Easterbread formz6/16/2023 ![]() Whisk 2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk, vanilla, and lemon zest (if using) into milk mixture until combined.Using dough hook, mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Meanwhile, combine flour, butter, salt, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in bowl of standing mixer.Combine warm milk, yeast, and 1 teaspoon sugar in large measuring cup and let sit until bubbly, about 5 minutes.Bake loaves next to each other on oven rack, rotating positions halfway through baking. ![]() Separate dough into 2 equal portions after first rise, and transfer to 2 loaf pans in step 4. This recipe can be easily doubled to make 2 loaves. The lemon zest makes this bread more breakfast-leaning, so if you’re thinking sandwiches, you might want to omit it. If your loaf pans aren’t non-stick, grease them with butter or cooking spray. Weigh or measure out all ingredients before starting. 6 tablespoons butter, softened and cut into large pieces.1 packet instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons).3/4 cup whole milk, heated to 110 degrees.If you’ve never baked a loaf of yeasted bread, you’re probably not familiar with these techniques either, but once you’re acquainted with them they’re quite easy to master. The directions were written with the assumption that the baker knew the steps to make yeast bread - things like blooming the yeast, 2 rises before baking, and slicing the dough to control rise were completely left out. Simple tweaks that made this bread totally grocery store friendly, and still just as delicious. To translate this into a bread I could easily make, and would want to eat, I switched to all butter, instant yeast, and reduced the amount of vanilla extract. Our store-bought vanilla extract has multiplied in strength, making 2 tablespoons totally overpowering, and fresh yeast has been replaced with the much more convenient instant variety. Today, it’s easier to find hydrogenated vegetable shortening than lard, but I don’t want anything hydrogenated in my bread. These were all real, fresh ingredients that were readily accessible to her. Great Grandma’s recipe used fresh yeast, lard along with butter, and 2 tablespoons of vanilla. Our cuts of meat, flour, fats, and even our yeasts, are completely different today. Aside from the fact that the recipe’s originator is not present, we also don’t have the same ingredients today that our great grandparents, or even our grandparents had when they handed down the recipe a few generations ago. The first stumbling block? The ingredients. There were definitely a few pieces missing from this puzzle. The dough wouldn’t rise and the loaf came out in a dense, gummy lump. ![]() But the cryptic formula on the card didn’t exactly produce the bread my family so fondly remembered. It was always a family favorite - light, yet rich and slightly sweet - from what I’d been told. This is the scenario my Aunt found herself in a few years ago, when she pulled out the recipe for Great Grandma’s Easter Bread. But the frustrating reality is that trying to recreate these recipes is like trying to put together a faded puzzle with missing pieces. Have you ever come across an old family recipe scrawled on an index card or scrap of paper, ink faded and smudged with grease? The notion brings most of us fond memories of special dishes made by loved ones, many of whom now live only in our memories. It’s a simple, multi-purpose loaf that’s as good toasted for breakfast as it is stacked with prosciutto and provolone. So it doesn’t surprise me that the bread my great grandmother’s family made for Easter, when all of her siblings, children, nieces, and nephews gathered for the holiday, is not a fancy braided loaf with colored eggs baked into it. Yes, 17! That’s a lot of hungry Italian appetites. Her father was an Italian immigrant with 17 children. This streamlined version is based on the one my mother’s father’s mother made in the early 20th century. It’s made with yeast, eggs, and butter, and can take many forms, from individual rolls to elaborate loaves. At its core, Easter bread is a lot like French brioche or Jewish challah. But there are probably more variations on Easter bread than there are cultures that celebrate Easter. The words "Easter bread" likely conjure images of braided loaves with colored eggs buried in the top. Figuring out how to make it, on the other hand, wasn’t simple at all. (Fair warning: Lower the toaster setting and watch it closely.) Other than that, this bread is simply perfect. Well, after making her Easter bread recipe several times, I’m tempted to think that her "preference" was just the coincidental fact that the edges of this sweet loaf char rather quickly when toasted. ![]() There’s a legend in my family that claims my great grandmother liked her toast burnt.
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