QAGĦAQ TA’ L-APPOSTLI

Maltese Easter Bread

There’s nothing like the home-baked version of this traditional bread, savoured piping hot, right out of the oven. This recipe makes two small bread rings or one large one.

YOU WILL NEED:

500g plain flour

120g sugar

1 sachet yeast (approximately 11g)

2 teaspoons aniseed (ħlewwa)

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 pinch ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 teaspoon mandarin or orange zest

30ml water juice from 1 orange –approximately 50ml

100ml warm milk

100g soft butter

2 egg yolks

50g raw almonds, sliced, plus extra for the top 100g candied peel (optional – I prefer not using this) sesame seeds egg wash (one egg beaten with some milk)

1. In a large bowl, mix the sugar, spices, zests and flour. Dissolve the yeast in the water. Mix together the yeasted water, juice from the orange and warm milk and add these to the flour.

2. Add the yolks and soft butter and mix everything together until even. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead it for about 10 minutes.

3. Add the sliced almonds (and candied peel, if you are using it) and mix it in evenly. Place the dough in a clean bowl, cover it and let it rest until it doubles in size. This will take approximately two hours.

4. Knock back the dough, let it rest for ten minutes (covered) and shape it into a ring. Place the dough onto a baking sheet, cover it and let it rest for another 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat up the oven to 200°C.

5. Glaze the dough with egg wash, sprinkle it with sesame seeds, and decorate with whole raw almonds. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the bread turns golden and sounds hollow when tapped.

Cozonac

Romanian Easter Bread

I like to prepare the filling for this the evening before the baking. If you do, store it in the fridge and bring back to room temperature before using.

YOU WILL NEED:

550g bread flour

100g sugar

1 sachet yeast (approximately 11g) zest from one lemon zest from one orange

125g soft butter a few drops of vanilla essence

25ml water

25 ml spiced rum

1 egg

1 yolk

170ml warm milk

FOR THE FILLING:

115ml milk

75g sugar

100g ground walnuts or almonds

25ml spiced rum

1 tablespoon orange zest

¼ teaspoon ground coffee

15g cocoa powder

TO GLAZE: egg wash natural brown sugar

1. To make the filling, place the milk, sugar, and ground nuts in a small saucepan and cook, stirring with a spatula all the time. Add the rest of the ingredients and continue to cook the mixture until it thickens to a paste. Set it aside to cool.

2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, yeast, sugar, and zests, then add the soft butter. In another bowl, mix the remaining ingredients, then mix everything together evenly into a dough.

3. Turn the dough onto a clean surface and knead it for ten minutes. Place the kneaded dough in a clean bowl, cover it and let it rest until it doubles in size (approximately 2 hours). Knock back the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.

4. On a lightly floured surface, roll open the dough into a large rectangle. Spread the filling in a thin layer all over the surface and roll up the dough. Place the roll in a large loaf tin (1.5-2 kg loaf tin), cover the tin and let the dough prove for about 30 to 40 minutes.

5. Preheat the oven to 190°C. Brush the surface with egg wash, sprinkle with natural brown sugar, and bake in a hot oven for approximately 20 minutes. Now, cover the tin with a double sheet of foil and continue to bake for another 20-25 minutes until done.