Hi there, just in time for Easter. Here is the Swiss bread recipe from Books on the Menu guest speaker Monika Rickli. It is really delicious and fabulous with dips and I'm looking forward to trying it toasted with blackberry jam – Yummo! Try the plaited look (see below) or make it into fun shapes (pictured above) like rabbits and frogs – just as Monika did.
Monika's recipe is taken from a Sydney Morning Herald Good Living story on Homecook Hero Anita Spragg.
Zopf, A Swiss Sunday Bread
Ingredients
500g plain flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp honey
2 tbsp butter, soft
2 1/2 tsp dry yeast
1 and 1/4 cup milk, lukewarm
One egg yolk, lightly beaten.
Method
Put all the ingredients except milk and egg yolk into bowl. Rub between flat hands until butter lumps disappear.
Add milk, mix well and knead well with hands. When there are no more loose pieces take dough out of bowl, whack it onto a breadboard and knead again for 10 – 15 minutes. The dough should be smooth – add more flour if it is too sticky.
Put the dough in a bowl, cover with clingwrap and a tea towel and place on a saucepan filled with hot water to rest for 30 – 60 minutes. The dough will double in size.
Plait or shape the dough into desired patterns, but do not over-knead. Place dough on a tray lined with baking paper. Brush the egg yolk onto the dough.
Put the tray onto the lower rack of a hot oven (220C). Bake for 20 – 30 minutes for small shapes and 30-45 minutes for larger shapes.
The bread should be golden brown and firm when tapped on the underside.
Makes 1 x 500g loaf. Enjoy!
