Moroccan · Bread
Festival Anise and Sesame Bread
A softly sweet, enriched bread scented with anise, fennel and sesame and brushed with egg for a glossy crust — the celebration loaf brought out for holidays and gatherings, close in spirit to krachel but shaped as a shareable round. Tender, fragrant and just sweet enough for morning tea.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 8
- Level
- Medium
Ingredients
- 450 g bread flour
- 60 g sugar
- 1 tsp salt, 7 g dried yeast
- 1 tbsp anise seeds and 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 60 g butter, melted, and 1 egg
- About 180 ml warm milk
- 1 egg yolk for glaze, sesame seeds to top
Method
- 1
Make an enriched dough
Mix the flour, sugar, salt, yeast and seeds, add the egg, melted butter and warm milk and knead 10 minutes to a soft, elastic dough.
- 2
Rise
Cover and rise about 1 hour 15 minutes until doubled — enriched doughs rise a little slower.
- 3
Shape
Shape into a round or plait, place on a lined tray and prove 40 minutes until puffy.
- 4
Glaze
Brush with beaten egg yolk and scatter generously with sesame seeds.
- 5
Bake
Bake at 190°C for 25–30 minutes until deep golden and glossy.
Chef's tips
- Warm milk, not hot, keeps the enriched dough soft without killing the yeast.
- The egg-yolk glaze gives that festive, bakery shine — brush it on evenly right before baking.
Frequently asked questions
How is it different from krachel?
Krachel are small individual sweet rolls; this is the same enriched, anise-scented dough baked as a larger shareable festival loaf.
Can I make rolls instead?
Yes — divide into small balls for individual buns and reduce the baking time to about 15 minutes.