Bread 🌷

Zopf

Can't be missing from the breakfast table on a Sunday. The Swiss Challah Bread.

Season:

March - June

Keywords:

BreadBakingButterSwitzerlandButterMilk

Portions:

Für 8 Personen

Adjust Amount:

Ingredients

Dough

500 g
Zopf flour (alternative: white flour, wheat)
12 g
Salt
1 tsp
Sugar
20 g
Fresh yeast
60 g
Butter
300 mL
Milk, warm

For coating

1
yolk
1 tbsp
Cream

Preparation:

20 min

Bulk Fermentation:

1.5 h

Final Proof:

30 min

Baking:

25 min at 190 °C Ober-/Unterhitze auf unterster Schiene

Instructions

  1. Prepare a little warm milk to make a yeast mixture with the teaspoon of sugar and the yeast.
  2. Heat the remaining milk with the cubed butter on the stove. Make sure that it does not get too hot and that the butter is only slightly melted.
  3. Knead the dry ingredients together with the milk and the risen yeast mixture into a smooth dough.
  4. Cover the dough and leave to rise at room temperature for approx. 1.5 hours until doubled in size. (Alternatively, place in the oven with the light on for approx. 1 hour)
  5. While rising pray a rosary. Helps (Tip from grandma).
  6. Preheat the oven to 190°C top/bottom heat.
  7. Divide the dough into two portions, shape each into approx. 70 cm long strands that are thinner at the ends. Braid the strands into a plait (see below), place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
  8. Mix the egg yolk and cream, brush the plait with the mixture and leave to rise again for approx. 30 minutes. Brush the plait with egg again.
  9. To give the plait a particularly homogeneous glaze, spray the plait finely with a little water.
  10. Bake for approx. 25 minutes on the lowest shelf of the oven.

Braiding techniques

There are many different braiding techniques that you can use. Personally, I like the classic Swiss two-strand technique and the six-strand technique.

Two-strand braid

The classic Swiss braiding technique. Here as a video from Betty Bossi.

  1. Arrange in an X

    2. Note that the red strand sits above the orange strand.

  2. Cross over the back strand

    3. The right strand is above the left strand.

  3. The whole thing analogously

    4. The left string is above the right string. So you alternate the height of the strands.

  4. Repeat step 2 and 3

    5. Repeat Step 2 and 3 until all the strands have been used. Pinch the rest together and hide under the Zopf.

Six-Strand Zopf

A slightly more sophisticated braiding technique that results in a slightly boxier braid. Here as a video from Betty Bossi.

  1. Push six strans together

    2. Roll the dough into 6 strands of equal length and arrange as above. Press the tips together.

  2. Cross the outermost strands

    3. Cross over the outermost two strands and place them on the outside again.

  3. Center left to right outside and right outside to inside left

    4. The middle left strand to the outside right, the rightmost strand to the inside left. The outer strand is therefore at the top.

  4. As before, only the other way around

    5. The middle right strand to the outer left, the outer left strand to the inner right. Again, the outer strand is at the top.

  5. Repeat Step 3 and 4

    6. Repeat the last two steps until you have used up all the strands. Press the ends together and hide them under the Zopf. The outer strand is always at the top when crossing over. The middle one is always at the bottom.

Roses

Roses are very easy to create and are surprisingly beautiful decorations.

  1. Arrange six circles

    2. Roll out a thin piece of dough and cut out six circles with a small glass. Arrange as shown above.

  2. Roll up the circles in reverse order.

    3. Start rolling up the rings from the topmost circle.

  3. Cut in half

    4. Cut the rolled circles in half to create two roses with flat bottoms. Brush with egg yolk and decorate the Zopf. Simple cut-out leaves which, if used, should be placed under the roses go very well with this.

Last modified: Jul 03, 2023, 01:01 PM
Ad maiorem Dei gloriam