
Kozunak Easter Bread Muffins
Twisted, knotted Easter kozunak muffins with a rosehip jam, walnut, raisin and chocolate-chip filling, glazed with beaten egg white and pearl sugar.
Ingredients
| 3 | large eggs plus 1 yolk, lightly beaten | |
| 200 g | sugar | |
| 200 g | sour cream | |
| 60 g | butter, melted | |
| 40 ml | oil | |
| 1/2 tbsp | 7.5 ml | freshly squeezed lemon juice |
| 1 tbsp | 15 ml | pure vanilla extract |
| 1 | grated zest of 1 lemon | |
| 700-800 g | sifted flour, plus more if needed | |
| ā | pinch of salt | |
| 10 g | dry yeast (or 30 g / 3/4 cube fresh) | |
| ā | fat for shaping | |
| 150-200 g | rosehip jam (filling) | |
| 100 g | coarsely chopped walnuts (or nuts of choice) | |
| 100 g | raisins (or preferred dried fruit) | |
| 100 g | baking chocolate chips (or chunks, or finely chopped chocolate) | |
| 1 | egg white, beaten to stiff peaks (glaze) | |
| 2-3 tbsp | 30ā45 ml | pearl sugar (glaze) |
| 2-3 tbsp | 30ā45 ml | chocolate chips (glaze) |
Instructions
Into the container of the breadmaker, after you have already started the program, add the ingredients one after another - the lightly beaten eggs, the sugar, the sour cream, the melted butter and the oil (mixed together beforehand), the lemon juice, the vanilla and the grated lemon zest, half of the flour, a pinch of salt and the dry yeast. Start the breadmaker on the "Dough" program - mine turned out to be 150 minutes. Once the ingredients have combined, start adding the rest of the flour, waiting after each addition for it to be absorbed by the mixture - until you get a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the container on its own. A little more or a little less flour than stated may be needed - depending on the size of the eggs or the thickness of the cream. If the dough has not risen enough by the end of the program - it should at least double in volume - leave it in the running breadmaker until it rises to the desired state, or take out the container, cover it with a clean cotton cloth and leave it for 10-15 minutes in an oven preheated to 40-50°C and TURNED OFF. The resulting amount of dough is enough for 12 muffins and 1 medium kozunak - or 24 muffins (or 2 medium kozunaks). I had decided to try making muffins and something between a roll and a kozunak. Grease a muffin tin and a rectangular kozunak or cake tin in advance with baking spray or your preferred fat and set aside. Preheat the oven to 40-50°C. Once the dough has risen enough, tip it out onto a greased work surface (I use oil for greasing) and divide it into two equal parts. Divide one part into 12 equal balls, and the other into 2 equal parts again. Stretch out each of the balls by hand into a rectangular sheet about 20-25 by 10-15 cm, spread with 1/2 to 1 tsp of rosehip jam, sprinkle with walnuts, raisins and chocolate chips, and roll up. Twist each of the rolls, tie it into a knot and place it in the muffin tin, tucking the ends underneath. Leave the muffins for 15 minutes in the oven preheated to 40-50°C to rise - or until they double in volume. Brush the risen muffins with the beaten egg white, pearl sugar and chocolate chips and return them to the oven. Switch the oven to 180°C, or 160°C with fan, and bake for at least about 25 minutes - or until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out dry, covering them with aluminium foil after about the 20th minute so they do not burn. Take the ready muffins out of the oven and leave for 4-5 minutes to cool in the tin on a rack, then remove from the tin and, if desired, dust lightly with icing sugar.