Greek Sweet Easter Bread- "Tsourekia"

These are the cherry on cake for Greek Easter! When they come out of the oven, you say you’re only going to have a little bite and then end up eating the whole, entire, gorgeous tsoureki! They are like the French Brioche, except softer, not as dry and far more addictive!

This year I also made a chocolate tsoureki and I highly recommend giving it a try! All you have to do is chop up around 50g of dark chocolate and when you go to make the shapes put it through the dough and let the tosureki bake as normally. When it comes out of the oven it is melted through and a perfect partner to the orange zest found in the tsourekia.

Tsourekia with egg wash and sesames before being baked.

I truly don’t think anything defines Greek Easter, better than the smell, taste and gorgeousness of a tsoureki. Not even a lamb on the spit! If you are game enough to try this recipe, you will be throughly rewarded (maybe not around the waistline though)! And if you have made any type of dough before, it will appear very easy to you. It truly isn’t that complicated or time consuming and if you have an extra pair of hands to help you it is all the more enjoyable!

Yeast Mixture

1 cup of lukewarm milk

2 sachets/ 14g of dry yeast

1 tablespoon of sugar

Dough Mixture

7 eggs at room temperature

2¾ cups of sugar

2 cups of warm olive oil

1 cup of lukewarm milk

juice and zest of 1 orange

zest of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

2 teaspoons Mahlepi

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

2-3kg of plain flour

Egg wash for top

Sesame seeds and flaked almonds

In a large bowl, mix together the yeast, milk and sugar. Allow to rest for 15 minutes in a warm spot (37 degrees celsius is the perfect temperature) until risen and bubbles come to the surface.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix on medium-high speed the eggs with the sugar, until tripled in size. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix at low speed just until combined. Pour half of the mixture into another large bowl. To both bowls gradually add sifted flour and begin to knead when dough becomes hard to mix with a large metal spoon. Add flour until the dough is soft but still a little sticky. You don’t want the dough to be hard as the tsourekia will be dry, so don’t be worried if the dough is a bit sticky to touch, just as long as it is pliable and you can form a ball in your hand.

Place both bowls of dough in a warm spot (37 degrees celsius is optimum) for 2-3 hours with a sheet of grease proof paper on top and a dry teat towel. Line several oven trays with baking paper. Form a ball that weighs approximately 300 grams. Divide the ball into three 100 gram bowls. Take each bowl and roll into a sausage shape. Plait the three sausages, like you would plait hair. Place on the baking tray and two inch space between each tsoureki. Place, once again in a warm spot for another two hours. Repeat with remaining dough.

Once tsourekia have risen, brush with egg wash and sprinkle flaked almonds and sesame seeds on top. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees celsius for 30-45 minutes or until an inserted skewer, is placed in the center and comes out clean.

The Chocolate Tsoureki!

NOTE: If tsourekia begin to brown quickly place a grease proof baking sheet on top.