First published April 5, 2014. Last updated February 18, 2023 for better instructions and page speed.
Table of Contents
This Italian Easter bread is my kind of tradition—pretty enough for the brunch table, tasty enough to steal the spotlight, and flexible enough to rise overnight while I sleep in. It’s a lightly sweet, rich, buttery dough with hints of vanilla and lime, braided into a showstopper and baked to golden perfection. I dust mine with powdered sugar because it feels fancy without the effort—just like me. Perfect for Easter Sunday, Fourth of July, or honestly any day that calls for carbs and compliments. And hey, if you're short on time, those easy Easter sweet rolls with crescent dough have saved my bunny tail more than once.
🔪How to form the Easter bread braids
📖 Recipe
Italian Easter Bread
Print Pin Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup water, 110F
- 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided use - you may need a little more or less.
- ¾ cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 9 eggs, divided use
- 1 egg white
- 1 tablespoon lime zest
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 egg yolk, beaten
- 2 tablespoons sprinkles or nonpareils, optional
Instructions
- Dye 6 raw eggs and set aside to dry.
- Mix yeast, 2 tablespoons of sugar, water, and 1 ½ cups flour until smooth.
- Set aside until sponge has doubled, about 1 hour.
- Cream the butter, 1 cup of sugar, and salt together in a bowl.
- Stir in the lime zest, juice, and vanilla.
- Add 3 of the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add the egg white and mix well.
- Stir in the yeast mixture and add the remaining flour until a smooth dough forms and pulls away from the bowl.
- Knead with a dough hook for 5 minutes by machine or 10 minutes by hand on a lightly floured surface. Don't use too much flour - you want a soft dough.
- Oil the dough and place it in a greased bowl. Cover with a warm, damp towel and let rise about 1 hour, or until double.
- Deflate gently and divide dough into 4 pieces.
- Let rest for 5 minutes.
- Roll each piece into a rope about 18 inches long.
- Lay 2 ropes next to each other.
- Loosely braid (or twist) them together, making sure you can separate the strands to put the 3 of the dyed (raw) eggs in.
- Seal the ends together to make a ring. Think of the shape of a wreath.
- Separate the ropes to fit the eggs into the braid.
- Repeat with the other two ropes, adding the remaining dyed eggs.
- Place on a large baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
- Let rise until double, about 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Bake the loaves in a preheated oven for 10 minutes.
- Beat the egg yolk and cream (egg wash).
- Remove the bread from the oven. Brush the egg wash mixture on to the Easter Bread.
- Decorate with sprinkles.
- Return to the oven and continue to bake until the loaves sound hollow when tapped, about 30 to 40 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
- Dust cooled loaf with powdered sugar.
Notes
- If you bake Italian Easter egg bread the night before serving you'll need to refrigerate it because of the eggs. It's better to shape it and let it rise in the refrigerator overnight and bake it in the morning
- Be sure to use raw eggs - they'll cook in the oven. Some people have said that the eggs were just soft boiled after baking but this has never happened to me.
- Make sure ALL your ingredients are at room temperature or slightly warm to the touch.
- If you do plan to let it rise in the refrigerator add about ⅛ teaspoon extra yeast.
- Use organic eggs for richer color. The yolks in the eggs I used were very deep yellow so the bread has a rich look to it that I like. If your eggs have light yolks you can add a few drops of yellow food coloring to give the bread the same color.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
🥫 Storage
This delicious breakfast bread is best served the day it's made.
Once baked the Italian Easter bread can be stored at room temperature for a day or two IF the eggs are removed. Otherwise you'll want to store it in the refrigerator.
You can freeze it after baking - if you remove the eggs first.
📖 Variations
- You can add anise seed in with the flour.
- Some people prefer lemon or orange zest.
- Make the wreaths in small, individual sizes with just one egg in the middle.
- ¼ teaspoon of almond extract along with the vanilla is delicious.
- You can add raisins if you like them. I'd soak them in some hot water for a few minutes to plump them up.
💭 Things to know
This is a pretty simple sweet bread to make but here are a few tips I've found helpful. Read this post if you want to learn how to make the kool-aid dyed eggs shown here.
Expert Tip: If you bake Italian Easter egg bread the night before serving you'll need to refrigerate it because of the eggs. It's better to shape it and let it rise in the refrigerator overnight and bake it in the morning.
- Test the water anytime you use yeast - it should be right around 110F.
- Make sure ALL of your ingredients are at room temperature or slightly warm to the touch.
- For best rising let it rise in a warm place. If your kitchen is cold it may take longer than the suggested rising times.
- You can put Easter egg bread together the night before and let it rise overnight in the refrigerator.
- If you do plan to let it rise in the refrigerator add about ⅛ teaspoon extra yeast.
- Use raw, white eggs - they cook in the oven with the bread and white eggs dye better than brown.
👩🍳 FAQs
Sure! Just add the same amount and follow the instructions. It's likely to rise faster so keep an eye on it.
Just lay a piece of aluminum foil over the bread. The foil will keep it from browning any more.
📚 Related recipes
This buttery Italian Easter Bread is so pretty! It makes a great centerpiece!
- Easter Bunny Sweet Rolls - Cute, orange sweet rolls shaped like bunnies and glazed with a sticky glaze will make the kids' eyes sparkle! They're so cute!
- White Chocolate Hot Cross Buns - No raisins or dried fruit! This traditional Easter brunch is updated with white chocolate in place of dried fruit.
- Easter Dessert Ideas - If you're not sure what you want you definitely need to check this out. Over 60 possibilities - you'll definitely find something here!
- Chocolate Babka - Buttery, flaky dough is swirled with chocolate.
🍽️ Serve with...
- Crockpot breakfast casserole is for more than just Christmas! It's so good and so easy to make! Just set the
slow cooker the night before and forget it! - Yogurt parfaits are usually pretty popular with the kids!
- Try this easy twist on eggs benedict! I do them Texas style!
- Care for a sparkly cocktail? This gorgeous Tiffany Blue Sparkler is perfect!
This bread doesn't last long around our house.
It's buttery, sweet, soft, and I love it with some homemade strawberry butter or strawberry cream cheese
✍🏻 A note from Marye...
We weren't really a church-going family but we usually went on Easter. Back in the 60s it wasn't just a matter of throwing on some clothes and going, either.
Nope, back then you had layers. A dress with a crisp, scratchy petticoat underneath to hold it out just so. White, lacy socks, white patent leather shoes, white gloves, white purse, little hat, coordinating jacket...
For a tomboy like me (because despite the hours my mom took creating a head full of Shirley Temple style finger curls I was a tomboy to my core) it was hell.
Once dressed we drove to attend service at a very, very, very old church that smelled like polished wood, funeral flowers, and old lady perfume. It was a five day drive and my dad did not believe in bathroom breaks.
OK. A 20 minute drive that seemed like forever.
What does this have to do with my gorgeous Easter Bread?
Not a thing. I am pretty sure I had Cap'n Crunch and a white chocolate bunny for breakfast most Easter Sundays. My mom was not a woman that enjoyed cooking.
She was, however, an avid nature lover and she painstakingly looked for and found robins' nests so that I could peek at the eggs.
Alison says
Where is the total amount of flour? It says 1 1/2 for the yeast & sugar mix, but I do t see a second amount, just "add remaining flour!"
Marye says
Sorry Alison - it was an oversight on my part. The total amount of flour should be 4 1/2 cups. You may need a bit more or less.
Cathy Sinisi says
Hi my name is Cathy Sinisi, I used to make an Easter Bread, for Easter. Called Embena! It seams like alot to do. But when you make ad often as I have it DOESN'T steam like it. It's been handed down through the years. It's smells so GOOD.
Marye says
It is delicious!
ServicefromHeart says
Thanks Marya! I immediately fall in love with your gorgeous Easter Egg Bread. A perfect Easter gift idea for our loved ones!
Tami Von Zalez says
So appropriate for the upcoming Easter festivities!
I put you on my Feedly from the theme reveal. Enjoying your posts.