Cooking with Toti
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Bulgarian Einkorn Pull-Apart Bread
Soft, fluffy einkorn bread baked as individual pieces that pull apart — best warm with yogurt and sirene.
Serves
12
Time
3 hr
Soft, fluffy, and slightly rustic, this homemade Bulgarian-style einkorn bread is made with fresh yeast and baked as individual pieces that pull apart beautifully. Einkorn flour behaves differently from regular white flour, so the dough will be softer and a little stickier — the key is to add the flour gradually and work by feel. In Bulgaria we love eating warm homemade bread with plain yogurt and Bulgarian feta cheese (sirene). It makes the simplest, most comforting meal.
Instructions
Activate the yeast
- 1
In a large bowl, combine the lukewarm milk, fresh yeast, honey, and 2 tbsp olive oil.
- 2
Stir gently and let it sit until the yeast becomes foamy and active.
Make the dough
- 1
Add the egg whites and salt to the activated yeast mixture.
- 2
Begin adding the einkorn flour gradually — do not add it all at once.
- 3
Mix until a soft dough forms. It will be softer and stickier than a traditional bread dough, and that’s completely normal.
- 4
Depending on the brand you may need around 7–9 cups, but use that only as a guide — add just enough to form a soft dough.
- 5
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise until doubled in size.
Shape the bread
- 1
After the first rise the dough may still feel sticky. Add a little more einkorn flour, little by little, only as needed to handle it.
- 2
Don’t add too much flour — you want the dough soft so the bread bakes up fluffy.
- 3
Divide the dough into individual portions and shape each one however you like. I form loose folded or looped shapes and arrange them close together in a parchment-lined baking dish.
- 4
The shapes do not need to be perfect.
Brush, top, and bake
- 1
Mix the 2 egg yolks, 2–3 tbsp plain yogurt, and a small drizzle of olive oil.
- 2
Brush the mixture generously over the shaped bread and sprinkle plenty of sesame seeds on top.
- 3
Bake until beautifully golden brown on top and fully baked through.
- 4
Let it cool slightly before pulling the pieces apart and serving.
Toti’s Tips
- ✓Add the einkorn flour gradually instead of pouring in all 7–9 cups at once. Einkorn drinks up water differently than regular flour, so the only way to know how much you need is to feel the dough as you go.
- ✓Einkorn dough stays softer and stickier than regular bread dough, and that is exactly what you want. If it feels a little tacky on your hands, it is right.
- ✓After the first rise, add extra flour only if you truly cannot shape the pieces. Every extra handful you add now turns into a drier, heavier loaf later.
- ✓Keep the dough soft. Too much flour is the single reason einkorn bread comes out dense instead of pillowy.
- ✓Set the shaped pieces close together in the pan so they rise into each other. That contact is what makes the bread pull apart in soft pieces instead of baking into separate rolls.
- ✓The egg yolk, yogurt and olive oil wash does more than color: the yolk browns, the yogurt keeps the crust tender, and the oil gives it shine.
- ✓Be generous with the sesame seeds while the wash is still wet, or they will not stick.
- ✓My favorite way to serve it: warm, with plain yogurt and Bulgarian feta cheese (sirene), the way we ate bread at home.
More photos
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