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Koulouraki is a Greek pastry served during Easter, made with butter, eggs, sugar, and flour. The dough is twisted, braided, or rolled, coated with egg wash, and dusted with sesame seeds before baking. It can be served with tea or coffee or as a snack throughout the day.
Koulouraki is a type of Greek pastry that is light, slightly sweet and usually served during the Easter holidays. The main ingredients are butter, eggs, sugar and flour, although flavorings such as cloves, ouzo, nutmeg or vanilla are sometimes added. The shape of koulourakia distinguishes them from similar pastries, because the dough is often twisted, braided, or rolled. The pastry surface is treated with egg wash to help it brown and dusted with sesame seeds. Sweets are often eaten with tea or coffee or served as a snack throughout the day.
The basic, traditional koulouraki dough begins with butter and sugar which are mixed together until they have formed a smooth mixture, a process called buttercream. Eggs are fully incorporated into the mixture. If additional liquid ingredients such as vanilla, Ouzo or cream are used, they are also added to the wet mixture.
The dry ingredients for the koulourakia are sieved together. This is usually flour, baking soda and a small amount of salt. The dry ingredients are added to the wet ingredients and the entire mixture is mixed until the dough is thick but not overly sticky to the touch. At this point, you can add any flavoring, such as mahlep, which is made with cherry stones or ground almonds.
There are several ways to implement koulourakia. The most common way is to form a single rope-like length of dough, bring the two ends together, and twist it once or twice until the dough presses gently against itself. Another way is to take a single length of dough and form it into a spiral shape. Other forms of koulourakia include braids made up of two or three separate pieces of dough, letters from the Greek alphabet, and even the shape of a hand.
The shaped dough is coated in an egg wash before being placed in an oven to bake. The wash, consisting only of egg and water, is brushed onto the surface of the raw dough. While cooking, the egg wash will help create a browned, shiny surface on the pasta. If sesame seeds are sprinkled on top of the koulourakia before they’re baked, the egg wash also helps keep the seeds in place as the dough rises in the oven. Once ready, the koulourakia are placed in an oven and cooked until slightly puffed and browned on the surface, after which they can be served immediately or stored in an airtight container for later use.
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