Pigeon Shaped Breads

With this recipe I'm giving you another idea of a wonderful activity which you can make with your kids. And you'll have double advantage: happy kids and a delicious outcome to eat together. My girls were thrilled with these pigeons made of leavened dough. And, after having shaped 15 birds, they were so disappointed that there was no more dough. Now they are hovering around the oven and they can't wait to taste the hot pigeon shaped breads! 

For me, the pigeon shaped breads bring back memories. When I was a kid, my grandma taught me how to shape the bread - I started by shaping the bread into pigeons, then I moved on to braided rolls, bread and homemade pies... And it was our favourite activity, especially on Christmas, when we used to bake braided rolls.

Ingredients
Basic bread dough
500 g
any bread or sweet bread you like, you can find my suggestions below, at step 1
Whole black pepper
2 tsp
Step by step
Step 1

First, prepare the dough for the pigeons, I recommend 2 options: 

- plain bread dough, as in the braided bread rolls recipe;

- sweet dough, as in the crescent rolls with jam recipe.

No matter which one you choose, you must pay attention - dough should be firm and non-sticky, so add more flour if needed.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 1
Step 2

When dough has risen and it's ready, cut into equal parts, about the size of a fist.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 2
Step 3

Roll out each piece of dough into a thin rope, about 1.5 cm in diameter.

Here you can get the kids involved, they will absolutely love the process.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 3
Step 4

Tie each rope into a simple knot. You might not be able to do it from the first time, but you will after several tries. 

The kids got it from the start, so it is possible...

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 4
Step 5

Notice we have 2 ends: one down - the tail and one up - the head.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 5
Step 6

Flatten the tail gently with your fingers and make 3 cuts with a knife to form 'feathers'.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 6
Step 7

Still using the knife, make 2 gaps on the head, this is where the eyes will be.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 7
Step 8

Insert 2 black peppercorns, press well to fasten.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 8
Step 9

The children suggested to make a beak as well, so squeeze the dough between the eyes with your fingers.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 9
Step 10

Repeat the procedure for all the pigeons and place them in the oven sheet.

Let rest for 10-15 minutes, while you set the oven to 200 degrees C.

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 10
Step 11

Bake in the oven until beautiful golden brown.

As soon as they cool down, savour the pigeons with anything you like - simple, as bread, or with butter and jam/honey, as a dessert etc. 

And yes, don't forget to remove the black peppercorns before :))

Enjoy!

Pigeon Shaped Breads - Step 11
Quantity: 10 pcs ()
Prep time:
60 min
Difficulty: easy
Ready in: 60 min