Falling into the “Oh my word, I can’t believe I waited so long to try this!” category is a braided bread recipe from a woman named Karen that I went to church with years ago. I’ve eaten the bread, I’ve been told it was easy, I’ve heard the testimony of other people who thought they couldn’t make bread make this bread and it turned out great, but for some reason I never tried it until this past weekend. It’s a keeper!

Braided Bread
2 1/2 c. flour
2 pkg. yeast (or 5 tsp.)
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt

Mix these four ingredients together in a large bowl.

2 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
2 eggs
3 3/4 c. flour, divided

Heat milk and butter until the butter just melts, then add to dry mixture. [Note: this seemed a bit ambiguous to this literal girl, so I used a thermometer, as I always do, to make sure the liquid was between 110 and 120 degrees F.] Beat well, then add eggs, one at a time. Add 3 cups flour, one cup at a time. (You can also add other ingredients like raisins, cream cheese, whatever you like.)

Knead until no longer sticky, adding 1/2–3/4 cup more flour. Place in a greased bowl, turning it over when you first put it in, and let rise for 1 hour.

Punch down the dough and divide into two halves. From one half, divide dough into three parts and make these into long tubes of dough. Braid these into your loaf shape on a cookie sheet or stone. Repeat with other half. Cover with a cloth and let rise for 30 more minutes.

Before baking, brush the top of the loaves with egg yolk (best if egg yolk is at room temperature). Bake at 375° for approximately 20 minutes. The tops should be a light brown/deep golden color, and when you tap the loaves, they should sound hollow.

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