Vegan Traditional Tsoureki
This vegan variation for "Tsoureki", is an amazing chance for you to enjoy its amazing taste and smell, while still avoiding animal products during Lent or in general.
The spices and orange are the strongest assets of this recipe which will most definitely impress you.
Its definitely a recipe that needs you to devote time. However is a really interesting idea for looking for a DIY Food Gift that you will definitely will not regret.
- 600 grams Flour (strong enough for your tsoureki)
- 80 grams Yeast (Fresh or 3 packs dry)
- 1/2 cups Water (or plant based milk in room temperature)
- 1 cup Sugar (powdered)
- 140 grams Olive Oil (light weight)
- 1/4 Orange (the whole fruit unpeeled and well washed)
- 1 cup Orange (juice)
- 1 tablespoon Anise
- 1 Mahlepi (1 pack)
- 3 Mastic (specks)
- 2 Vanillas
- 1/4 cups Λάδι
- 3 tablespoons Πορτοκάλι (χυμό)
- 2 tablespoons Αμύγδαλο (φιλέ)
In a mixer put all your aromatic ingredients, the mahlepi, the vanilla, the anise, the mastic and blend them until they turn into a powder.
In a bowl mix the powdered sugar with the mixture you've created.
In a little pot put some room temperature together with the olive oil, the yeast, 1/4 of the orange, the orange juice and warm it slightly while stirring.
In a mixer put the warm wet mixture you've just created and mix together with the mix of spices and sugar until they are one.
Start kneading after pouring 1/3 of the flour and keep adding the rest slowly while the mixer is on.
Once a malleable dough forms that kind of sticks to your hands, remove from the mixture and put it in a deep bowl. Keep in mind that it will double, at least, in size while resting.
Cover it and let it rest in a warm place for at least an hour.
Once the dough doubles in size separate it in 2 or 3 pieces depending on how big you want your tsourekia to turn out.
Separate each ball in 3 and start braiding the strands together.
Place them on a pan, the surface drizzled with olive oil or cooking paper so that they don't stick.
Let them rest for at least half an hour. This will probably make the dough grow even more so make sure you leave enough space between them.
Once you see that they're almost at that size, pre-heat the oven at 160C degrees on the air setting.
Once the time to bake them comes, make a mixture of olive oil and orange juice and spread it on top.
Drizzle some crushed almonds on top if you want.
Bake it on the lower rack for about 40-45 minutes until they turn into this brown-golden color.
- You could enrich your recipe by using dark chocolate in three ways:
- Melt the chocolate and drizzle on top when it's ready.
- Add small pieces of chocolate in the dough while braiding it.
- Do all of the above.
- Other ingredients you could add would be marmalade, nuts and chestnuts or even dried fruit.
- Once I also tried it with olive oil and it was great, although the taste on mine was more intense since the oil was homemade and very aromatic.
- If you don't really mind about lent or avoid animal products in general, you could use any type of chocolate for your tsoureki or use it itself as a base for other deserts.
- If you have left overs you can toast it and eat it some other day.
- You could even wrap it in cooking membrane and save it in the freezer while its fresh for you to consume some other time.
