Cozonac is a traditional Romanian Easter (and Christmas) Bread, lightly sweetened and flavored with citrus and rum. Flavoring and filling varies by region, but this is such a treat. It reminds me of Tsoureki, but a little richer and filled.
Cozonac is essentially a brioche, wonderfully rich and beautifully scented with spices and zest. Some recipes are almost like a panettone, very hydrated and cake-like, with a tricky gluten development. This is slightly less entailed, though gluten development is still important.
Cozonac (Romanian Easter Bread)
adapted from Binky’s Culinary Carnival
makes 1 loaf
For dough:
150ml (½ cup + 2 tbsp) milk
84g (6 tbsp) butter melted
2 large eggs room temperature, 1 separated
5 ml (1 tsp) pure vanilla extract
15 ml (1 tbsp) rum, optional (or ½ tsp rum extract)
3.5g (1 tsp) active dry or instant yeast (do not use rapid rise)
50g + 12.5g (¼ cup + 1 tbsp) sugar, divided
5g (~¾ tsp) sea salt
405g (3 cups) flour
zest of one lemon, finely grated or microplaned
Filling:
½ cup raisins (100g) (I used half raisins and half chopped dates)
1 cup (125g) walnuts, ground
2 tsp (3.5g) cocoa powder
¼ cup (56g) powdered sugar
Topping:
1 egg white
turbinado sugar to sprinkle on top
To make the dough:
Scald the milk in a pot and then cool to lukewarm, 105-110°F.
Separate one of the eggs and reserve that white for the topping. Add the cooled milk to a mixer bowl along with the whole egg and egg yolk, the butter, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, the vanilla, and the yeast. Stir to mix. Allow the yeast to activate for 5 minutes, until bubbly. Stir in the rum if using, and the lemon zest, salt, and remaining sugar.
Add the flour, 1 cup at a time and mix until the flour is fully hydrated.
With a dough hook or by hand, knead the dough 6-10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. (If the dough is very sticky, add more flour 2 tablespoons at a time until just soft and smooth. Conversely, if the dough seems dry, add milk by the tbsp for a soft but not sticky dough.)
Cover and allow to rise in a warm area for 1-2 hours, until doubled in size.
Meanwhile, make the filling:
Add raisins to a small bowl. Cover with warm water (add in a splash of vanilla, or rum if desired.)
Combine the walnuts, cocoa, and powdered sugar, and set aside.
To assemble:
When the dough has doubled, divide in half. Roll one piece of dough into a long rectangle, about ½” thick. Sprinkle dough with ½ of the filling, then sprinkle on ½ of the raisins (drained first), leaving ½” from the top edge of dough without filling.
Roll up starting from the long edge of dough, into a tight log. Pinch ends and seams tightly to seal.
Repeat with the other piece of dough.
Line a long or 9×5″ bread pan with parchment paper.
Twist the two logs together, keeping seam sides down, and place in the bread pan.
Cover and let rise for 40 minutes to 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Brush top of loaf with egg white and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
Bake 40 minutes to 1 hour, until golden brown and internal temperature reaches 190°F. Tent with foil if necessary to prevent over browning. (Mine definitely appreciated the foil tent to finish baking while protecting the top from burning.)
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| Recommend testing with a thermometer if you have one. |
Welcome to Bread Bakers! This month, our theme is Carrot or Easter bread.
#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.
