Gluten-Free Easter Brunch
An Easter brunch that agrees with you? Yes! And it has nothing to do with a family get-together that could end up in a screaming argument - quite the contrary. We're talking about a brunch with something for everyone, whether you're with the vegan, lactose-free or gluten-free tribe.
For the current issue of MAXIMA, I've created a very allergy-friendly Easter brunch. The biggest challenges were the gluten-free striezel (a type of stollen) and the sweet Easter bunny.
Classically, the striezel has quite a fibrous consistency and therefore requires flour with a high gluten-content - this makes the creation of a gluten-free version a little tricky.
Striezel is made of a yeasty dough and contains butter, egg, milk and, if you're making the traditional Swiss plait, the so-called Zopfmehl or "plait flour", a mixture of white flour and spelt, which considerably improves its structure.
I used a gluten-free flour and am extremely pleased with the result. This is best eaten fresh from the oven and topped with homemade, vegan chocolate spread (the recipe for which will be featured tomorrow) or, as tradition dictates, with butter and jam or honey.
And on Friday, I'll present the last recipe for your perfect Easter brunch - a delicious variety of egg muffins.
Photos (c) Julia Stix, Porcelaine: https://www.werkort.com/
Easter Bunny Plaits
1 plait
Ingredients:
- 100ml milk
- 30g butter
- 250g gluten-free flour (I use Brotmix B by Schär)*
- 50g sugar
- 1 egg (at room temperature)
- 1 egg yolk
- 8g yeast
- a little bit of lemon zest
- salt
- some rum and vanilla
- 1 egg for the glaze
- raisins
Preparation:
- Heat up the milk and melt the butter in it. Then set out a big bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and knead them until you have a smooth, springy dough - you'll get the best results with a food processor or mixer using the dough hooks. If your batter is too sticky, just add more flour.
- Let the dough sit for around 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C (upper/lower).
- Re-knead the dough, separate it into parts, roll out 7 strands and make 4 small balls. Braid 3 of the strands and roll the other 4 up to a volute (like a spiral). Press the 4 small dough balls into ovals and make some cuts into them for ears.
- Glaze the braid and all the other pieces with some egg, then put together the bunny's head and body. Use raisins as eyes. Bake for 30 minutes until golden.
gluten-free and nut-free
Prep time: 20 minutes + 30 minutes rest for the dough
Ready to serve in: 1 h 50 minutes
Info:
Gluten-free baking is a challenge, as gluten-free flour doesn't have the glue that gives bread its crispy, chewy consistency. Your best bet is to mix up several types of flour or buy a ready-made flour blend, like the one from Schär.
