Zopf or Züpfe (tresse in French and treccia in Italian) is a type of Swiss, Austrian, and German bread made from white flour, milk, eggs, butter and yeast My quick and easy zopf recipe made from simple ingredients. - Wikipedia

Ingredients

  • 20 g fresh yeast or 10 g dry yeast
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 460 g wheat flour (type 550)
  • 30 g sugar
  • 1 vanilla sugar (16 g)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 50 g melted butter
  • 150 g lukewarm milk
  • 1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon water for brushing the zopf

Instructions

  1. If using fresh yeast: Dissolve the yeast in a small bowl with a teaspoon of sugar (if using dry yeast, it can be added directly to the flour, skipping this step with the sugar).

  2. Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt. Then add the egg, egg yolks, melted butter, dissolved yeast, and lukewarm milk. Knead the dough until it’s thick and elastic (about 10 minutes by hand or 6 minutes using a mixer with a dough hook). By the end, the dough should still be slightly sticky.

  3. Let the dough rise: Transfer the dough to a bowl greased with oil, cover it (e.g., with plastic wrap), and leave it in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour or until it doubles or even triples in size.

  4. Shape the dough: Once the dough has risen, remove it from the bowl, knead it again, and divide it into four equal parts. Roll each part into a rope about 40 cm long, then braid them together. You can also braid the zopf with three ropes, like a standard braid.

  5. Second rise: Place the braided zopf onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, cover it with a cloth, and let it rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes or until it visibly increases in size.

  6. Prepare the crumb topping: In the meantime, make the crumb topping by rubbing all the ingredients together with your fingers until it resembles “wet sand.” At the end, you can form the crumbs into a single ball.

  7. Brush and top: Once the zopf has risen, brush it with the egg yolk mixed with a tablespoon of water. Then sprinkle the crumb topping over the zopf.

Baking

  1. Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 190°C (top and bottom heat setting).

  2. Bake: Place the risen zopf in the preheated oven and bake for about 35 minutes until it turns dark brown. If it starts to brown too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil and continue baking.

Enjoy your freshly baked zopf!