About the Recipe
Often there are multiple ways of making the same dish or baked good. This is the case for Portuguese Easter Sweet Bread. I have baked many over the years using different recipes, but I think I have finally baked the best Easter Sweet Breads yet! These are sweet, soft, rich in flavor, so delicious!!
Thank you to all of my family and friends who have shared their recipes and given me their tips over the years on how to make them!! Walking the streets of the small town where I grew up, smelling these sweet breads being baked, are some of the best memories I have from childhood!!
Ingredients
Levain
100 g King Arthur bread flour
50 g Red Star Fresh Yeast, dissolved in about 1.5 oz of lukewarm water
1 egg
Batter
900 g flour
1.5 tsp salt
375g sugar
50 g butter, melted
Zest and juice of 1 lemon (strain the juice)
1 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tbsp moonshine or Porto wine
8 eggs
Glaze
1.5 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp butter
1 egg yolk
Preparation
Mix all Levain ingredients, cover bowl with cloth and let rise for 1-2hrs.
Mix levain and all batter ingredients by hand or in a stand mixer (if only making 1x), being careful with number of eggs - if using different type of flour, you may need 1 more/less egg; batter should be sticky, but not too wet.
Cover bowl with cloth and let rise for 4 hrs.
Shape dough into round balls.
Spread olive oil over the balls. Let sit for about 15 minutes.
Fold each dough ball into a moon-like shape.
Place balls on parchment paper on a baking sheet.
Bake at 350F for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool down on a rack.
Make Glaze
Boil water and sugar until sugar dissolves.
Add butter and mix to dissolve.
Carefully add a stream of sugar syrup to egg, mixing constantly to avoid yolk from tempering.
Brush mix on top of each cake while cake is still warm.
Enjoy!