for 1 bread

Dough

500 g	zopf flour
1 tsp	salt
1 tbsp	sugar
½ cube	yeast (approx. 20 g), crumbled
80 g	butter, soft, cut into pieces
2 ½ dl	milk
1	egg, beaten

To shape

40 g	blue poppy seeds
a little	water

To braid

1

egg

Whipped ricotta

250 g	ricotta
1	organic lemon, use grated zest and 1 tbsp of juice

How it's done

Dough

In a bowl, mix the flour with all the other ingredients up to and including the yeast. Add the butter, milk and egg, mix and knead to form a soft, smooth dough. Cover and leave to rise at room temperature for approx. 1½ hrs. until doubled in size.

To shape

Divide the dough into 9 equal portions, shape into strands that are approx. 40 cm long and slightly thinner at the ends. Spread the poppy seeds on a dinner plate. Brush 3 strands of dough with a little water, roll them in the poppy seeds.

To braid

Place the 3 poppy seed strands side by side in the middle of the work surface. Place 3 strands each to the left and right. Gently press all the ends of the strands together at the top, then braid a three-strand plait using the resulting three main strands. Brush the strands without poppy seeds with egg.

To bake

Approx. 35 mins. in the lower half of an oven preheated to 180 °C. Remove from the oven, leave to cool on a rack.

Whipped ricotta

Add the ricotta, lemon zest and juice, stir until smooth, serve with the zopf.

Show complete recipe