Kozunak

*Because eggs vary in size, it is best to put the 2 eggs and the egg white into a measuring cup and top up with fresh milk until you have 1 and 1/2 cups of liquid. 1 cup = 240 ml 1 tbsp = 15 ml 1 tsp = 5 ml Important: For the kozunaks to succeed, all products must be at room temperature.

A dough is kneaded from the above products, in a bread machine on the Dough cycle (of course it can also be done by hand). Into the bucket first put the milk, the lightly beaten eggs and the sugar, stir until the sugar dissolves (you can also beat them in a bowl and then pour into the machine bucket), then add the butter and the grated zests, the flour, the salt in one corner and, on top in the middle of the flour, the yeast. During kneading, once the dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bucket, add a little at a time 2 tbsp of oil (in two or three additions), sprinkling a little flour after each addition. Let the whole cycle finish. Sweet dough rises more slowly, so leave the dough in the machine until it doubles in volume, even if the cycle has finished. I divide the dough into two or three parts. Usually I make either three long kozunaks or 2 round ones in a round cake tin. Each part is divided into 3 or 4 pieces, from which long strands are made, well greased with oil and braided into a plait. The plait is placed in a greased and floured baking tin. Cover and leave to rise in a warm place (if you leave them in the oven to rise, it must be warmed to no more than 50 C (120 F)). The risen kozunaks are brushed with the yolk beaten with a few drops of fresh milk or water and sprinkled with sugar. They may be sprinkled with flaked almonds or studded with whole, peeled almonds. Bake in an oven preheated to 185 C (365 F), about 20-30 minutes (depending on the size of the kozunak). Into the plaits you may add raisins (soaked beforehand in rum until soft), jam with crushed walnuts, or walnuts, cinnamon, raisins and sugar. You can roll the dough into a rectangle, spread with jam and roll it up. The three kozunaks in the photo below are from one batch of dough. The round kozunak, the taller one, is baked in a standard round cake tin with a hole in the middle, the other is baked in a rectangular cake tin, and the third in a round tray about 20 cm in size. Do not make large kozunaks, they bake for longer and burn on the outside. Before rising, the kozunak should not fully cover the bottom of the vessel it will be baked in; leave room for it to rise both in width and height. The risen and baked kozunak increases in volume about 3-4 times (see the photo above with the dough before and after rising).