How to make
Heat the almond milk to 100°F (37°C) and dissolve the yeast in it along with a spoonful of sugar. Let it activate for a few minutes and add the oil, vanilla, finely grated lemon peel, flour, rum and salt.
Knead a soft and smooth dough, by gradually adding the remaining fat. Add more flour if necessary, but do not make the dough hard.
Kneading the Easter bread takes longer - a minimum of 10 minutes by hand or 6-7 minutes with a food processor. Due to the absence of eggs and butter here, the kneading process is extremely important and should not be shortened in order to get this Easter bread close to the real thing.
Let it rise for 40 minutes, then form it into two braids and put them into baking paper-lined tins (1 liter capacity each).
Let the Easter bread rise again and triple in size - this may take up to 1 hour.
When they are ready, moisten sugar with anise drink (ouzo, mastic or another alcohol, or water).
Spread the Easter bread with olive oil and sprinkle with the moist, aromatic sugar.
Bake at 340°F (170°C) until it acquires a nice golden brown color.
The egg-free Easter bread, which is in no way inferior to the normal one - it is very tasty and has the same authentic flavor! Only its color is whiter due to the absence of eggs.
Next time I would add to this egg and lactose free Easter bread some orange peel, grinded almost to a paste and it will color the dough.
Happy Holidays!
