Butterzopf (Swiss Braided Bread)

Butterzopf is an incredible braided bread that is similar to Challah in terms of look and taste, however, it uses a lot of butter. This is the most popular bread in Switzerland, for good reason, it is buttery, soft and chewy. It is traditionally eaten on Sunday mornings, making this the perfect bread for your Easter Sunday Brunch.

I baked my first braided bread when I was nine years old, in fact it was the first loaf of bread I ever baked. A professional baker came to our elementary school to teach us how to bake bread, and I fell in love with the process. Putting my hands to the dough and watching my hard work turn into something beautiful and tasty was the most amazing feeling. That bread was made with regular processed white flour, poor quality eggs, butter and milk. Today, this loaf is made with einkorn flour, grass fed butter, raw milk and fresh eggs from my backyard hens. The process is the same, but the result is vastly different.

I hope you enjoy this delicious recipe and have a wonderful Easter.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp cane sugar

• 3 tsp sea salt

• 2 and 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

• 2 Tbsp melted butter

• 1 egg

• 1 and 1/4 cups raw milk*

• 4 cups (570 grams) all purpose einkorn flour (or regular all purpose flour* see notes)

• For egg wash (1 egg yolk plus 1 Tbsp water)

*If using regular all purpose flour, increase the amount of raw milk to 1 and 1/2 cups. (Einkorn flour absorbs less water)

Directions:

1. Combine the sugar, salt and yeast in a large bowl.

2. Heat the milk to approx. 110 F. Pour the warm milk over the sugar mixture. Whisk to combine. Let rest 5 min. or until frothy.

3. Add the melted butter and egg, whisk to combine. Stir in the flour with a stiff spatula.

4. If using regular all purpose flour, turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for a few minutes, until smooth. If using einkorn flour you can omit this step as einkorn rarely requires kneading. Form the dough into a ball and place back into your bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 2 hours.

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough in half and form into 2 equal balls. Then divide each ball into 3 sections. Roll out each section until 12 inch long.

6. Braid each 12 inch section. Seal the top and bottom and tuck under the loaf.

7. Place the braided loaves onto parchment lined baking sheets and cover with a towel. Let rise for 1 hour.

8. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Bake for 20-25 min. until golden on top. Allow to cool on a wire rack before slicing. Enjoy!