Master confectioner Bettina Schliephake-Burchardt shows her recipe for four-strand yeast plait with nut filling.
Yeast plait: recipe and preparation
- Preparation time 90 min
- Preparation time 30 mins
- Total time 120 min
FOR THE Yeast DOUGH
500 g
Wheat flour type 550
190 g
Milch
28 g
fresh yeast
55 g
Zucker
60 g
Butter
1
Egg, size M
5 g
Salt
FOR BREAKING FOR THE NUTS FILLING
100 g
ground almonds
100 g
ground hazelnuts
150 g
Milch
100 g
Zucker
1 pack
vanilla sugar
1 TL
Cinnamon
0.5
Organic lemon (zest)
30 g
Rum
Step 1: Yeast dough I
Heat the milk to lukewarm and mix with the yeast. Add the flour to the food processor and slowly mix with the milk-yeast mixture until everything is combined. Use the dough hook for this. Cover the bowl and let the mixture rise for 5 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients and knead slowly for 2 minutes. Use a dough scraper to remove the mixture from the edge of the bowl and then let it knead quickly for another 5-7 minutes. Cover the bowl with a slightly damp cloth and let it rest for 10 minutes.
Step 2: Making the nut filling
Roast the ground nuts and almonds a little in a pan. Add milk, sugar, vanilla sugar, cinnamon, lemon zest and rum and simmer for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and place in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator to cool.
Step 3: Yeast dough II
Take the dough out of the bowl, work it by hand on the floured work surface for about 2 minutes and let it rest, covered, for another 10 minutes. Now divide the dough into 4 equal portions and briefly round each part so that the surface is nice and taut and smooth. Let the dough balls relax for another 5 minutes.
Now work the 4 dough balls alternately: Flatten one ball, fold it in twice to create tension in the dough, and carefully roll it from the inside out towards the ends into a 20 cm long strand – making sure that no air bubbles form ! Let this strand rest.
Roll out the second ball into a strand approx. 20 cm long and set it aside to rest. Do the same with balls 3 and 4. Bring the first 20 cm long strand back to a length of approx. 35 cm by rolling it out from the inside out, then put it aside to rest. Do the same with strands 2, 3 and 4.
Now bring the first 35 cm long strand back to a length of 45 cm by rolling it out from the inside out, then put it aside to rest. Do the same with strands 2, 3 and 4.
Using a thin rolling pin, carefully flatten the strands to a width of approx. 5 cm and make a small, elongated depression or groove for the filling. Fill the center of this cavity with the nut mixture. Make sure that the edge of the dough stays clean. Brush the edge with egg white (serves as glue) and surround the nut mixture with the dough and stick it together. Be careful, it takes a moment before the egg white sticks.
Place the 4 strands next to each other on the work surface, making sure that the “seams” point downwards onto the surface and are not visible, otherwise the filling will burst out later when baking. Then connect the 4 strands together at the top (A) and braid as follows:
Only run one strand at a time – and always from right to left: So place the fourth strand over the third strand, pass it under the second strand and lay it over the first strand. (B)
The formerly third strand has now become the fourth strand – with it the new round of braiding begins: from the right the four over the three under the two over the one. (C) Once the braid is braided, connect the ends at the bottom and “hide” them in the braid. Shape the braid slightly by hand.
Step 4: Bake the plait
Place the braid on a tray lined with baking paper, cover with a damp cloth and let rise in the oven at 50 °C (top/bottom heat) for another 20 minutes. Take the braid out of the oven. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C (top/bottom heat). Separate an egg, mix the egg yolk and milk and brush the braid with it. Place the braid on the middle rack in the oven. Throw 3 ice cubes onto the bottom tray to create steam. Turn the oven down to 180°C and bake the braid for about 30 minutes until golden brown.
The whole recipe is available as a video guide here: