End of March
As March starts to wind down over the next week and a half, we are very much looking forward to the start of spring. The change of seasons is always exciting, but winter to spring always feels the brightest. Days are longer, we get more sunlight and energy, and so do the flowers and trees! Spring also means it is time for some fun new recipes! As recipe developers/bloggers, the change of seasons is always an inspiration for us. We like to share recipes that you can use in your current circumstances, like a hearty soup in the winter or a delicious meringue cake in the summer. Of course, that’s not to say you can’t enjoy our recipes whenever you want, but seasons are definitely a major factor in when we decide to share certain recipes.
Easter Traditions
As well as seasons, we also like to base our recipes on which holiday is coming up. Of course, we tend to focus on those that are celebrated in our family, so mainly Danish and American holidays. And with the start of April comes the next one – Easter! We are not from a religious family, so for us, Easter is about cultural traditions. In Denmark, we have plenty of fun little traditions we participate in during Easter, like rolling Easter eggs. You can read more about these traditions in our blog post from last year – click this link.
A main part of Danish Easter is a big lunch with family and friends. This is where some fun recipes come into play. Today’s recipe is for påskereder, or these cute Easter nests. They are made of a slightly sweet enriched bread dough that comes out super fluffy and delicious and they make the perfect little nest for chocolate Easter eggs! Actually, this can also be a really fun way to give chocolates out at breakfast time, with a sweet braided bun underneath! Top with butter, jam, Nutella, peanut butter, cheese, or whatever you like and we promise they will be a hit 🙂
How to Make Påskereder
The recipe for these buns is reasonably straightforward if you have made enriched rolls before. Enriched bread has added fats, like butter, milk, and eggs. These make it much softer and sweeter than bread made with just flour, water, yeast, and salt. This type of dough includes breads like brioche, challah, and cinnamon buns. To make the dough for these Easter nests, start by adding the ingredients according to the recipe below. Knead for 10-15 minutes, or until the dough is very springy, smooth, and no longer sticky. Let this rise until doubled in size, then shape your nests. While the braiding can seem intimidating, it is not as challenging as it seems! Our recipe below has more detailed instructions to help you. Let the buns rise a second time before brushing with egg wash and baking. You will be left with wonderful Easter nests! Enjoy!
Påskereder (Braided Bun Easter Nests)
Ingredients
DOUGH
- 150 ml (2/3 cup) milk
- 2 tsp instant yeast (2.25 tsp active dry yeast, 17.5 fresh yeast)
- 1 large egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 375 grams (3 cups) all-purpose or bread flour
- 57 grams (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
DECORATION
- 1 egg for egg wash
- Pearl sugar (optional)
- 8 Cadbury creme eggs OR a pack of mini eggs (even better if you can find marzipan eggs!)
Instructions
- If using active dry yeast – Heat up the milk, either in the microwave or in a saucepan, until it is “fingervarm” (finger warm), meaning it should feel warm to the touch but not hot. Add the yeast and a teaspoon (~5ish grams) of sugar (subtract from the total amount) and stir to dissolve. Let it rest 5-10 minutes until it begins to froth and bubble a little bit. If using instant yeast – just add the yeast and milk to a bowl.
- Add the egg, egg yolk, remaining sugar, vanilla extract, cardamom, and salt (and milk and instant yeast if using it) to a large bowl. Mix well.
- If you’re using active dry yeast, once the yeast has bubbled up, add the milk and yeast mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to combine.
- Slowly add the flour and the softened butter, stirring with a wooden spoon. Once the dough starts to come together, you can start kneading.
- Knead until smooth and elastic, probably around 10-15 minutes. Add a bit of flour if the dough sticks to your hands or the surface. If you prefer not to get your hands messy, feel free to use a stand mixer for this step. The texture of your dough before its first rise should be soft and smooth, not sticky and not too dry.
- Cover and let your dough rise for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
- Once the dough has risen, dump it out on a flat surface. Divide into 8 equal pieces.
- Take a piece of dough and divide into thirds. Roll each third into a long strip that measures about 30cm (~12in) – it doesn't have to be exact, but this is the size we found that creates a bun that has a big enough hole in the center for the eggs to rest!
- Press the three strips together at the top; now we are going to braid the strands.
- Take the rightmost strand and pass it over the center strand. This right strand is now the center strand.
- Take your leftmost strand and pass it over the center (making the left strand the center one).
- Repeat by passing the right strand over the center, and the left strand over the center, etc., until you reach the end and you have a braid.
- Press the strips together at the end to seal the braid.
- Form the braid into a circle; Pass the end of the braid through the first braided segment at the top of the braid. You can also just press the ends together to seal it, there will just be a section that doesn't look braided on the ring!
- Transfer the braided bun to a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Repeat the process for the remaining pieces of dough, leaving you with eight braided buns at the end.
- Cover and let the braided buns rise another 30-45 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 350 F (175 C).
- Once your buns are about doubled in size or pass the poke test (when you poke the dough, it doesn't spring back immediately, but leaves a little indentation) egg wash the buns by combining an egg with a little bit of water in a bowl, and brushing the mixture onto the buns. Sprinkle with pearl sugar (optional).
- Bake them in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, until golden.
- Let the buns cool on a wire rack. Once cool, decorate with eggs – place one larger Cadbury creme sized egg in the hole in each bun, or you can place three to four smaller eggs on the top!
