Directions

1. Weigh your flour in a large mixing bowl. Tare the scale and weigh your water. Weighing ingredients helps insure accuracy.

2. Add the remaining dough ingredients to the mixing bowl. Mix and knead until a smooth bread dough is formed. If you find your dough is still too sticky, add a small amount of flour until a smooth, soft dough is formed.

3. Place the dough into an oiled bowl and turn once to coat with oil. Cover and let rise for 2 hours, or until nearly doubled.

4. Transfer to a lightly greased work surface and deflate.

5. Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Roll into ropes about 20’’ long. Below is a video that demonstrates how to make a 4 strand braid (you can choose a different number of strands to braid if you find a different braid you would like to try).

6. Once braided, tuck both ends under the braid and transfer the dough to a parchment lined baking sheet.

7. Brush with a little oil and cover with plastic wrap and proof until it has doubled in size (about one hour).

8. When your dough is almost doubled, preheat the oven to 375F

9. Mix up the egg wash and brush over the top of the loaf.

10. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the internal temp is 190F. Allow to cool on a cooling rack. Enjoy!