Easter Bread With Cream Cheese Filling

Holidays deserve a special treat. This buttery, Plaited Easter Bread with Cream Cheese Filling was the perfect holiday indulgence for my family!

Ingredients

Dough:

• ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons lukewarm water
• 2 ¼ teaspoons dry active yeast (1 packet)
• 2 ¼ teaspoons salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Egg wash:

• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water

Filling:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Icing:

• Powdered sugar, butter, milk and vanilla to make icing

Instructions

1. Mix the yeast, salt, eggs, honey, and melted butter with the water in the bowl of your stand mixer.
2. Mix in the flour with a dough hook attachment until it is all incorporated.
3. Cover the dough with a cloth and allow it to rest at room temperature for approximately 2 hours.
4. The dough can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (after that, freeze).
5. When ready to bake, line the baking sheet with parchment and dust the dough with flour.
6. Roll half of the dough into a rectangle 8 inches by approximately 12 inches. Return the other half of the dough to a covered container in the refrigerator for later use.
7. Cut slits along both longer sides towards the middle at about 1 ½-inch increments…leaving a strip of uncut dough about 3 inches wide, down the middle of the rectangle.
8. See photo. I cut out and removed a little extra dough on both ends for easier braiding, but that’s optional.
9. Mix cream cheese, sugar, butter, and lemon juice till smooth. Spread down the middle of the dough, then plait (braid) the strips by crossing one over the other at a slight angle, to cover the filling.
10. Cover with a dishcloth and let rest for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Add more time if your dough is cold.
11. Preheat the oven to 350º. Brush the loaf with egg wash.
12. Bake on the center rack of the oven for about 30 minutes. Cool and ice as desired with a mixture of powdered sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla.