• Preheat oven at 325 degrees. Generously coat a large bundt pan with baking spray with flour.
• In a large bowl, combine everything except for the chocolate chips. Mix for 2 minutes, then scrape the bottom of the bowl, then mix for another 3 minutes. Fold in the chocolate chips.
• Add batter to prepared bundt pan. Level out to make even. Bake for 55-60 minutes, until it passes the toothpick test in cake.
• Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then use mitts to carefully tip cake onto a baking rack. Cool completely.
• If desired, dust confectioners’ sugar on top prior to serving. Store in sealed container at room temp or in fridge. Cake can be cut into slices and frozen for up to a month.

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• In a large bowl, stir together flour and salt. Cut in the cold butter, and use either fingers or a knife and fork to break he butter down into pea-sized pieces. Add the water and vinegar until it just comes together as cohesive dough.
• Flour a large, clean surface. Roll out the dough to a 12×18 rectangle. Fold it in thirds like a letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill 30 minutes.
• Repeat this process 3 more times: roll out to 12×18, fold, place in fridge, wait at least 30 minutes, rotate dough, do it again. (There are videos on YouTube for visual guidance!) There will be a total of 4 roll-outs.
• Once this is done, wrap up dough again to begin baking process in 30 minutes or sometime soon, or wrap well and freeze for up to a few weeks.

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Prepare filling

• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add ground beef and cook until browned and broken up into small pieces. Carefully drain off fat.
• Add diced onion and garlic, cooking a few minutes, until distributed and browned. Stir in thyme, basil, paprika, pepper, and salt. Add beef broth and tomato paste. Cook about 5 minutes to season and thicken.
• Stir in the green onions. Add 1/4 cup bread crumbs to absorb extra moisture. Grab a spoon and do a taste test. Add more seasonings and spices to preference.
• Transfer the filling to a medium bowl and place in fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Create the plait

• Preheat oven at 375 degrees. Roll the puff pastry to a 12×16 rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. Move it to a large piece of parchment paper.
• Eye the center of the pastry, figuring on about 4-5 inches needed down the middle to hold the meat. Use the ruler to gently mark this area. On either side of this, gently mark where strips will be cut at a diagonal, each about 1 1/2-inches wide. On the two ends, leave flaps of about 2-inches. Now, use the knife or bench knife to cut the strands using the marks.
• Bring out the cooled meat. Fold in the shredded cheese. Return to the prepared puff pastry. Sprinkle extra panko bread crumbs down the center; this will help absorb moisture and hopefully prevent a soggy bottom. Spoon the meat in a big long row atop the panko.
• Fold over the two flaps left at either end, then begin doing the braid. Bring over one strand, then bring in one from the other side to hopefully overlap. Continue going back and forth. The meat may be visible in patches or totally covered. Tuck the pastry or pretty up as needed, which may mean clipping an extra strand or two. (Bake any extra pieces along with the plait! Waste nothing. But remember any spare pastry will cook much faster than the entire plait.)
• Use the parchment to carefully transfer the heavy plait to a large rimmed baking pan. If the meat is totally enclosed, cut 3-4 slits for venting. Crack the egg into a bowl and add a touch of water. Beat the egg. Use a pastry brush to fully coat the outside of the braid (plus any extra pieces of pastry to the side).

Bake!

• Bake for about one hour. Check on it at about the 45 minutes point and cover with foil if it is browning too quickly. Add about 5-10 minutes to the hour if needed; the braid should be golden all over, and a digital thermometer should read over 165 degrees in the middle.
• Let plait set for at least 10 minutes. Use this time to prepare a veggie for the side and heat up some beef or brown gravy.
• Cut pieces of plait between the braids. Serve with gravy. Take pride in this literal showstopper you have created. Refrigerate any leftovers and heat in oven.

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• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with a long strip of foil. Coat with nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, beat butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla.
• Next add the flour, baking soda, and salt, scraping the bottom of the bowl to be sure to incorporate everything. Fold in 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips.
• The dough may be quite sticky. Dollop it onto the prepared pan. Spray a piece of waxed paper with nonstick spray, then use the coated side to press down on the dough to roughly even it out. Then use a heavy drinking glass to press down more, creating an even, cohesive layer. Sprinkle on the remaining 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips and gently tap in.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges are brown and the top is golden. Cool completely.
• Use foil to lift out bars. Cut into thick finger-like pieces. Store in a sealed container at room temperature.

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Make the dough

• In a medium saucepan, warm the half & half, water, and cubed butter until an instant thermometer reads 120-130 degrees. Immediately remove from heat. The butter should be melted.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, mix together 1 cup flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Beat in the warm milk mixture. Beat on low to combine. Beat in egg.
• With the mixer on low, gradually add 2 more cups of flour. The shaggy dough will start to come together.
• Switch to a dough hook attachment. Continue beating dough until a soft dough forms, about 12 to 15 minutes. If it is excessively sticky, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, until it smooths out.
• Turns dough out on a floured surface to knead for a minute, then shape it into a round.
• Add oil or nonstick spray to a large bowl. Place dough inside and flip it around to coat. Place a towel or plastic wrap as a lid and set to warm in a draft-free place, about 75 degrees, for 45 minutes to an hour. The dough should double in size.
• Punch down dough and cover it to rest for a few more minutes while more preparations are made.

Shape the rolls

• Coat the wells of a 12-cup muffin pan with baking spray with flour.
• Turn out dough onto a stretch of floured parchment paper. Roll out to a 15×12 rectangle. Using a bench knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into roughly 1-1/2 inch squares. Smaller pieces are fine, too.
• In a large bowl, combine the filling ingredients: cheese, melted butter, rosemary, and basil. Toss in the dough pieces, moving them around to mix and coat.
• Pluck up pieces of dough and cheese and arrange them to more or less equally fill all 12 muffin cups. Pay attention to where the cheese is placed, because if it’s on the outside it could ooze out of the pan. Squeeze everything in. Cover with plastic wrap and set again to rise for 20 to 30 minutes. The rolls should look puffed.
• Preheat oven at 350 degrees.

Finish them!

• In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water. Use a pastry brush to coat the tops of the rolls.
• Bake for 24 to 27 minutes, until the tops are browned. An instant thermometer should read at least 200 degrees on the inside.
• As the rolls begin to cool in the pan, stir together the melted butter and salt. Use a pastry brush to coat the tops of the rolls. Serve hot.
• Store in the fridge for up to a few days, always warming to serve. Rolls can also be frozen for upwards of a month.

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