Some Behind-The-Scene Images From The Easter Bread Recipe

Bread making is a very old and basic craft. We tend to think of it as fiddly, temperamental and time consuming. It can be but this usually comes down to our ’state of mind’ and not the bread’s.

The best way to learn about bread making is to do it. Find a good recipe - by a little trial and error - and weave the various stages required in amongst your day. Don’t think the dough has to dictate to you - believe me when I say that you can adjust it to fit your comings and goings quite easily.

I do suggest however that a weekend is a really nice time to bake because you’re likely to feel more relaxed and willing to ‘go with the flow’. There’s a sense of rhythm you start to feel as you progress through the mixing, kneading, risings and baking of each particular loaf.

Here are some images I took whilst making my Easter Bread - just to give you a feel for what goes on behind the scenes. I really do get a thrill at each stage of the process!

This is after the first rising which took about ninety minutes (I started making the dough around mid-morning) I usually do this on my stove top with the oven on low underneath. It seems to provide just the right amount of warmth to help the rising process, particularly if I’m planning to bake the bread later in the day.

If I want to serve this for breakfast however, I always put the dough in the fridge and let it rise overnight. I know it sounds odd to place it in a cold environment but the dough still rises, only much more slowly. Some chefs prefer this method as they feel it gives better texture to the bread.

After the dough has risen and been divided into three sections it’s rolled into long sausage shapes and is now ready to be braided. See the recipe for how to join the ends together using the egg wash.

Most breads have a second, shorter rise before baking, after the dough has been shaped into the final free-hand design (such as this braid) or it has risen in the tin in which it will be baked.

The Easter Bread dough took about 30 minutes for the second rise.

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