Mazanec Czech Easter Bread
Sweet and substantial, this delicious Czech Mazanec bread is made during the Easter season.
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 Tablespoon instant yeast
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- zest from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2-4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup raisins, currants, craisins or other dried fruit
- 1 large egg
- slivered almonds or nuts for decoration
Instructions
- Heat the milk and cream together in a small bowl until warm (not hot) to the touch. If you use the microwave for this step, mix it before testing the temperature as it can heat unevenly.
- Add the yeast, sugar, eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract together and stir to combine.
- In a mixer or other bowl, add the flour, salt, lemon zest and dried fruit. Slowly add in the liquid mixture and mix until a ball of dough begins to form. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes in a mixer, or about 10 minutes by hand. Add flour a little at a time until the dough clears the side of the bowl and isn’t overly sticky. However it should still be a little bit sticky.
- Oil a bowl and put the kneaded dough in the bowl. Let the dough rise for about 2 hours until it has just about doubled in size (depending on the temperature of your kitchen this may take a little less or more time).
- Punch the dough down and knead it a few times. Shape it into a round loaf. Place the loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Make an egg wash by whisking the egg and 1 tsp of water together in a small bowl. Lightly brush the egg wash over the top of the dough. Add slivered almonds (or any other nut you may like) in the shape of a cross, pressing lightly for the almonds to stick. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and allow to rise for another hour until puffed up again.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 50 minutes. Around the 20 minute mark, check your mazanec. If the top is browning too much, cover it with a piece of aluminum foil to stop the browning.
- Allow it to cool before slicing. Enjoy with a smidge of butter, a drizzle of honey or a dab of jam on top. Yum!
Notes
Rising time with enriched dough (dough with eggs, milk, butter) will take longer than a “lean” dough. The temperature of your kitchen will play a big factor in the rise time. Anything you can do to help warm up the dough (though not too much!) will help.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!