Little Lazarakia are traditional Lenten Greek Easter breads, made in Greece and Cyprus, eaten on Lazarus Saturday. They symbolise the resurrection of Lazarus and have the shape of a little man wrapped in a shroud, as Lazarus is depicted.
Here is our Lazarakia recipe by mygreekdish.com
The Lazarakia recipe:
Ingredients
For the “prozymi” (Mixture 1)
- 350g lukewarm water (12.3 oz.)
- 8g dry yeast (0.3 oz.)
- 10g sugar (0.35 oz.)
- 70g all purpose flour (2.5 oz.)
For the dough
- 635g all purpose flour (22 oz.)
- 90g sugar (3.2 oz.)
- 1/2 tsp ground clove
- 2 tsps ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp mahleb powder (optional)
- 50g olive oil (1.8 oz.)
- 25g vegetable oil (0.9 oz.)
- 1 tbsp sugar dissolved in 50g/ 2 oz. water for coating
- 40 whole cloves for the eyes
Instructions
- To prepare this Lazarakia bread recipe start by adding all the ingredients from the “mixture 1” into the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix to combine. Set aside for 10-15 minutes to allow the yeast to work.
- In a separate bowl add the flour, spices, salt and sugar and mix with a spoon to combine.
- Add this mixture in the stand mixers bowl along the yeast mixture from step 1. Pour in the olive oil and vegetable oil. Use a dough hook to knead the dough until smooth and not sticky for about 10 minutes.
- Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rise in a warm environment for about 1 hour, until it doubles its size.
- Gently deflate the dough with your hands and separate the dough in 20 balls. Shape each ball like shown in the pictures.
- Dissolve the sugar in the water and brush the top of the breads.
- Bake in preheated oven at 160-170C for about 20 minutes until golden and cooked through. Enjoy!
Source: mygreekdish.com
