Chouring

This sweet bread is delicious for breakfast, with coffee or a snack. We used to have it on New Year’s Day. Mum used to hide a coin inside the braid before baking it. On that morning, Mum cut the braid into slices & we have to pick one slice each. The person who got the slice with the coin was destined to have a good & prosperous year.

Ingredients:

3 cups Flour

½ cup Milk

¾ cup Sugar
1/3 cup Butter

2 Eggs

1 tsp dry Yeast( or 15g fresh Yeast)

1 tsp Miskeh / Mastic (pound the mastic into powder)

1 tsp Mahlab/ Mahleb


   Topping:
1 beaten egg
Sugar

Sesame Seeds

Habet Barakeh/ Black Sesame Seeds (optional)

Mix flour, milk, sugar, eggs, yeast, mastic & mahlab together till the dough is soft. Cover the bowl. Leave dough to rest for 2-3 hours in warm place. Punch down the dough and divide it into 2 or 3 portions ( for smaller braids) to create braids. Each portion, divided into 3 equal parts & roll each into ropes about 30cm long. Braid the 3 ropes to form a loaf. Now it is the time to insert a coin!

You can also make other shapes, roll the ropes into spiral like snail, or anything of your choice. Place the braid on a greased or parchement paper lined baking tray. Cover them, and allow rising in a warm place for 1hr. Preheat oven to gas mark 5 or 350F. Brush with beaten egg, sprinkle with sugar,  sesame seeds & habet barakeh. Bake in oven on medium heat for 20-30 min or until it is golden. Sahtein!