This is a gorgeous holiday braid with a crunchy almond crust and a soft, fluffy crumb. You can make it plain or add cranberries, chocolate chips, or spices for a more festive look. It can also be made ahead and frozen.
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Holiday almond braid
This is the time to make our favorites and watch those around us smile in joy at the prospect of eating that once-a-year loaf of bread again.
I love simple loaves of bread, especially when they are lightly sweetened. I have a thing for these types of recipes, especially if they're braided, like the Finnish pulla or the cinnamon sugar challah.
And now, we have this simple braid with a crunchy topping of almonds and coarse raw sugar-which looks like broken styrofoam bits, I know-and the dough with pure almond extract, lemon and vanilla.
It's gorgeous for holidays like Christmas and Easter, and I also love it for Mother's Day brunch.
Holiday gift
If you want to give a braided sweet bread such as this one for the holidays, remember to wrap it as soon as it cools to keep it moist, like we do with Italian pandoro.
Add a note that it can be frozen and toasted later. Or attach a recipe for caramelized apple bread pudding in case they have leftovers.
That is if you don't eat it warm first.
Variations
- Shape: a braided wreath is a holiday showstopper, but you can make one very large straight braid or two medium ones. I often opt for the latter.
- Topping: use other nuts, like hazelnuts or pistachios. If you don't have pearl sugar, simply use granulated sugar.
- Flavorings: In theory, almost any extract and/or ground spice can be added. As for citrus zest, orange or tangerine work very well.
- Add-ins: this is a great dough to which you can add dried cranberries or raisins. Chocolate chips work well, too-about ½ cup total.
How to make almond bread
Follow these easy steps for braiding this dough.
Make a rectangle
Take a small piece of dough to use at the end to cover the place where the ends are pinched. On a lightly floured surface pat the remaining dough into a rough rectangle, 17x9 inches approximately is what mine measured. The longer the piece of dough the larger the final wreath.
Make the braid
Cut the dough into 3 ropes lengthwise and press them together at one end. Make sure they're not sticking to the surface.
Make a wreath
Join the edges of the braid to make a wreath, and pinch to seal.
Crunchy topping
I love how pearl sugar screams holidays, so I mixed it up with cinnamon and almonds for a simple topping that gets crunchy as it bakes. It gives this simple sweet holiday braid a great finish!
If you only use sliced almonds you can omit the processor and simply mix the topping ingredients in a bowl.
Kitchen Notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, utensils and equipment needed, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend tracking how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Cooling: allow the bread to cool down completely before slicing it to avoid clumping. You can eat it warm also.
- Storing: it can be kept at room temperature for a few days, covered, or wrapped to avoid dryness. After that my recommendation is to freeze it, well wrapped. Warm slightly in a medium oven before eating.
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Almond Holiday Bread
Ingredients
For the bread:
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest , from about 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 cups all-purpose flour , or use 3 ½ cups cake flour and 1 ½ cups bread flour as I sometimes do
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup water
- 5 tablespoons sunflower oil (see Notes below for options)
- 2 teaspoons pure almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
For the crunchy topping: see Notes, below
- ¼ cup coarse raw sugar
- ¼ cup 40g whole almonds
- ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
- 1 egg + 1 tablespoon water for the glaze
Instructions
For the bread:
- Mix 2 cups cake flour, yeast, and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl if you're kneading by hand). If using fresh yeast, see Notes below.
- Heat milk, cream, water, and oil to lukewarm (120ºF). This is not hot at all, you should be able to dip your pinky finger and feel it slightly warm.
- Add it to the yeast mixture and lightly mix.
- Add the eggs, mix with a wooden spoon a bit, and add salt, almond, and vanilla extract. Mix well until creamy, about 1 minute.
- Attach to the stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and start adding the rest of the flours, ½ cup at a time.
- Knead for 4 or 5 minutes, adding a few extra tablespoons of flour if needed because the dough is too wet. The dough will leave the sides of the bowl for the first minute when you add flour, but it won't completely gather into a ball. That is fine.
- By hand: mix with a wooden spoon while you add the remaining flour until it's very thick. Then dump the dough into a lightly floured counter, and knead by hand for no less than 5-7 minutes, adding extra flour by tablespoons to make a slightly sticky dough:
- Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover with plastic and let rise until doubled, about 1 ½ to 2 hours depending on the temperature of the room.
- Reserve a small piece of dough (you'll use it to cover the pinched ends of the wreath).
- Lightly flour the counter and flatten the dough into a rectangle, roughly 17x9 inches, and cut it into three even ropes.
- Pinch 3 ends together, and braid it. Don't worry if it's not perfect.
- Transfer to a parchment paper-lined or greased baking sheet, and pin the two ends together to make a ring. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise until almost doubled about 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven 20 minutes before baking to 350ºF / 180°C.
For the crunchy topping:
- Prepare the topping while the dough is proofing for the last time. In a food processor (I use the small attachment) mix sugar, whole almonds, and cinnamon until it’s coarsely ground.
- Transfer to a bowl and mix in the sliced almonds.
- When ready to bake, mix the egg with a tablespoon of water, and brush generously but carefully the top of the dough trying not to let too much egg wash fall into the crevices.
- Sprinkle with the almond mixture.
- Bake for 30 minutes, turn down the oven to 325º and bake 10 more minutes, until golden and crunchy.
- Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Or eat warm.
- Keep at room temperature for a few days, covered or wrapped.
Notes
Mix 1 cup flour, yeast, 1 tablespoon of sugar (from the total amount) in a bowl (from the stand mixer if using one), and slowly add the lukewarm milk. Mix lightly with a fork and let stand 5 minutes. It should start to bubble. Proceed with the recipe as in the instructions adding the rest of the liquid and ingredients. Flour: you can use all-purpose flour instead of both flours listed below. Liquid: I use cream together with low-fat milk; you can use full-fat milk and ½ cup water too. Topping: if you only use sliced almonds you can omit the processor and simply mix the topping ingredients in a bowl. You can also use other nuts like hazelnut or pistachios. If you don't have pearl sugar, use granulated without processing it though it won't be exactly the same. Shape: a braided wreath is great for the holidays, but you can make one very large straight braid or two medium ones. The latter is the one I opt for many times. Flavorings: in theory, almost any extract and/or ground spice can be added. As for citrus zest, orange or tangerine goes very well also. Add-ins: this is a great dough to add dried cranberries or raisins. And chocolate chips work well also. About a ½ cup total.
Adapted from Bread For All Seasons, by Beth Hensperger
Bam's Kitchen says
Paula you a re super women. Baking and moving...I rather than bake than move any day. I hope everything goes smoothly. Take Care, BAM
Liz Berg says
Hey, girlfriend, hope things are OK. I miss you!
Viviane Bauquet Farre - Food and Style says
Moving is never, ever easy. But kudos to you for finding the time to make such lovely bread anyway! And enjoy that hot weather, Paula... it's terribly cold here in New York!
Dina says
it looks delicious!
Anne ~ Uni Homemaker says
This is such a beautiful bread Paula! Love all that crunchy texture on top. YUM! Good luck with the move!
Terra says
Congrats on selling your house! I love the crunchy part of this beautiful bread! The flavors all sound delicious! Yum, Hugs, Terra
vanillasugarblog says
ha ha yes we food bloggers always have to bake something during chaos.
LOL so true!
laurasmess.me says
Looks so, so delicious Paula. Congrats on the sale of your house! Sounds full-on, moving in the middle of that terrible heat and humidity. I've done the same here on Perth on a number of occasions but it's horrible, ugh!! Hope that you settle in soon. I definitely will be making this braid for Christmas breakfast. Delicious!! xx
Laura (Blogging Over Thyme) says
Good luck with your move!!! I can't even imagine how unpleasant it must be in that heat (sort of thankful for my 45 F weather right now, even if its rainy and wet).
This loaf is gorgeous! I pinned it immediately--I have yet to make any braided bread, besides challah, so this is on my baking bucket list for sure.
Marissa | Pinch and Swirl says
Wow, the texture of that bread. You are a master Paula!
Dina says
it looks delish!
dentistvschef says
wow, what a great idea......
loving crusted almond layer on my bread....
btw, we used to add sesame seed crusted for our deep fried bund here in Indonesia...
anna @ annamayeveryday says
I adore almondy things and texture looks amazing - gosh it looks so delicious, I would love a slice of that!
Jamie says
It's gorgeous! And I love Challah - the flavor and texture - and this crunchy topping makes it so perfect for breakfast. I want to make this now!
Laura Dembowski says
I love sweet breads like this at the holidays! This is the perfect addition to the holiday classics like panettone and stollen.
Cocoa and Lavender says
Wow - I missed the post in which you told us you sold your house! That is huge news, Paula - I hope you are doing okay with the move... kind of hard to decide whether it is better when it is cold and raining or hot and humid...
Now, this bread looks absolutely amazing and, like you, I like a little sweetness to my breads. My pandoro was wonderful but I get the feeling I am going to like this one even more.
Best of luck with the move! ~ David
Kathy says
Paula, Simply beautiful bread! I love the holidays…it always gives me an excuse to make wonderful sweet breads and not feel guilty!
rise of the sourdough preacher says
Paula a true beauty!
Looking forward to this month's theme, I'll have to brainstorm 😉
Have a lovely day.
Lou
easyfoodsmith says
I know I am going to love baking this gorgeously flavored bread. Just reading your post, I am finding it so therapeutic! Thanks for sharing. (I always love feasting my eyes on your sharp food clicks)
Karen Kerr says
So beautiful, and to think you did this in the middle of moving! And in that heat. But there is something comforting about baking bread isn't there?