Easter Bread with Almonds – Tsoureki me Amigdala

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Celebrate Orthodox Easter with this easy sweet bread recipe. Christos anesti!

This year’s Orthodox Easter Sunday falls on the 19 April, a week after the Western churches celebrate the holiday. So today I’ve made an Easter Greek bread with almonds using a recipe I’ve found in Vefa’s recipe book. I’ve omitted the chocolate chips but you can always add them to the bread.

This recipe makes 2 braided loaves. So let’s get started.

1. Into the mixing bowl, combine the bread flour, milk, water, yeast, salt, sugar grated orange zest and lightly beaten eggs. Turn on the mixer to slightly combine the ingredients. Then add in melted butter and continue kneading until it forms a soft dough. If you find that your dough is a bit dry, try add in water a tablespoon at a time until the dough is soft and smooth.
2. Oil the bowl with some oil so the dough won’t stick to the bowl. Form the dough into a ball and put the soft dough into the oiled bowl. Cover with a cling film/tea towel and leave to proof until double in size, about 1 hour.
3. After it has double in size, tip the dough out on a board and divide the dough in half (~435g each) and roll out each piece into roughly a 15cmx30cm rectangular. Then cut each rectangular width wise into 3 strips.
4. Brush each strip with a beaten egg and sprinkle almonds among them evenly. You can also sprinkle some chocolates if you want. Then roll them into long ropes and pinch the edges to seal. Roll the ropes to smoothen the surface. Continue with the other half of the dough.
5. Lay 3 ropes next to each other and start braiding, pressing the end to seal. Tuck both ends underneath the braided dough and transfer them to a baking tray lined with baking paper. Cover and let them rise for about 20 mins or until they are double in size. In the meantime, preheat the oven at 180 degree Celsius.
6. Use the remaining egg, brush the tops of the braided loaves and sprinkle with the slivered almonds. Bake for 20-25 mins, until they are golden, or until the internal temperature reaches over 190 degree Celsius.
7. Let cool on a wire rack and store, covered.

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Recipe Note:

1. The recipe mention 4 tablespoons of lukewarm water and 5 tablespoons of lukewarm milk. However, I find that the dough is a bit too dry so I’ve added an extra 7 tablespoons of water into the dough. You can add it a tablespoon at a time as different flour absorb water differently.
2. You can add chocolate chips with the slivered almonds.
3. To get a smooth braided loaf, make sure you don’t braid them too tightly. The tightness of the braiding will result in a “burst” in the middle of the loaf. Like the photo below.

Baking Equipment:

• Bowl
• Mixer with hook attachment
• Dough scrapper
• Cling film/tea towel
• Digital scale
• Measuring spoons
• Pastry board/mat
• Baking tray lined with baking paper
• Cooling rack

Recipe Note:

1. I usually use dry yeast as it is easily available and easy to use. 1 packet is 7g so I would use 1 packet for most of the bread recipe.
2. The recipe mention 4 tablespoons of lukewarm water and 5 tablespoons of lukewarm milk. However, I find that the dough is a bit too dry so I’ve added an extra 7 tablespoons of water into the dough. You can add it a tablespoon at a time as different flour absorb water differently.

Nutrition Per Serving (Based on 16 servings):

NUTRITION INFORMATION	AVE QUANTITY PER SERVING
Calories	178kcal
Protein	5.3g
Fat (total)	6.4g
– Saturated Fat	2.8g
Carbohydrate	23.7g
Sugars	1.3g
Sodium	78mg

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

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