Tsoureki, a traditional Greek Easter bread, is a sweet, soft, and flavorful bread that holds a special place in Greek culture. This delectable bread is characterized by its unique texture, rich flavor, and aromatic spices, making it a beloved treat for generations. Whether you're an experienced baker or just starting your culinary journey, you can now easily recreate this iconic bread at home with the help of a bread machine. With its user-friendly settings and automated process, a bread machine takes the guesswork out of baking, allowing you to prepare a perfect loaf of tsoureki with minimal effort. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore the best bread machine recipe for tsoureki, gathering the necessary ingredients, understanding the crucial steps involved, and providing detailed instructions to ensure a successful baking experience. Get ready to embark on a delightful journey as we delve into the world of Greek Easter bread, creating a delicious and authentic tsoureki right in your own kitchen.
Here are our top 6 tried and tested recipes!
TSOUREKI RECIPE (TRADITIONAL GREEK EASTER BREAD)
A traditional Greek Easter Bread (Tsoureki) recipe! Discover all the secrets behind making the fluffiest, tastiest traditional Tsoureki with this step by step, no fail recipe!
Provided by Eli K. Giannopoulos
Categories Bread
Time 5h35m
Number Of Ingredients 14
Steps:
- To prepare this tsoureki recipe (Greek Easter Bread), add in a bowl the lukewarm water, a pinch of sugar and yeast and stir. Wrap well with plastic wrap and set aside for about 6-7 minutes, until the yeast rises and starts bubbling. Be careful not do add hot water, as it will kill the yeast, nor cold, as it will take forever for the Greek Easter bread to rise. The water should be at the same temperature as your finger, so check it out sticking one finger in; you should feel no difference in temperature.
- Use a pestle or a blender to ground the masticha and mahlepi, along with a pinch of sugar and set aside. These aromatic spices will give Greek Easter bread its distinctive taste and amazing smell. But be careful not to add any more mastic than this tsoureki recipe calls for, as it will leave a slightly bitter taste to your Greek Easter bread.
- In a saucepan add the butter, sugar and milk. Place over very low heat and stir the mixture, until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. The key is to melt the butter at very low heat, so that the temperature doesn't 'kill' the yeast. Remove the pan from the stove and check the temperature. The mixture should be lukewarm - the same temperature as your finger. If it is warmer, leave to cool down for a few minutes and check again.
- Pour the butter mixture in a large bowl and whisk in the eggs. Add the yeast mixture and whisk to combine.
- In the mixer's bowl add the flour, the ground mastic and mahlepi, orange zest and the butter-egg-yeast mixture from step 4. Using the dough hook mix at first at low speed, until the ingredients start to combine and then mix at medium-high speed for about 15 minutes, until the dough doesn't stick on the sides of the bowl. At this point the dough should be really soft, like seen in the picture and a little sticky. (Be careful not to add any more flour than this tsoureki recipe calls for, as the dough should be really soft and not firm).
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place in a warm environment, until at least it doubles in size (about 3-4 hours). If the environment is cold, preheat the oven at 30C/85F, turn it off and place the bowl inside.
- Gently deflate the tsoureki dough with your hands and cut in 6 equal portions (three for each Greek Easter bread). Take one piece of the dough (do not flour the working surface!) and roll it a little with your hands. Hold with your hands from the edges and shake to stretch the dough into a rope. This technique will help the Greek Easter bread (tsoureki) form the characteristic stringy texture, as seen in the picture.
- Form the Greek Easter bread into a braid and transfer on a large baking tray layered with parchment paper. Repeat the same procedure with the second tsoureki. Let the Greek Easter bread rise for about 1 more hour at room temperature or in the oven, until it puffs up and almost doubles in size, like in the pictures.
- In a small bowl add the egg and 1 tbsp water and whisk with a fork. Brush the top of each Greek Easter bread with the egg, being careful not to deflate it, garnish with almond slivers and bake in preheated oven at 150C / 310F fan for about 30-40 minutes, until nicely browned and fluffy. If its getting too brown too quickly cover with some parchment paper and continue baking.
- Although the traditional tsoureki recipe doesn't call for syrup, garnishing Greek Easter bread with just a little syrup, always gives a little something! So it's up to you to decide! Prepare the syrup for the Greek Easter bread just right before you turn the tsoureki out of the oven. In a small pot add the sugar and water and bring to the boil. As soon as the sugar dissolves, remove the pot from the stove and ladle the hot syrup over the hot tsoureki.
- Let the Greek Easter bread cool down and wrap well with plastic wrap, so that it doesn't become hard and dry. Store for up to a 5-6 days at room temperature or up to a couple of months in the freezer.
Nutrition Facts : ServingSize 1 slice, Calories 173kcal, Sugar 12g, Sodium 13.2mg, Fat 2.3g, SaturatedFat 0.9g, UnsaturatedFat 1.1g, TransFat 0g, Carbohydrate 33.3g, Fiber 0.9g, Protein 4.9g, Cholesterol 29.1mg
TSOUREKI (GREEK EASTER BREAD)
This is a favorite bread of Greeks and non-Greeks. It is great even for another day besides Pasca. It works great as French toast as well. Not a diet bread though!
Provided by breadlover
Categories 100+ Breakfast and Brunch Recipes Breakfast Bread Recipes
Time 2h25m
Yield 16
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- Combine milk, sugar, and butter in a saucepan over low heat and warm to 112 degrees F (44 degrees C). Remove from heat. Stir in yeast and wait for mixture to bubble.
- Place flour in a large bowl. Add yeast mixture, whole eggs, egg white, chopped almonds, apricots, orange zest and juice, lemon zest, and mahlepi. Mix together. Knead dough until well mixed, adding extra flour if necessary until dough is only slightly sticky. Set dough aside until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Combine egg yolk and 1/4 cup milk in a bowl and place in the refrigerator.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Knead risen dough to expel bubbles and divide into 2 equal parts. Divide each half into 3 equal balls. Roll each ball into a rope about 18 inches long. Braid 3 ropes to make a loaf and tuck the ends underneath and place on a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining 3 ropes to form a second loaf. Brush egg yolk mixture on top of each loaf and sprinkle with slivered almonds. Brush again with egg yolk mixture.
- Bake in the preheated oven until loaves are brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom, about 40 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 474.1 calories, Carbohydrate 82.2 g, Cholesterol 70 mg, Fat 11.1 g, Fiber 4.8 g, Protein 12.9 g, SaturatedFat 3.3 g, Sodium 62.9 mg, Sugar 30.3 g
TSOUREKI (SWEET GREEK EASTER BREAD)
This recipe was passed down to me from my Greek aunt. Traditionally the bread was made exclusively for Easter celebrations and had red-dyed hard boiled eggs nestled in the braids of the loaf. Nowadays the bread is popular at breakfast and is served all year round, without the hard boiled eggs.
Provided by buelow
Categories Breads
Time 37m
Yield 2 loaves, 12 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Heat milk and whisk in 1½ cups flour, sugar, and yeast.
- Cover with plastic and let stand for ~30 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time.
- Add another cup flour, orange zest, and salt. Then add butter, vanilla, and orange juice. Gradually add remaining flour, kneading until smooth.
- Coat a bowl with oil and roll dough in it to coat. Cover with plastic and let rise for 1½ hour. Preheat oven to 400.
- Make braids with the dough (2 loaves).
- Mix egg yolk with 1 tablespoon water. Brush loaves with mixture.
- Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 330.1, Fat 10.5, SaturatedFat 5.9, Cholesterol 83.5, Sodium 291.6, Carbohydrate 50.4, Fiber 1.7, Sugar 13, Protein 8
TSOUREKI - GREEK EASTER BREAD (BREAD MACHINE RECIPE)
Tsoureki is a sweet egg bread (similar to Challah) that is braided and decorated with dyed eggs for Greek Easter. This is my first time making it using this recipe (and the first time it came out properly!) - so I wanted to share. This recipe is made in the bread machine on the dough setting and then braided and baked in the oven. Adapted (very slightly) from this recipe: http://www.kitchenlink.com/cookbooks/2000/0385477775_3.html I listed the brands I used, but obviously you can use whatever you prefer. (I wrote my instructions for beginners like myself. If you know what you're doing, ignore my tangents!)
Provided by Teagan Murphy
Categories Yeast Breads
Time 5h
Yield 12 slices, 12 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Place the milk, 2 cups of flour, and yeast in the bread machine pan and process on the dough setting. (Mine takes around 1.5 hours).
- While the machine is working (no rush here - you have plenty of time) mix the other 2 cups of flour with the sugar, salt, orange zest, and the anise seed. (I couldn't find ground anise seed so I ground some up in my blender. A coffee grinder would work as well).
- Once the dough cycle is completed, add the flour mixture, olive oil, and eggs. Process again on the dough setting. (Another 1.5 hours! But for me, this is preferable to doing it by hand. My handmade dough ends up like a brick).
- Once the second cycle is completed, remove the dough to a well-floured surface. Punch down and form into a ball. (This is easy! I was scared because this is where I get into trouble - I tend to overwork things. Look it up on YouTube if you don't know how: http://youtu.be/5HW38Bn-hnI).
- Cover and let the dough rest for 15 minutes. (I left it on the counter top and covered it with paper towels).
- Now, divide the dough into three parts. Roll each piece into a rope and braid, working from the center to the ends. Pinch the ends together and turn under. (Once again, if you don't know how: http://youtu.be/YR6aIAh2Vt8 And if you don't feel like braiding it at all - I won't tell. It tastes wonderful no matter what the shape).
- Embed the dyed eggs (optional) in the folds of the braid. Cover and let the dough rise until doubled in bulk - about 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. (Note: Mine came out a little dark on top so I'm gonna try 350 degrees next time.) Once the dough has risen, brush it lightly with the egg wash. (I sprinkled some whole anise seeds on top, but you don't have to do that. Some people use slivered almonds, but my family has allergies).
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. (I slid the parchment paper directly onto a preheated pizza stone. My bread came out a little dark on the top, next time I'll drape some foil paper over it around 15 minutes in).
- Cool on a rack. Store in a brown bag for up to 3 days. (When it starts getting stale - if it lasts that long - you can make french toast with it. I recommend this recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/dennys-style-french-toast-90674 So good!).
YIA YIA'S TSOUREKI (GREEK EASTER BREAD)
My Yia Yia made this Greek Easter bread for many years, so this is very dear to my heart. It is slightly sweet and has a soft, golden brown crust. Leftovers can be used for toast the next day. Christos Anesti!
Provided by Jacolyn
Categories Bread Yeast Bread Recipes
Time 5h40m
Yield 20
Number Of Ingredients 16
Steps:
- Pour yeast into a small bowl; add warm water and 1/4 cup of flour. Stir, cover with two damp kitchen towels, and leave in a warm place until bubbly, about 2 1/2 hours.
- Combine butter, shortening, and mastic in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Stir milk and sugar together in another saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm. Remove from heat.
- Pour 2 cups flour into the butter mixture and stir well. Add salt, then stir in the yeast mixture. Add 2 more cups of flour and stir well. Stir in 3 beaten eggs. Slowly add the milk mixture and 1 cup of flour and stir well. Add the room-temperature water and the last cup of flour and stir until the dough is not sticky.
- Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for 20 minutes with lightly floured hands. Form dough into a ball. Cover with damp towels and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease two baking sheets.
- Divide dough into two pieces and separate each piece into three strands. Braid each of the 3 strands together to form 2 braided loaves. Place on the baking sheets. Nestle the red-dyed eggs between the strands. Brush the dough with the remaining beaten egg. Sprinkle the tops with almonds and sesame seeds.
- Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 25 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 293.3 calories, Carbohydrate 41.7 g, Cholesterol 67.1 mg, Fat 10.9 g, Fiber 1.6 g, Protein 7.1 g, SaturatedFat 4.4 g, Sodium 115.8 mg, Sugar 10.8 g
TSOUREKI (GREEK EASTER BREAD)
The red Easter eggs that make this traditional bread so special are for decorative purposes only. Do not eat them.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Breakfast & Brunch Recipes Bread Recipes
Time 5h
Yield Makes 2 loaves
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Combine 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sugar, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment; whisk on low speed to combine. Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until it registers 110 degrees. With mixer speed on medium-low, gradually add milk to mixer bowl, scraping down sides if necessary. Mix until combined. Remove bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand until bubbling, about 30 minutes.
- Generously butter a large bowl; set aside. Return mixer bowl to stand and attach dough hook. Mix in lightly beaten eggs, in 3 additions, on medium speed. Add remaining all-purpose flour and salt and mix until incorporated. Add butter, orange zest and juice, and vanilla, mixing until combined. Gradually mix in 2 cups bread flour, scraping down sides of bowl if necessary; then add enough remaining bread flour to form a soft, slightly sticky dough that pulls away from the side of bowl. Increase speed to medium-high and mix until dough is very smooth, about 8 minutes. Form dough into a ball, place in buttered bowl, and turn to coat. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until 1 1/2 times its original size, about 1 1/2 hours.
- Line two 11-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Punch down dough. Cut dough in half with a large knife or bench scraper, then cut each half into 3 equal pieces. Keeping 3 pieces covered with plastic wrap, roll remaining 3 pieces into 16-inch-long ropes with your hands. (If dough becomes dry, lightly dampen your palms to help in rolling.) Loosely braid ropes together, pinch ends to seal, and place loaf diagonally on 1 baking sheet. Repeat process with remaining 3 pieces of dough. Loosely cover each loaf with plastic wrap coated with cooking spray and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Transfer baking sheets to oven and bake bread 10 minutes. Remove 1 baking sheet from oven. Quickly and carefully push 5 eggs, larger side down, into the center of the loaf, spacing them evenly down the length. Brush with egg wash and immediately return to oven. Repeat with remaining loaf. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake, rotating baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, until loaves are deep golden and sound hollow when tapped on bottom, about 25 minutes more. (If necessary, cover with parchment-lined foil to prevent overbrowning.) Transfer bread to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Tips:
- To achieve the perfect balance of flavors, use high-quality ingredients, especially the butter, eggs, and flour.
- Ensure the yeast is active by testing it before adding it to the mixture. Dissolve the yeast in warm milk with a pinch of sugar and let it sit for 5-10 minutes until it becomes foamy.
- Knead the dough thoroughly to develop the gluten and create a smooth and elastic texture. The dough should be slightly sticky but not too wet.
- Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for at least an hour or until doubled in size. Covering the dough with plastic wrap or a damp cloth will help create a humid environment for optimal rising.
- To shape the tsoureki, divide the dough into equal portions and roll them out into long strands. Braid the strands together and tuck the ends underneath to create a circular shape.
- Brush the tsoureki with egg wash before baking to give it a golden brown color and a shiny glaze.
- Bake the tsoureki at a moderate temperature until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Allow the tsoureki to cool completely before slicing and serving.
- Store any leftover tsoureki in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Conclusion:
Creating the perfect tsoureki is a delightful culinary journey that requires careful attention to detail and a touch of patience. From activating the yeast and kneading the dough to shaping and baking the tsoureki, each step contributes to the final masterpiece. Whether you choose a traditional recipe or incorporate your own creative flair, the result will be a delicious and visually stunning bread that embodies the spirit of Greek Easter. So, gather your ingredients, put on your apron, and embark on the delightful experience of baking tsoureki to share with your loved ones and celebrate the joyous occasion.
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