Greek Easter Bread served on a glass dish at a beautifully set table with blue tablecloth
Food & Home, Recipe

Greek Easter Bread Recipe

words by Jenifer Heynes
CREATING AN EGG-CELLENT TREAT FOR THE FAMILY
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It’s always a dilemma in my house as to what to do with the dyed Easter eggs after the holiday is over. We hate to break the coverings that we so lovingly designed, and while they decorate the inside of our refrigerator nicely, I wondered for years whether there was another use for them that didn’t require discarding the beautiful shells right away. This year, we’re going to use our gorgeous decorated eggs to create Greek Easter Bread.

For even more Spring fun, be sure to visit our round-up of Easter events, enjoy an Easter brunch, visit baby goats on a farm, consider raising baby chicks, make a beautiful specked Easter egg craft and find a Springtime Festival the whole family will enjoy.

I hadn’t heard of this delight until recently, but it sounds delicious, fun to make, and we won’t have to destroy our Easter egg handiwork! The egg gets cooked right into the loaf as a lovely seasonal decoration.

I looked at a bunch of recipes for this Grecian delight, and every one that I found makes several loaves of the bread. I like this idea because it gives you plenty for your own family to consume and lots more for you to share. Since Easter generally marks the beginning of warm weather in our area, making this bread is a great excuse for getting out, visiting with neighbors and making a unique and generous holiday gesture.

 

Greek Easter Bread served on a glass dish at a beautifully set table with blue tablecloth

Greek Easter Bread Recipe

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Ingredients
  

  • 12 cups flour
  • 3 tbsp active dry yeast
  • 1 cup melted butter
  • 1 cup + 1 tbs sugar
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups water

Egg Wash

  • 1 egg lightly beaten + 1 tbs water
  • blanched sliced almonds (optional)
  • 6 eggs dyed

Instructions
 

  • Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm milk. Add a few spoonfuls of flour to make a paste. Cover and set aside in a warm place to rise.
  • In a bowl, combine 10 cups of the flour, salt and melted butter. Add the vanilla/water mixture to the flour. Add the eggs, orange peel, sugar and the risen yeast mixture.
  • On a floured surface, knead the mixture well, adding in the remaining flour until it becomes a malleable dough, about 15-20 minutes (or for 10 minutes using a stand mixer). Cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1½ to 2 hours.
  • Punch down the dough. Form 12-15 ropes, each about 15 inches long. Braid sets of three ropes to form a loaf, tucking ends in underneath the loaves. Tuck an Easter egg into the braids.
  • Place the loaves on greased cookie sheets or baking pans, cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk. Brush with egg wash.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until gold brown. Cool for 5 minutes, then move to racks to cool completely. Makes 4-6 loaves.

Notes

For a richer bread, use a cup of milk in place of one of the cups of water. For a citrusy tang one, replace one cup of water with orange juice.
Keyword bread, dough, greek bread, greek easter bread

Tip

For a richer bread, use a cup of milk in place of one cup of water. For a citrusy tang, replace one cup of water with orange juice. And, if you are loving this recipe, find more Greek recipes from the New York Times. 

 

 

​ For more family-friendly recipes, see our Home & Garden collection. 

JENNIFER HEYNS is a freelance writer, mother of two and constant creator in the kitchen.