How to make
Beat the eggs with the sugar very well to foam. Put the yeast to effervesce in the warm milk with a little sugar and flour. Sift the flour and add some of the milk mixture, then melted lard, the activated yeast, milk mixture again and keep alternating, while stirring with a spoon until thickened.
Start kneading with your hands until bubbles form, when that happens the dough is ready. It must not stick to the hands, so add flour until you've obtained a smooth, bubbly dough.
Hit it on the counter 30-40 times and place in a bowl, cover with foil. The area where the dough sits to rise needs to be about 80°F (25 °C) for it to rise well.
Once ready, divide it into several balls, depending on how large you want your cozonacs to be. Make each ball into a wick, then weave them 3 at a time to form a braid.
Wrap each braid into a spiral and place in a deep, oiled tray. Cover with foil and leave to rise again.
Once doubled in volume, smear with beaten together egg yolk, milk and oil. Sprinkle sugar generously and put to bake in a preheated 320°F (160 °C) oven.
