your doubts and questions about the Roscón. Summary

Quadrant and time programming. Step by Step.

In several of your emails you asked me if I could put the times in a schematic way. No problem, I also remind you that in the levado part you can do what you like, from watching TV, taking a nap (a fabulous option) or reading the latest book Eat well every day, from a server. I leave you with the times of the blog recipe, and others slower.

1. Quick preparation: (if you are going to eat it the same day)

• Previous sourdough, between kneading and resting for 20 minutes.
• Roscón dough, kneading and resting 4-5 hours. You can speed up the process next to a heat source, such as next to a radiator, not on top, which is cooking for us. Or in the oven at 50ºC for one hour, although from experience it is not the same.
• Shape the Roscón and rest for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven 5 minutes, bake it 20 minutes.

2. Slow preparation: (if we are going to eat it in the morning on Three Kings Day)

• Previous sourdough, between kneading and resting for 20 minutes.
• Roscón dough, kneading and resting. I recommend that you make a leaven for 2-3 hours at room temperature, shape the Roscón and put it in the fridge with a plastic film so that it does not have unwanted odors, thus all night, about 8 hours.
• In the morning we let it rest out of the fridge for an hour.
• Preheat the oven 5 minutes, bake it 20 minutes. This option is the most recommended since the dough asks for time, the longer the rest the better the result. In addition, this way you will have the Roscón freshly made on Three Kings Day. Better impossible.

3. Freezing Can we freeze the donut dough if we have left over?

Yes, after the second fermentation (4-5 hours) we knead gently to remove the gas and wrap it in a freezing bag or plastic film to avoid odors and to be protected. When you feel like preparing it, you can defrost it in the fridge the night before and return to the slow preparation process. You will have Roscón for the summer, you will see how good it feels. I encourage you to prepare Roscón throughout the year, it is delicious.

I kneaded with flour on the table and not with oil (which I have never done before), and in the end the roscón “won” just over 200 g of flour…. than I put in the recipe, because I saw the dough out of control…. (quite liquid and sticky, more than anything)

And if you want to see how my friends “Las Pito Pito Gorgorito” make the recipe for this Roscón on video, do not miss any detail in the following video-recipe, they are my most applied students 🙂

Can I make whipped cream at home?

Yes, of course, here we show you how to make whipped cream with all its tips and tricks. In this video you will not miss a single detail, it will be perfect for you.

Do you think that excess flour may be the reason why it is not very fluffy? Can I use extra virgin olive oil as a substitute for butter? And margarine or lard? I have problems when kneading, do I add more flour to work it better?

These are very common questions in your emails. As I have mentioned, the Roscón dough is a very fat dough, a mixture of bread and brioche. It is very sticky and a little difficult to handle if you are not used to it. The dough has to be sticky, at a point where if we move the dough quickly on the table it does not stick but if we leave it still it sticks a little to the surface and hands. You should not add more flour because the greater the amount of flour the greater the consistency of the Roscón and the more compact it will be, try to work the dough without it sticking to the kneading area using the least possible amount of what we have reserved . If you can not, it is not a big problem, the Roscón will be equally super rich and with a great flavor but it will not be so fluffy, you will see a denser crumb.

To better work the dough, as I recommend in the recipe, it is best to cover your hands and the counter or kneading area with oil, it will be much easier if it is your first Roscón and you are not very skilled in this type of dough, You will see how that sticky dough will become more elastic and manageable.

However, adding oil to the dough is not a good idea , the problem is that the fat that the roscón needs must be in ointment, more creamy than liquid. The reason is that although the oil is also a fat, it does not behave the same in confectionery. The flavor also changes, it is not an exaggeration but it is not the same. In principle, substituting butter for margarine or butter is feasible, but it is not advisable either, its flavor also varies.

The donut once I bake it deflates, it collapses, sometimes even before I put it in. Why?

The causes can be many, surely it is due to kneading. If there is a good mix and the gluten mesh has not been created well, it will not hold as it should. The second most common cause is that when lifting and painting the roscón with the egg and milk, we puncture it, in the end with the levado it is like a balloon, so if we do it rough we load the previous work. The third most common cause is that the force meal is not good or that you have over-fermented the roscón, too much fermentation is not good either. Do not be afraid with this topic, if you do as the recipe says you will have no problem and you will get a delicious donut.

Details and tips to make Baking a success.

• The final part of the Roscón is when it enters the previously preheated oven. It is a step as important as the rest, so that you do not have any problem, I do a step by step.
• Once we have made the pre-baking fermentations, you have to shape the future Roscón and let it rest so that it gasifies a little more and has greater volume. The last fermentation will take place in the oven and in many cases the Roscón will double in size. My advice is that you stretch it out a lot with a large central hole , that you leave room for it because with increasing volume you may run out of a hole, since it tends to close.
• I have seen in other blogs how they place a plating ring smeared with butter or oil. I have tried it, it does not look bad but it looks perfectly where the hoop was, not only because of the shape but because it is without the golden color, it remains the color of the dough and I like that this gold everywhere, it looks more homemade .
• We beat the eggs and add a few drops of milk, this trick will prevent the egg from burning while it is baking and it will be super nice. We paint with the mixture of beaten egg and milk, always very gently with a silicone brush to avoid puncturing the donut.
• We prepare the moistened sugar. We put the granulated sugar in a bowl and add droplets of water, mix with the fingers and when it is well matted, spread on the donuts to taste. At the same time we toast the sliced ​​almonds or the crocanti in a frying pan, we can even add other nuts that we have on hand, the walnuts are also luxurious.
• We preheat the oven to 200 °, temperature up and down. We introduce first a donut and then the other. The baking time is 18 to 20 minutes at 180º but it depends on the oven. We lower the temperature to 170 ° the last 10 minutes of cooking and if we see that it toasts too much we put a little aluminum foil on top until it finishes baking. We remove from the oven and leave one to cool while we bake the second. You can not imagine how they smell, just for the aroma you have to prepare them at home even once.
• Can you put two donuts in the oven at the same time? The best is undoubtedly doing it one by one, but if you want to do it, the best thing is to introduce the air into the oven and lower the maximum starting temperature a little.
• Let cool and we can now present sliced ​​with a café con leche or with the same on the night or on Three Kings Day: a large bowl of hot chocolate. Remember that whoever finds the detail must pass a test that the other guests put on it, if you buy it, tradition will pay the Roscón …

Here you have a super short summary of the world of roscón on the blog, any of these recipes will delight the little ones … and not so little ones at home.

Roscón de Reyes. Christmas  recipe The recipe is updated so that you get a decent Roscón de Reyes at home, it has undergone many variations in the last 4 years, but I think this is the definitive one. Hundreds of people have already been encouraged to do it and the result is very good as you can see from the photos that have been sent to me by email. If you have not tried it, I encourage you 100%.

Torrijas de Roscón de reyes  For those of you who know about Roscón (… I doubt it very much, although sometimes it happens), one of the richest desserts on the blog comes up: Torrijas de Roscón, a 100% recycling recipe that is delicious. It is still a super rich brioche dough to soak in milk or in classic cup chocolate, this is another way to see this Christmas dessert.

Your roscones.

Thank you very much for sharing your works of art, I hope that many more will be encouraged to complete this album, it will be a grain of sand to get everyone to prepare their roscón at home.

Happy three wise men, have you behaved well?