Get to know Armenian Easter Bread, or Choereg, a beautiful and delicious braided bread traditionally perfumed with mahleb and anise. Intrigued? Read on!
Looking for more Easter bread from around the world? I’ve got you covered.
For ease of browsing, here are all of my yeasted sweet breads.
Note that I made this bread for my friend’s communion service. If you are interested in more of my communion breads, see my milk and honey loaf and my champagne yeast pita. Yes, we schemed up a lot of interesting breads for her congregation!
Enriched Dough for Celebration Breads
Like many other celebration breads, this Armenian sweet bread is made from an enriched dough. (Note that it is very similar to the Greek Tsoureki.)
When I say “enriched dough,” I just mean that along with the standard flour, salt, yeast, and water that make up a basic bread, the dough is enriched with eggs, sugar, and fat to bake up into a softer, richer bread.
For other examples of enriched dough, look at these recipes:
- Chocolate Babka is not only enriched with sugar, butter, and eggs, it also has a wonderful chocolate pecan filling. So rich and so good, especially toasted.
- Apple Butter Yeasted Coffee Cake uses an enriched sweet dough rolled up around an apple butter filling and then topped with streusel. Yes!
- Cornish Saffron Easter Bread an sweet, enriched Easter bread using the Tangzhong method.
What sets this braided loaf apart is its subtle flavoring of mahleb and anise.
What is Mahleb (and Where Can I Get Some?)
Mahleb is a powdered spice made from the seeds of the St. Lucie cherry tree, a type of cherry native to Iran. Sometimes it’s referred to as mahlep or mahaleb. It’s all the same stuff though.
Mahleb lends a subtle perfume and fruitiness to breads and pastry. The flavor is described as a mix of almond and cherry, although I find it also has floral notes that make it more complex.
If you’ve never had it before, and I had not, you’ll wonder why your bread tastes so good. And once you know it’s because of the mahleb, you’ll want to put it in all the things.
Mahleb, Anise, and Fennel, Oh My!
Armenian Easter bread is similar to Greek tsoureki and Turkish coregi (a rose by any other name, as far as I can tell). The recipe I followed as a guide for my choereg called for both mahleb and anise.
I’m not a super fan of anise, so I never have it in the house. I did have ground fennel though, because I like to add that to Italian dishes when my Italian herb blend doesn’t contain fennel. At any rate, it’s what I had, so I went with it.
Yes, I realize that fennel and anise have a similar flavor. I’m sorry, anise. Maybe it’s all in my head.
The combination of the mahleb and fennel is lovely. The cherry/almond/floral notes of the mahleb and the bright, sweet, licorice notes of the fennel blend beautifully.
The resulting dough and eventual bread looks a bit plain but is aromatic and flavorful. It will leave you a)wondering why it tastes so good, and b)wanting more.
Choereg Baking Notes
To Reduce Rise Time
This bread is very sweet and contains a fair amount of butter. Because of its richness, it takes a long time to rise. As in a 4-hour initial rise. And that was in the cozy microwave with a steaming mug of water for company.
If you would like to shorten up the rising time, you can add a bit more yeast.
I used 2 teaspoons, but you can use a tablespoon to nudge things along. Also consider cutting back on the sugar just a bit–from the 1/2 + cup called for to maybe 1/3 cup.
As is, the bread was completely worth making, and I’m having some trouble resisting it. Still, if a super long rise doesn’t fit into your life, those couple of changes should reduce the rise time substantially.
What To Expect When Handling the Dough
The dough for Armenian Easter bread is very soft and sticky. I wasn’t sure it would behave itself enough for me to roll it out, but the long rise helped reinforce the gluten structure, and it turned out to be very supple.
Just know it will be a soft dough and try to resist the urge to add a bunch of extra flour.
Expect a more cakey and less bready end result. Think brioche rather than baguette.
Reader Review
Reader Ali made this bread, and here is what she said about it:
It was amazing! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Ali D.
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A Note About Measurements
NOTE: Most of my recipes are written by weight and not volume, even the liquids.
Even though I try to provide you with volume measurements as well, I encourage you to buy a kitchen scale for ease of measuring, accuracy, and consistency.
This is the scale I use, love, and recommend. If you’re unsure, please read my post about how to use a food scale.
Don't let its small price and small size fool you. The Escali Primo is an accurate and easy-to-use food scale that I have used for years. It's easy to store, easy to use, has a tare function, and easily switches between grams and ounces/pounds for accurate measurements.
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Armenian Easter Bread
This Armenian Easter Bread, or choereg, is made from a sweet, enriched dough perfumed with mahleb and fennel. It will be a sweet addition to your Easter brunch.
Ingredients
Proofing
- 1/4 cup tepid water
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons dried yeast, (up to 1 Tablespoon. See notes)
For the Dough
- The yeast mixture
- 19.5 oz (by weight--about 4 1/2 cups) all purpose flour (King Arthur preferred)
- 6 oz (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 4 oz (1/2 cup) whole milk
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- scant 2/3 cup granulated sugar, (use 1/3-1/2 cup for a less sweet bread)
- 1 Tablespoon freshly ground mahleb, (I blitzed mine in the blender. You can also use a spice grinder or mortar and pestle)
- 2 teaspoons ground fennel, (or anise)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
To Finish and Bake
- 1 egg white
- 1 teaspoon water
- 1 Tablespoon (more or less) sesame seeds
Instructions
To Proof
- Combine the water, sugar and yeast and stir to combine.
- Let sit for 10-15 minutes until nice and bubbly.
For the Dough
- Warm the butter and milk together until the butter is melted. Let cool to warm.
- Pour the proofed yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer followed by the flour, the milk mixture, the eggs, sugar, spices and salt.
- Fit your mixer with the paddle attachment and bring the dough together on low speed. Increase speed to medium and knead for about 10 minutes. The dough will be soft and will clear the sides of the bowl to only about halfway down. That's okay.
- When the dough is ready, it will be shiny, smooth, soft, and stretchy.
- Spray the top with pan spray, cover with a lint-free towel, and let rise in a cozy place until doubled. This could take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours, depending on whether you use more or less sugar and/or more or less yeast. See Notes.
- Once the dough has doubled, scrape it out onto a clean, smooth work surface, and gently press out the gases.
- Weigh your dough and divide by 9. If you don't have a scale, I implore you to get one. If you don't want to be so exact, divide the dough into thirds and then divide each third into three pieces.
- Press each of three pieces of dough into a rectangle and then roll up into a tight sausage. Roll out each into a rope about 12" long. Pinch the three ropes together at one end and braid fairly tightly. Pinch the dough together when you reach the other end. Tuck each end under the braid for a nice, polished presentation.
- Form two more braids in the same way.
- Place on a parchment-lined baking tray about 2-3 inches apart. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise i a cozy place until puffy, about 45 minutes.
- While the dough is rising, set a rack in the center of your oven. If you have one, place a baking stone on the rack. Otherwise, don't worry about it.
- Heat the oven to 350F.
To Finish and Bake
- Whisk together the egg white and water.
- Gently brush a thin layer evenly onto each braid. Sprinkle sesame seeds on each braid.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes until lightly golden brown. The internal temperature of the bread should be 200F.
- Remove to a rack to cool completely. Rewarm to serve or serve at room temperature. Butter and jam would not be unwelcome.
- Enjoy!
Notes
You can speed the rise by using an extra 1 teaspoon of yeast and by decreasing the sugar by up to half.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 20 Serving Size 1/20Amount Per Serving Calories 157Total Fat 2gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 29mgSodium 229mgCarbohydrates 31gFiber 1gSugar 9gProtein 5g
The stated nutritional information is provided as a courtesy. It is calculated through third party software and is intended as a guideline only.
And there you have it. Sweet, aromatic braided Easter bread.
Thanks for spending some time with me today. Take care, and have a lovely day.
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Betsy @ Desserts Required says
This looks amazing! Who knew adding new flavors would be so fabulous? Sharing on Desserts Required’s FB page manana. <3
Jennifer Field says
That mahleb is so delicious–you need to try it in the next challah you make! And thank you for sharing, my friend. <3
Alanna Kellogg says
So glad you enjoyed the Easter bread! And yes, you’re right — it’s definitely cake-y, like a Finnish pulla or a brioche. Maybe that’s why I like it so much too …
Jennifer Field says
I really love it, Alanna, and my friend’s congregation truly enjoyed it as part of their Communion Celebration on Sunday. 🙂 I’m so glad I found your blog and recipe. I’ll certainly be making this again!
Francine says
Hi Jenny
I loved the Choereg recipe, thank you. Just a quick note that the instructions do not include mention of incorporating the sugar (missing).
Jennifer Field says
Yikes! Good call, Francine–I will fix that asap. I’m glad you enjoyed the bread. Have a wonderful Easter and stay safe.
Linda says
My mother is 100% Armenian and me to
Your recipe is the same only we use one can evaporated milk which somehow makes it more tasty but other wise the same I use 4 to 5 eggs as my mother did so we do like my mother
It is my favorites I can eat one every day with Armenian string cheese, I omit the seeds because I can’t have them but put them in there for company and for friends your recipe is perfict also my daughter makes perfect choreg she lightened it up less fat and you never know it very lie and delicious she has her site
The Righteous Kitchen try it you will love it
Thank you making yours today my cousins is the best I have tried all her dishes are 100% beautiful tasty as my daughter ❤
Jennifer Field says
There is somrthing so More-ish about Choereg. Such a wonderful delicate flavor. Thank you for sharing your and your daughter’s variations with me!
Leisa says
I spent an entire weekend creating my grandmother’s Easter bread recipe. No anise. After several batches that were “almost there”, I remembered her evaporated milk cans. Once I used that, it was nailed. Thank you for sharing what your family did. My grandmother had NO written recipes, or if they were they are in Armenian.
My Nana would put sprinkles, M&M’s and gumdrops are the bread. She made this bread at Christmas and Easter. And this bread enjoyed with eggnog is a joyful experience for the mouth!
Jennifer Field says
Oh I’ll have to try with evaporated milk. I bet that brings a bit of caramelized sweetness to the dough! I love you were able to recreate her recipe. That is very special. ❤️