Braided Bread Dough Basket Recipes

A SIMPLE BRAIDED BREAD

Steps:

• Thaw frozen bread until it can be cut in half (lengthwise) with a sharp knife, but has not started to rise.
• Take the halves and roll them out to about 16 inches in length and about 1 inch in diameter. The length and width are not that important, but they should all be the same length and width.
• Braid 3 of the halves together to make 2 loaves. Tuck the ends under so they will stay together and not burn.
• Place the loaves on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick spray and coated with corn meal. The corn meal is not necessary but addes that homemade look.
• Brush the egg wash on the bread and sprinkle with the poppy or sesame seeds.
• Let rise until double in size (Appr. 45 min.).
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Place loaves in the center of the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the bread tapped sounds hollow. Option--at the end of 15 minutes turn the bread around. This insures even browning.
• Remove the bread from the baking sheet and cool on a wire rack.
• Note: I make this bread at Christmas time and give them to friends along with homemade cookies and candy.

BRAIDED EASTER EGG BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, salt and yeast; stir well. Combine milk and butter in a small saucepan; heat until milk is warm and butter is softened but not melted.
• Gradually add the milk and butter to the flour mixture; stirring constantly. Add two eggs and 1/2 cup flour; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal size rounds; cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll each round into a long roll about 36 inches long and 1 1/2 inches thick. Using the two long pieces of dough, form a loosely braided ring, leaving spaces for the five colored eggs. Seal the ends of the ring together and use your fingers to slide the eggs between the braids of dough.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place loaf on a buttered baking sheet and cover loosely with a damp towel. Place loaf in a warm place and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes. Brush risen loaf with melted butter.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

DOUGH BASKET

Steps:

• To make the dough: Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Mix until well combined. The dough will be sticky but you will be able to form it into a ball. Use additional flour for your hands and work surface to keep the dough from sticking.
• To prepare the basket weaving structure: This recipe will make enough dough to yield a basket that is about 10 inches in diameter. Use a piece styrofoam as a base. I used an 11 by 14-inch rectangular piece, which was about 2 inches thick. Using a pen, draw a 9-inch diameter circle in the center of the rectangular styrofoam. Insert 21 wooden skewers in a circle following the pen line of the 9-inch diameter circle. Space the skewers somewhat evenly apart. When inserting the skewers, tilt them slightly outward. This will be the outside shape of the basket.
• To make the basket: Roll a piece of dough into a long rope that is at least 20 inches long and about 1/2-inch in diameter. Place the end of this rope inside the basket leaving a 1 1/2-inch long tail resting in what will be the interior of the basket. Weave the rest of the dough in and out of the skewers. This should make one complete layer and may give you enough to continue into the second row. When you are coming to the end of your rope (no pun intended) and you need to stop, make sure you leave a tail inside the basket. This will help the dough stay in place and avoid any unraveling later on. Roll out another dough rope and start the second layer in a different spot than the first one so the starts and ends are staggered throughout the basket. This will help develop a stable structure to the basket. When you have completed 4 full rows, put it in the oven at 200 degrees F (if the oven temperature is higher, the Styrofoam will melt) for about 30 minutes. This is just long enough for the dough to dry slightly and will provide a strong base for the weight of additional layers. Remove from the oven and let cool. Repeat the same process adding another 4 layers to the basket. Put it back in the oven for another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• To make the decorative braids for the top rim of the basket: Using 3 ropes of raw dough approximately 28 inches long, weave the dough ropes into a long braid. Place the braid on the top rim of the basket, gently pressing it down to make it secure. This is now the final row on the basket.
• To make the bottom of the basket: Make a long rope of dough approximately 1/2-inch in diameter. Tightly coil it starting at the center of the inside of the basket. This will be the bottom of the basket. If the rope you made is not long enough, you can roll out another rope and connect the 2 ropes by squeezing it securely to the end of the already coiled rope. Make the coil disk slightly bigger than the base and push the coil into place so it fits snugly.
• To make the handles for the basket: I used a 1/4-inch thick wooden dowel as a base and wrapped a long rope of raw dough, by spiraling around the dowel from top to bottom. I used 3 pieces of dowel to give my basket handle an artistic shape. The length of the dowels depends on 2 things. How tall the side of your basket is and what you want the handles to look like. Cut dowels to desired size. Lay the raw dough wrapped dowels on the baking sheet and bake along with the rest of the basket. The handles will be attached after all the parts have been baked.
• Place the entire basket and the handles in the oven for the final time. I put mine in the oven for about 1 hour, then turned off the heat and left it in the oven overnight. Remove the basket from the oven (it should be cool or room temperature for final assembly).
• To assemble and finish the basket:
• Make the caramel for painting the basket: Place the sugar and water in a saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Stir only until it is combined. Let the caramel cook until it burns. You will see white smoke and the caramel will be very dark. Remove from the heat. Add a little water and stir. You will need to keep adding small amounts of water until the caramel is a consistency liquid enough to use as paint. Use a pastry brush to apply the caramel to the basket and the handle. Allow it to dry completely before filling the basket with your pastries.

BRAIDED BREAD

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine 5 cups flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Heat water, butter and honey to 120°-130°. Add to dry ingredients; beat on medium speed. Separate one egg; refrigerate the egg white. Add egg yolk and remaining eggs to yeast mixture; beat until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough., Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Punch dough down and divide in half. Divide each portion into thirds; shape each into a rope about 18 in. long. Sprinkle two greased baking sheets with cornmeal; place three ropes on each baking sheet and braid. Pinch ends firmly and tuck under. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 45 minutes., Beat cold water and reserved egg white; brush over the dough. Sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake at 375° for 18-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks.

BRAIDED BREAD WREATH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment and sprinkle with a thin layer of cornmeal.
• On a floured work surface, roll out the 3 dough portions into 3 long ropes. Line the 3 ropes up next to each other with the top ends overlapping and the bottom ends about 3 inches apart. Pinch the top ends. Braid the ropes together; pull the left section over to the center, then hold the old center section with your left hand and pull it to the side. Finally, bring the right section over the center. Repeat the process, alternating sides, until the entire length of bread is braided. Join both ends to form a round wreath.
• Transfer the dough wreath to the parchment lined sheet pan. Dust with flour, and cover with a kitchen towel. Let proof in a warm spot for 45 minutes.
• In a small bowl mix together the olive oil, garlic, paprika, Italian seasoning, and cheese. Set aside. Beat the egg with the water in a small bowl, and set aside
• Bake the bread wreath in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Remove the bread from the oven, and brush it with the olive oil mixture. Put it back in the oven, and bake it for an additional 20 minutes. In the last 10 minutes of baking, coat the entire wreath with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse salt. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

BRAIDED BREAD WITH PESTO

Steps:

• Combine basil, lemon juice, and garlic in a food processor. Process until smooth. Gradually pour in olive oil and process until pesto thickens. Add Parmesan cheese, walnuts, and salt; process for 20 seconds more. Refrigerate for 1 hour to allow flavors to combine.
• Meanwhile, sprinkle yeast over warm water in a large bowl. Let sit until frothy, about 10 minutes.
• Mix flour and salt together in a bowl. Gradually add to the yeast mixture along with olive oil. Stir until just combined. Add more flour if dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
• Form dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl. Turn dough over so both top and bottom are oiled. Cover with aluminum foil and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Lightly flour your work surface. Gently stretch and elongate dough into a rectangle roughly 12x18 inches. Spread the pesto over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Gently roll up into a 'snake', starting from 1 long side. Pinch the seam closed.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Dust a baking sheet with cornmeal or line with parchment paper.
• Transfer rolled dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Use a pastry cutter or sharp knife to cut the roll in half lengthwise. Turn dough so cut edges face up. Gently crisscross the dough, keeping cut edges facing up. Pinch ends together to form a wreath. Let rest for 30 minutes.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.