Tsoureki: Greek Easter Bread

There are a few foods that when I smell, hold and taste them they instantly remind me of childhood, and family. This bread is one of them.

For Greek families Easter is probably the most culturally celebrated day of the year. Easter has a myriad of traditional foods and practices. One of them is this bread. Traditionally it is braided with three strands, each representing a person of the trinity. It is sweet and bitter (orange peel) reminding us of the bitterness of death and sweetness of the resurrection. Also traditionally, the bright red Greek Easter eggs are placed among the braided strands to remind us of the new life in Christ through his victory over death. That's a lot of symbolism for a food!

Whether you choose to make it for Easter or not, it's delicious. One of my favorite things ever. We made it this week for Timothy's Greek Mythology festival in school. Apparently, he likes it too, because he signed up to bring Tsoureki bread.

Here he is as King of the gods

Interestingly enough, this week I could not find the traditional recipe that has been handed down to me, so I looked up one that looked comparable on the internet. It turned out terribly, it was so wrong! So I dug, and found the recipe my mom got from a Greek grandmother while she was growing up in Athens. This recipe is the real deal folks! It takes all day, had a bunch of steps, but if you want amazing traditional Tsoureki bread, this is the way to go. I decided I had better post it for myself so I never loose it again.

This time, since I was working, Keith has to prepare the bread for the festival. It was his first time, and it came out great. All the Greek Yayas would be proud of him!

I hope you enjoy my family's recipe.

TSOUREKI: Greek Easter Bread
Makes 3 loaves

Ingredients:

10 cups flour (divided 8 cups and 2 cups)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 oranges, rinds grated
2 packages yeast
1 cup warm water
1/2 cup butter melted
2 cups warm milk (110 degrees)
1/2 tsp salt

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water and let work for about 10 minutes

2. Pour 8 cups of flour, sugar, orange rind and salt into a pile on a clean work surface. Make a large well in the middle of the pile so it looks like a volcano.

3. Beat the eggs together in a bowl, then add milk and butter.

4. Add the wet ingredients and yeast to the dry ingredients. THIS IS EASIER SAID THAN DONE. Be careful! Add a little bit of wet or yeast to the middle of the volcano and use your fingers to mix the flour a little at a time. Gradually add more until all ingredients are together. If you add too much you will get a river or explosion out the side of your flour volcano. That is a mess. We have found that this is a good two person job. Get a kid or a friend to gradually add the wet and yeast while you concentrate on making sure nothing gets away.

Before

5. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. Set it in a large oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and set it aside to rise for 2-3 hours. It should double in size.

After

6. After the dough has doubled turn it out onto a floured surface and knead again for about 2 minutes. Divide the dough into three, one for each loaf. Then, divide each section into three parts for the braid. Roll each section into a snake about 18 inches long. Lay each braid section out on the counter next to each other. Pinch the three snakes together at one end and braid the bread by bringing one outside snake into the middle, and then the opposite side. When you have reached the end of the loaf, pinch the snakes together and tuck them under. Repeat with the remaining two loaves.

7. Place braided loaves on parchment covered baking sheets to rise again. (1-2 hours)

8. Brush each loaf with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake at 325 for 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.