Cozonac - Romanian Easter Bread #BreadBakers

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.

We enjoyed this loaf plain, toasted with butter, with marmalade, and as french toast!  (We also had the option of a carrot bread for this month's bake and I have made some tasty carrot loaves in the past, a milk bread, a hearty bread, and a challah!)

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 9x5" 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.)

Recommend testing with a thermometer if you have one.

 

 

Welcome to Bread Bakers! This month, our theme is Carrot or Easter bread.

• Carrot and Thyme Sourdough Boule by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Carrot Raisin Sourdough Loaf by Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Cozonac - Romanian Easter Bread by A Messy Kitchen
• Crushed Pineapple Carrot Quick Bread by Food Lust People Love
• Sourdough Carrot Bread by Sneha’s Recipe
• Whole Wheat Carrot Bread by Karen’s Kitchen stories

#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.