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Easter Bread Wreath

Today I want to share with you a sweet yeast dough recipe made with fermented baked milk.
Also, I’m going to show you how to make this beautiful Bread Wreath that can be the centerpiece for your Easter table.
Prep Time 3 hours
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 30 minutes
Course Dessert

Ingredients
  

Ingredients for the dough:

  • 600 g sifted flour you can use buttermilk instead
  • 200 ml warm milk
  • 100 ml fermented baked milk at room temperature
  • 60 g sugar
  • 1 egg at room temperature
  • 50 g soften butter
  • 1 package dry yeast
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Ingredients for the filling:

  • 100 g dried apricots
  • 50 g raisins
  • 80 g apricot jam

Instructions
 

  • In a clean bowl mix half of the warm milk, dry yeast, 1 tbsp of sugar and 3-4 tablespoons of flour. The milk should be warm NOT hot to the touch and no salt is needed when you’re proofing the yeast. The consistency of the mixture should be almost like pancake dough. Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and set it in awarm, draft-free place for 15-20 minutes.
  • Wash the dried fruits in cold water and then in boiling water. After they are completely clean, cover the dry fruits with boiling water, submerge with a lid or plastic wrap and set aside, that way they soak and become more juicy.
  • Meanwhile,our yeast mixture raised well and increased in volume. We need to mix it and begin to make the dough.
  • In a stand mixer bowl add an egg, the rest of the sugar, half a teaspoon of salt and whisk until all the ingredients are combined. Next add the yeast mixture, the rest of the warm milk, a few tablespoons of sifted flour and start to mix on low speed while gradually adding the remaining ingredients. Add the fermented baked milk to the mix and continue to add some more flour.
  • When most of the flour is in, add the soft butter in batches and keep adding the flour. When mixing with a whisk gets to be too hard, change it to the hook attachment and keep kneading the dough. If you don’t have a hook attachment,transfer the dough to the work surface and keep kneading with your hands.
    If you think that the dough is very sticky and you want to add more flour, don’t rush to do it. Just knead the dough longer and you’ll notice how it changes and completely stops sticking to your hands.
    Sprinkle the work surface with some flour, lay the dough on top and knead it by hand for at least 5 more minutes.
  • Coat a clean bowl with vegetable oil and place the dough inside. Cover the bowl with a lidor plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place. Allow the dough to rise for about an hour and a half to two hours.
  • While the dough is rising, let’s continue to make the filling. Dry the fruits using a sieve, then grind them with a food processor or blender. Then add the apricot jam. The filling needs to be soft and spreadable, not runny, so don’t put too much jam.
  • As you can see, our dough has doubled in size and become very airy. Now we need to deflate it and expel the gases.
    Dust the work surface with flour and let the dough rest for five minutes. Then roll it out onto a rectangle about a quarter of an inch thick and spread the filling all over the dough.
  • Starting on the long end, roll the dough up tightly. Try to make the roll approximately the same thickness along the entire length, that way the wreath will turn out uniform and beautiful.
    I will use Teflon baking mat, if you don’t have one then use parchment paper dusted with flour. Next, carefully transfer the roll to the baking mat and make a ring out of it by connecting the ends. Try to do it as carefully as possible since the dough is very tender.
  • Now we need to cut the dough ring with a sharp knife into 16 pieces most of the way through. First slice the ring into four parts after which, slice each part into four more pieces. Wipe the knife using a napkin after each cut, so the next cutis clean.
    As you can see, the dough should not be cut all the way through. We should get a total of 16 segments and now as you can see in the video, we need to twist every two segments, so it looks kind of like a heart. Do everything carefully since the dough is very tender.
    Now the dough ring needs to rest for another 30 minutes. Cover it with a plastic wrap dusted with flour and cover it with a towel. Let it rest in a warm place.
  • Before you bake it, brush the dough ring with a mixture of egg and a couple spoons of milk. Whisk the egg mixture and brush the ring. Preheat the oven to 340 degrees and bake for 35-40 minutes or until it develops a golden-brown color.