Cozonac with cinnamon and butter

Name: Cozonac with cinnamon and butter
Ingredients: 500 g flour; 250 ml milk; 25 g fresh yeast; 4 egg yolks; 5 tablespoons sugar; 1 teaspoon salt; grated zest of 1 lemon; grated zest of 1 orange; 2 tablespoons oil; 100 g Rama liquid butter; 1 tablespoon cinnamon; 100 g sugar; 1 teaspoon oil; 1 egg

Dessert - Cozonac with cinnamon and butter by Loredana D. - Recipia

Cozonac with cinnamon and butter, a Romanian sweet bread, is baked in a round pan, with soft slices and a browned spiral, like little snails arranged side by side. The yeasted dough is rolled up with butter, sugar and cinnamon, then the pieces bake together until their edges turn golden. I aim for the dough to stay soft and supple, not to tighten around my fingers. Prep: 30 minutes. Cook: 35 minutes. Rest: 60 minutes. Total time: 125 minutes. Servings: 10. Approximately 390 kcal and 8 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

For the dough

500 g flour
250 ml milk
25 g fresh yeast
4 egg yolks
5 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
grated zest of 1 lemon
grated zest of 1 orange
2 tablespoons oil

For the filling

100 g Rama liquid butter
1 tablespoon cinnamon
100 g sugar

For the pan

1 teaspoon oil

For brushing

1 egg

Preparation

1. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk. 2. Sift the flour into a bowl and make a well in the middle. Beat the egg yolks with the salt and 5 tablespoons of sugar, then add them to the flour along with the grated lemon and orange zest and the milk with the yeast. Start kneading. 3. Add the 2 tablespoons of oil and knead for about 10 minutes. The dough should be soft, but not stick to your hands. 4. Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rise for at least 60 minutes, until visibly puffed up. 5. Roll the dough out into a long rectangle. Spread the Rama liquid butter all over, sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar, then roll it up and cut into slices about 2 cm thick. 6. Grease a 26 cm round pan with a teaspoon of oil and dust with a little flour. Arrange the slices in the pan and brush them with the beaten egg. 7. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 35 minutes, until browned.

Notes

The milk should be lukewarm, not hot. Finely grate the citrus zest and stop before you reach the white pith, which can make the dough bitter. When rolling out the dough, use flour on the work surface sparingly so you don't work too much into the dough. A serrated knife cuts the roll without squashing the slices. In a cold kitchen, the dough rises more slowly; I leave it to rise well before the meal and check how much it has puffed up, not just the clock. The slices look like cinnamon rolls arranged in a pan, but the dough is still cozonac dough. Contains gluten, milk and eggs. Keep it well covered in the fridge and eat within 3 days. I serve it with tea, cut into thick slices.