Kozunak- a traditional Bulgarian easter bread

Ingredients

• 1 kg of flour
• 150 g butter
• 100 ml sunflower oil
• 3 eggs
• 250 g sugar
• 42 g fresh yeast
• 250 ml milk
• 1 vanilla stick
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 5 g salt
• 100 g raisins
• 20 ml rum
• 50 g flaked almonds
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 Tbsp sugar

Instructions

1. 1

   Slightly warm the milk and mix the yeast and 1 Tbsp of the sugar and flour together and leave to rest for 10 minutes

2. 2

   Put the butter with the oil in a small saucepan and melt over low heat

3. 3

   Sift the remaining flour into a large bowl

4. 4

   Add the lemon zest, orange zest, salt and vanilla to the flour and make a well in it.

5. 5

   When the 10 minutes are up, add the yeast milk to the flour and knead with the eggs

6. 6

   Slowly add the butter/oil mixture and knead everything together for 10-15 minutes.

7. 7

   Cover the dough and let it proof in a large bowl for approx. 1.5-2 hour

8. 8

   Put the raisins in a glass with the rum and let it marinate while the dough is resting

9. 9

   Place parchment paper on a baking sheet

10. 10

    Knead the dough again and divide the dough into 3 equal pieces

11. 11

    Roll out each of the 3 pieces of dough thinly into rectangles

12. 12

    Spread the raisins on each of the 3 rolled out sheets of dough

13. 13

    Roll up from the long side

14. 14

    Repeat with the remaining 2 pieces

15. 15

    Braid the 3 strands of dough and place on a baking sheet

16. 16

    Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise again

17. 17

    Preheat the oven to 140°C

18. 18

    Mix the egg yolk with the sugar

19. 19

    Brush the braid generously with the egg yolk and sugar mixture

20. 20

    Sprinkle with the flaked almonds and bake for 40 minutes

21. 21

    After 40 minutes, heat the oven to 180°C and bake the kozunak for another 20 minutes

22. 22

    After 10 minutes, if necessary, cover the braid with baking paper so that it does not turn black.

23. 23

    Remove from the oven, cool and enjoy!