His Majesty Kozunak

Kozunak is a symbol of Easter. It's a baked good you can eat all year round, but the feeling just won't be the same. It's as if it hides somewhere all year and waits for the month of the holiday to fill the air with its sweet aroma. Its various variations can satisfy every taste. Here's our suggestion for a sweeter kozunak:

Kozunak Recipe:

• 1 kg white flour / 1 kg whole wheat flour
• 200g coconut sugar
• 6 eggs
• 250 ml cow's milk / plant-based milk
• Plant-based yeast
• 1 cup cow's butter
• 1 tbsp salt
• ½ cup walnuts
• Handful of raisins
• Chocolate chips to taste
• Tahini of your choice
   
  

Instructions:
We start with the sourdough for the dough. Make sure the ingredients for this recipe are at room temperature. Dissolve 1 tablespoon of coconut sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 tablespoon of flour in 50 ml of warm water. Add 1 tablespoon of dry yeast. Stir the mixture until you get a homogeneous paste and leave it in a warm place to rise.

In the meantime, beat 5 eggs and 1 egg white together with 1 teacup of coconut sugar. Stir until the mixture is homogeneous. The remaining yolk will be used in a later stage.

Melt the butter in a double boiler, and sift the flour into a large pan.

Make a well in the center of the pan and pour in the risen yeast, beaten eggs, and fresh milk. Stir with a wooden spoon until the ingredients are perfectly mixed. This forms the dough for our kozunak. Now comes the kneading part.

Clear a wide space on your workbench and sprinkle it with flour. Your hands should be greased with warm fat. Periodically add more of the remaining fat after the dough has absorbed the previous portion. The dough is forcefully thrown against the surface and stretched again. It is gathered into a ball and again stretched and thrown until ready. This procedure is repeated about 100 times.

Let the dough rise. Grease it on top and place it in a pre-greased warm container. Cover with a cloth. The warmer the room for rising, the faster the dough will be ready for baking. Another option is to let it rise in the oven at 40 degrees Celsius.

Use the time while the dough is rising to prepare the filling for the kozunak. In a bowl, break the walnuts into pieces, mix them with the chocolate chips, and add the raisins.

Once the dough has risen, divide it into two equal parts. Divide each of them into 3 more long pieces. Do this without using a knife and without pressing the dough too hard. Lightly pull each piece until you get an elongated piece of dough.

Place the three pieces next to each other. Spread tahini on the first one, sprinkle chocolate chips on the second, and sprinkle walnut pieces on the third. Close each of the three parts well so that the filling is tightly enclosed. Braid the three strands into a plait and place it in a bundt cake pan with a hole in the middle. Brush the beaten yolk on top and sprinkle generously with coconut sugar.

Let the kozunak rise until it doubles in volume. Follow the same steps with the second piece of dough. Once they are ready for baking, the kozunaks are placed in a preheated oven at 170 degrees Celsius for about 30-40 minutes until they acquire an appetizing tan.