Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (2024)

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My mother loves any Sweet Bread made with yeast dough. Especially at Easter. This year (after watching far too many episodes of the British Baking Challenge) I decided that I would try something fancy. A Hefezopf. This Hefezopf Recipe is an adaptation of Luisa Weiss’s “Rosinenzopf ” recipe from her fantastic cookbook Classic German Baking.Don’t be intimidated by the Yeast, or kneading. The dough comes together beautifully in the mixer… and as for the kneading? I usually have around 10 minutes of aggression in me to take out on some dough.

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (1)

When I pulled out the ingredients, I was a bit irked to discover that we are out of raisins. I don’t mind, I’m not a big fan of the things, but Tech Guy loves them (he must have snacked them all away). Rather than leave the fruit out, I chopped up some dried cranberries. Maybe they aren’t “traditional” but they are quite yummy. In the back of my pantry I found the box of Hagel Zucker that I brought home from my last trip to Germany. (See…. filling up my suitcase at the grocery store in Germany does have its advantages… you never know when you will NEED it, but it’s nice to have when you do. ) This means I was able to sprinkle the crust with crunchy bits of sugar to add just an extra touch of sweetness. YUM. Don’t have Hagel Zucker (Pearl Sugar)? you can order them here–> Hagel Zucker, or use sliced almonds.

At Easter, you can use this same basic recipe and braid into a wreath shape to fill with colored Eggs… or even bake Hard Cooked Colored Eggs into the braids. (That will be something for me to try next.) A Hefezopf wreath makes a beautiful centerpiece on the Easter Breakfast table.

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But any day you make the Hefezopf recipe, you can serve it up with some good German butter and delicious jam for a wonderful breakfast treat or mid-day snack. Or just eat it plain. (I find that even though I stored the bread in a plastic zipper bag, it did dry out a bit overnight… so the extra butter schmeared on it helps… especially for palates who are used to softer, sweeter baked goods).

Hefezopf Recipe

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (3)

Hefezopf Recipe

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Ingredients

  • 1 Cup Milk
  • 500 gr / approx 4 cups All Purpose Flour
  • 50 gr / 1/4 cup Sugar
  • 2 tsp Rapid Rise Yeast
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • Lemon Zest- approx 1 lemon worth
  • 6 TBL Butter at room temp.
  • 1 Egg
  • 1/2 cup Raisins/Cranberries
  • For Finishing-
  • 1 Egg Yolk
  • 1 tsp Whole Milk
  • Few Tbl. Hagel Zucker / Pearl Sugar
  • OR
  • Few Tbl. Sliced Almonds

Instructions

  • Warm the milk up a little. (I stuck my finger in it, it felt warm, and it worked. You don't want it too hot, it will kill the yeast)

  • In your mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, rapid rise yeast, salt, and the lemon peel.

  • In another bowl (I just used a measuring cup) combine the milk and eggs.. give them a quick mix.

  • Add the milk/egg mixture to the flour/sugar mix... then slice in the room temperature butter.

  • Mix until it all comes together in a sticky dough.

  • Dump the dough blob out onto a floured surface.

  • Now comes the work. Don't cheat!

  • Knead the dough for 10 15 minutes, until it is smooth and elastic. (Note- even though I have a dough hook on my mixer, I did this by hand. I presume it can be done on the dough hook as well, I just chose to use it as a work out). Add a sprinkle of flour if the dough is too sticky.

  • Put the kneaded dough into a clean bowl, and cover with a dishcloth or plastic. Let rise 1 hour in a draft-free warm spot. It should double in size.

  • When the dough has risen, dump it out of the bowl and onto the counter.

  • Shape it a little flat, and add the raisins/cranberries.

  • Fold the dough over the fruits, then knead them in to distribute.

  • Cut the dough into 3 equal pieces (I actually weighed them out... )

  • Roll the pieces into 16 inch strands.

  • Lay them next to each other, squish them together at one end, then braid the length of the strand. Press the other end so they stay together, and tuck up under the end.

  • Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper

  • Place the braided loaf on the parchment paper, cover with a cloth, and let it rise for 20 minutes in a warm, draft-free space.

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

  • When the dough has risen, check to see if any of the raisins/cranberries are sticking out. Poke them in a bit, or remove them if they are.

  • Combine an Egg Yolk and 1 Tbl. Milk in a small bowl... really mix it until its not separate looking. Use a pastry brush, and brush the whole braid.

  • Sprinkle with Hagel Zucker/Pearl Sugar or Sliced Almonds.

  • Bake for 25 minutes, then check. If it's getting too brown at this point, lay a piece of foil over the loaf.

  • Bake an additional 5 minutes.

  • Cool on a rack

  • Best served the same day, but you can wrap it tightly to store for another day.

Notes

I baked the bread using 2% milk, and regular American butter. (I used what I had in the refrigerator). The original recipe calls for WHOLE Milk and European HIGH FAT butter. I imagine the flavor would be richer, and the taste moister with the addition of the extra fat. And it would be better the next day

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Use a SCALE to Measure Ingredients

One Kitchen tool I’ve come to depend on, especially when baking German Recipes, is my kitchen scale. Honestly, they aren’t expensive, and the results really are better. For example, this recipe uses 4 cups of flour… by weight this should be 500 grams. 500 grams NEVER changes, 4 cups is different every time you measure it out… depending on how the flour settles, and how moist the air is. It’s just more accurate when you usea scale.

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (7)Pohl Schmitt Mechanical/Digital Food Kitchen Scale – Multi-Transducer Scale for Greater Precision with Auto Shut-Off (Batt. Incl.), BlackHefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (8)

Step By Step- Hefezopf Recipe

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (9)

Mix the ingredients until the dough comes together… knead for 10 – 15 minutes

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (10)

Place the kneaded dough in a mixing bowl, cover and let rise in a draft-free spot for an hour

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (11)

Carefully knead in the Raisins/Cranberries

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Divide dough into 3 equal portions … roll those pieces into 16 inch strands … then braid

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (13)

Place the Braided Loaf on a parchment covered sheet-pan. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (14)

Brush the risen braid with a egg yolk/milk wash… then sprinkle with Hagel Zucker/Pearl Zucker or Sliced Almonds

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Bake 25 minutes, then check if it’s getting too dark. Cover with foil if it is. Bake another 5 minutes (30 total)

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Let the loaf finish cooling on a rack

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Slice and serve

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Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (19)

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (20)

Hefezopf Recipe- An Easy and Delicious Braided German Sweet Bread (2024)

FAQs

What is the name of the sweet braided bread? ›

Growing up Hungarian, my mom would intermittently make kalács. A yummy brioche-type sweet yeast bread, beautifully braided.

What do you put in bread to make it rise? ›

When you add yeast to water and flour to create dough, it eats up the sugars in the flour and excretes carbon dioxide gas and ethanol — this process is called fermentation. The gluten in the dough traps the carbon dioxide gas, preventing it from escaping. The only place for it to go is up, and so the bread rises.

What makes bread rise higher? ›

Bread rises because yeast eats sugar and burps carbon dioxide, which gets trapped by the bread's gluten. The more sugar your yeast eats, the more gas that gets formed, and the higher the bread rises!

What is Italian Easter bread made of? ›

Place flour and salt in a really large bowl. Add eggs and sugar mixture, yeast, vanilla, milk and melted margarine (mix food coloring in margarine if you want a slightly yellow bread and mix together with a large wooden spoon. Turn out onto a wooden board and punch down and knead again briefly.

What is the braided bread eaten by Jews? ›

Challah is a Jewish egg bread that is traditionally braided and sprinkled with sesame or poppy seeds. I learned how to braid this easily using two long strands of dough, overlapped in the centre, to make a four-strand braid.

What country does braided bread come from? ›

Challah is the centerpiece ceremonial bread for Ashkenazi Jews—those of us who draw their cultural origins spanning from Eastern Europe to Germany or thereabouts, whose ancestors spoke Yiddish alongside whatever language needed to survive in their home country.

How to make bread more flavorful? ›

If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.

What can I add to my bread for flavor? ›

Butter and especially stronger oils, such as walnut, can also add flavor to bread. Dry milk powder adds flavor to bread and can soften its texture, as in the case of this basic white sourdough. Add it to dough with the flour.

Do you glaze bread before baking? ›

So next time you are glazing your bread loaves or rolls, first think about the crust finish you would like and then choose your glaze ingredient/s. And for extra impact, double-glaze your bread dough – brush the just-shaped dough with the glaze, leave to prove and then glaze again before baking.

How can I make my bread lighter and fluffy? ›

All it takes is a small amount of dough enhancer per loaf to create a much lighter and fluffier result. Using a dough enhancer like Vital Wheat Gluten works to improve the texture and elasticity of the dough and elongate the strands of gluten. Doing so allows more room for the gas in the dough to develop and rise.

Does adding more yeast make dough rise faster? ›

The amount of yeast you use in your bread dough has a significant bearing on how quickly it'll rise, and thus on your own schedule. By reducing the yeast, you ensure a long, slow rise, one more likely to produce a strong dough able to withstand the rigors of baking.

What happens if you let bread rise too much? ›

And yes, it's better to poke early than late. If the dough doesn't spring back at all, you've likely over-proofed the dough. When the dough rises too much before it gets baked, it will collapse, rather than rise, in the oven's heat, and the crumb will be uneven and ragged.

What is Elvis bread? ›

2015-01-18 15:00:03. Serves 8. This "Elvis" banana bread is loaded up with a smooth and creamy peanut butter glaze and brown sugar-candied bacon. It's just basically freakin' awesome. 55 min.

What is the difference between Italian bread and German bread? ›

Bread is a staple in Italian diets. It is a rarity in Italian culture to have a meal without an accompanying piece of bread. Italian bread differs from German bread because Italian bread has a much more open structure and is made from predominantly white flour.

What do Italians eat on Easter morning? ›

Boiled eggs, Easter bread, casatiello, torta al formaggio, torta pasqualina, colombo cake and chocolate eggs are usually offered for breakfast on Easter in Italy. A typical Italian Easter dinner will often include soup, salad, risotto, pasta and lamb, served with veggies and plenty of wine.

What is the name of a popular Mexican sweet bread? ›

Conchas are also known as Pan Dulce and Sweet Bread. This Mexican breakfast item is made of a fluffy, butter brioche-like dough topped with a streusel topping that is scored. These colorful Mexican breakfast item is a crowd favorite.

Is braided brioche the same as challah? ›

The key difference between challah and brioche, per Masterclass, is that brioche is typically made with all three enriched ingredients we mentioned before (eggs, sugar, and butter), but challah often replaces the butter with oil to keep kosher.

Why are mollejas called sweet bread? ›

Mollejas are commonly referred to as sweetbread, but no one is really sure why. Mollejas are not a type of bread and they are not sweet, so the name sweetbread does not really add up. However, while the name is deceptive, the flavor and texture are the truth! Mollejas is the name given to meat from the thymus gland.

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