Easter Bread Wreaths

This year, we all got our own little Easter bread wreath during our Easter dinner and it looked quite festive.   There were only four of us for dinner so I made my traditional Easter Bread that is a family favorite but I turned them into four Easter wreaths.  Bruce walked into the house and immediately said, "Wow, it smells like Easter!"  

Nick and Lauren are together in Spain celebrating Easter - Spanish style.  The Spanish really get into it, as do so many European countries, not surprisingly since over half the population is catholic.  

                    

Since our kids are living adventurously having a great time abroad without us....we invited my sister and her husband over for Easter dinner. It's sort of nice having a small crowd for a change.  I have always wanted to make my Easter bread into smaller loaves so this year I finally did and I think they turned out really well. I used the same recipe but I divided the dough into eight sections after the first rise and then formed the wreaths; I let them rise again; brushed on the egg wash and decorated them with Easter sprinkles to make them look like wreaths and then baked for 20 minutes. So, it's a little more fun making these than one big loaf of Easter bread, even though the Easter bread always looks impressive, too. I put the whole recipe in this post so you don't have to cross reference this recipe with the Easter Bread recipe. The wreaths are a little harder to cut into slices of bread.  We love to make toast in the morning after Easter with the Easter bread because it is so good toasted. The wreaths are mostly a good pull-apart type of bread to eat and its very convenient to have your own little loaf at your place setting during dinner.  And they do look pretty darn cute. I will continue to make both the whole loaf of Easter bread and the little wreaths, just depending on how I feel each Easter but it's nice now to have some choices. Enjoy! 

Makes four Easter bread wreaths

1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup soft butter
6 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. grated lemon peel
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
4-1/2 cups flour
1 hard-cooked Easter egg
1 egg white
2 Tbsp. sugar

1. Stir yeast into warm water (110-115 degrees).



2. Scald milk and cool.



3. In a large mixer bowl, cream butter until fluffy. Add sugar, lemon peel, vanilla, and salt. Beat until mixture is fluffy.

4. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in milk and yeast. Batter will be runny and chunky. Slowly beat in flour until you can add no more with the mixer.



5. Add the rest of the flour by hand until you have a soft dough. Turn dough onto a well floured surface.



6. Knead vigorously until smooth and elastic about 10 minutes.

7. Put dough in a large buttered bowl, turning over to grease all sides.

8. Set bowl in oven covered with a clean cloth and place a pan of hot water on the rack beneath it. Close the oven door and let rise about 1-1/2 hours or until double in size.

9.  Punch down.

10.  Transfer to a lightly floured work surface.  Divide dough evenly into 8 pieces.

11.  Roll each piece between your palms to form a long rope about 12 - 18 inches long.  Gently twist two dough ropes together, pinching ends to seal. 

12.  Shape twisted dough into a wreath, pinching ends together to seal.  Transfer wreath to a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Tuck 1 dyed egg into center of braided bread. 

13.Repeat twisting and shaping process with remaining dough ropes and dyed eggs.  Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until almost double in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour.  (I place mine in the oven to "proof").

14,  Preheat oven to 350 degree F.  Whisk together egg white and sugar in a small bowl until frothy and well blended. 

15. Brush over the dough of each wreath and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.  Transfer wreaths to a wire rack and let cool completely about 30 minutes.  

                                                                 Happy Easter!