Tsoureki is a traditional sweet, spongy holiday bread that has various names around the world.
The name derives from the Turkish word corek and means any type of bread made with dough containing yeast. In Greece, tsoureki is made with flour, milk butter and sugar, and is commonly seasoned with orange zest, mastic resin or mahlab. It is associated with local customs and acquires a unique meaning for Greeks on Easter Sunday’s meal. Thus it also is known as “Easter bread”.
The bread’s shape can vary. It may be a braided or round shaped loaf or a roll. The traditional recipe from Istanbul has the aromas of sweet mahlab and mastic.
