Easter Tsourekia

Easter Tsourekia / Πασχαλινά Τσουρέκια

Tsoureki is a Greek Easter bread similar to Brioche – it is soft, fluffy and aromatic, with exotic spices such as mastic, mahlepi, cinnamon and ground cardamom seeds, which give it a fabulous flavour and smell.
The word tsoureki is Turkish and translates as ‘that which is needed’. The bread is braided to symbolize the Holy Trinity and sometimes decorated with red-dyed hard boiled eggs, symbolizing the blood shed by Jesus when he was crucified.

Ingredients (makes 2 large loaves or 4 small):

500g (1lb 2oz) strong plain flour
500g (1lb 2oz) plain flour
½ tsp salt
2 x 7g sachets dried yeast
175g (5oz) caster sugar
6-8 stones ground mahlepi
5-6 stones ground gum mastic
2 ground cardamom seeds
½ tsp ground cinnamon
Grated rind and juice of an orange
Few drops vanilla extract
175g (6oz) butter
4 small eggs, lightly beaten
200ml (7fl oz) milk
2 tbsp plain yogurt

For the glaze and topping:
1 egg slightly beaten with 2 tbsp milk for egg wash
2-4 red-dyed hard boiled eggs , optional
25g (1oz) blanched almond flakes or sesame seeds, optional

For the syrup:
½ small tea cup sugar
½ small tea cup water

Method:
Activate the yeast by placing it into a bowl with ½ cup warm water, mix in 1tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp flour. Leave for 10 minutes.
Warm the milk on a very low heat with the butter and the rest of the sugar, until butter is melted. Set aside to cool a little.
Pour the mixture into a jug and whisk in the eggs, one at a time, using an electric hand whisk. Then whisk in the yogurt. If you are using whole spices, place them in a pestle with a little sugar or flour to ground them.
Place both sifted flours into a large bowl and mix in the salt, spices, vanilla, orange juice and zest. Make a well in the centre, pour in the yeast and warm milk and butter mixture, gradually incorporating the flour to form a sticky dough. Turn onto a light floured surface and fold gently (do not knead) for a couple of minutes until soft but still a little sticky. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with cling film and leave in a warm, draft-free place to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.
Fold the dough gently. Shape into a large sausage, divide the remaining dough into 6 equal portions, shape into balls, cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
Roll each ball into a rope (15” long, 2” in diameter). Lay the three strips side by side, press together at one end, braid loosely, and press together at the other end. The tsourekia can also be shaped into circles or any shape you like; when we were young, our mum used to make little handbags or baskets for us.
At this point, you can add a dyed boiled egg, securing it with thin strips of the remaining dough.
Place the tsourekia on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, cover with a cloth and leave to rise again for an hour.
Brush the tsourekia with the egg wash and sprinkle with almonds, sesame seeds or sugar. Cover loosely with greaseproof paper and bake in a pre-heated oven at 170oc / 320of / gas mark 3 for about 35-40 minutes. Check the bread after 20 minutes, remove greaseproof paper and bake until rich and golden brown. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack, brush warm syrup all over them for a nice shine and allow to cool.
The best time to make the syrup for brushing the tsourekia is when they are in the oven. Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan, bring to the boil until sugars dissolves, then simmer for 5 minutes.
Let the breads cool down and then place in plastic bags so they stay soft. If you like, you can also fill the tsourekia with chocolate spread or jam.

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