This recipe comes from my friend, Maria, who writes, "The closest thing to my grandmother's tsoureki is this recipe I use for my bread machine." We haven't found a way to add the red egg, but a bowl of dyed red eggs on the table at Easter will do. This sweet bread is also delicious toasted and buttered.
Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup of water (75-85 degrees)
- 1/3 cup of whole milk
- 3 eggs lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) of butter or margarine, softened and cut into pieces
- grated peel of one orange
- juice of 1/2 orange
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 4 - 4 1/2 cups of bread flour
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg or cinnamon
- 2 1/2 - 3 teaspoons of breadmaker yeast
- egg wash (1 egg slightly beaten with 1 tablespoon of water)
- sesame seeds for sprinkling on top (optional)
Preparation:
In the bread pan of the bread machine, place water, milk, eggs, butter, grated orange peel, orange juice, sugar, flour, salt, and nutmeg or cinnamon. With finger, make a small indentation at one side of the flour. Mix a few tablespoons of hot water with the yeast until thoroughly dissolved and place in the indentation made, making sure it does not come into contact with the liquid ingredients.
Insert bread pan into bread machine; gently close lid. Then select which program will be used, i.e. sweet, basic, etc. If your machine has the option for sweet bread, choose it. If not, a basic cycle should work as well. The trick is in the rising of the dough. It will require ample time. If your machine has a crust color selection, choose medium.
Before the bread is completely baked (about ten minutes before baking cycle ends), use a pastry brush to lightly brush the top of the loaf with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired.
When the bread has completely finished baking, remove bread pan and gently loosen the sides of the bread from the pan with a spatula. Turn bread pan upside down onto a wire cooling rack and gently shake until the bread falls out onto the rack. Turn bread right-side up. Allow to cool 20 minutes.
Yield: 2 pound loaf
- Note from Maria: I imagine red eggs could be inserted but we use this recipe all year long, not simply made for Easter. Besides it just doesn’t look the same as those beautiful loaves you see at Easter. There has to be some give and take I suppose! Technology vs. Aesthetics.