Pane Di Pasqua (Sourdough Easter Bread From Italy)

Sourdough bakers who love a rich, buttery loaf will be all over this Pane di Pasqua - a beautifully soft and fragrant Sourdough Easter Bread. This Italian Easter Bread recipe is made with an enriched dough, subtly spiced with star anise and brightened with lemon zest. Braided into a wreath and baked to golden perfection, it's the perfect centrepiece for your Easter table.

Jump to:

• Pane Di Pasqua: Italian Easter Tradition 
• Ingredient Notes
• Step-By-Step Method
• Serving Suggestions
• More Sourdough Easter Recipes
• Pane Di Pasqua (Sourdough Easter Bread From Italy)

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Pane Di Pasqua: Italian Easter Tradition 

At Easter time, Italian tables are filled with traditional bread, and Pane di Pasqua is one of the most popular. Translating to Easter Bread, this sweet bread made with enriched dough is often braided into a wreath and decorated with dyed eggs, symbolising new life and renewal. 

Baked in the days leading up to the Easter celebration, it's shared with family over long, leisurely meals-perfect for tearing apart and enjoying with coffee or dessert wine. 

While many modern versions rely on commercial yeast for a quick rise, our recipe stays true to slow fermentation, using no commercial yeast, just the natural power of sourdough for incredible flavour and texture.

Ingredient Notes

Here's everything you will need for this Braided Easter Sourdough Bread:

For Stiff Sourdough Starter

We use a stiff sourdough starter, at 60% hydration. To convert your 100% hydration starter, you will need: 

• 30g sourdough starter: 100% hydration. 
• 30ml water. 
• 60g flour: all-purpose flour or strong bread flour. 

Dough Ingredients

• 70 ml milk: we used full-fat dairy milk. 
• 4 star anise. 
• strong bread flour: with at least 12% protein content.
• 30 g caster sugar: or white granulated sugar. 
• 5 g salt. 
• 100g stiff sourdough starter: from earlier. 
• eggs: use large eggs (or ever extra large eggs in the UK). 
• zest of 1 large lemon: can be replaced with orange zest. You may also add some vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste to flavour the dough. 
• 100 g unsalted butter: softened. 
• egg or an egg yolk: for egg wash. 

Step-By-Step Method

This Sourdough Easter bread takes a little white to make. We prepare the stiff sourdough starter in the evening of day 1. The next day we mix the dough and bulk ferment, and finally on the 2, we shape, proof, bake and eat! 

Day 1: The Night Before

• Add water, unfed starter, and flour together and mix well until combined. Place into a bowl and leave to rise for 8-9 hours (overnight) until doubled in size. This will make 120g of levain, but only 100g will be used in the recipe (extra levain is allowed for the amount that sticks to the bowls, jars, spoons, etc).

Day 2

• Break up the star anise into small pieces and place them in a small saucepan. Pour the milk over and heat over low heat until it starts to bubble around the edges. Take the milk off the heat and leave it to cool down to room temperature, then strain it through a fine sieve and discard the star anise solids.

• In a bowl of a stand mixer, combine the strong flour, lemon zest, sugar and salt. Pinch pieces of the stiff sourdough starter and scatter the bits across the flour. Add the eggs and infused milk.

• Run your stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook attachment, for 5-6 minutes, until the ingredients are well combined and you have a cohesive dough. 
• Cut your room temperature butter into small cubes. With the mixer running, keep adding one cube of butter at a time and carry on until butter is fully incorporated and the dough looks soft, elastic and glossy. This will take about 10 minutes.

• Grease a large bowl with some butter or oil and scoop the sourdough into it. Cover with a tea towel or cling film in a warm spot for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, coil fold the sourdough, and leave it for another 30 minutes. Then perform another set of coil folds. Coil folds will help develop a stronger gluten structure. 
• Cover the dough again and let it rise undisturbed for 3-4 hours, depending on the temperature of your kitchen. The dough should just about double in volume at the end of the bulk fermentation process, so allow extra time if it's a little slower to rise. 

• Once doubled, place the dough in the fridge overnight.

Day 3

• Line a roasting tray (or a large baking sheet) with parchment paper. Using a tray with high rims allows you to cover the dough for the second proof without the cling film touching the surface of the dough.
• Scoop the chilled sourdough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide it into 3 even pieces (approx 215g each).
• Roll each piece of dough into a long (45-50cm) rope by rolling the dough with the palms of your hands to create tension against the work surface.

• Pinch all three ropes at one end, then braid the ropes. Pull the braid to make it a little longer if needed. Then tuck one end under the other to create a wreath (make sure to leave at least 10cm gap in the middle of the wreath, otherwise it will close up after the second rise and making).
• Transfer the dough braid into your baking sheet/ tray, and cover it well. If yaou're using a baking sheet (without rims), cover the dough with a lightly oiled cling film (plastic wrap), otherwise, just cover the top of the roasting tray with a damp tea towel or cling film, so that it doesn't touch the top of the dough.

• Leave the sourdough to rise for 3-4 hours in a warm place until it bulks up by about 50%.
• Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Whilst pre-heating, lightly whisk your egg. Gently brush the top of your braided wreath with the egg wash.

• Bake in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Let it cool for at least 15 minutes before pulling it apart. If you wish to slice it, cool it completely.
• Whilst traditional Italian Pane di Pasqua is baked with a hard-boiled egg pressed into the dough, we simply place an egg in the middle at the end. enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

The traditional Italian way to enjoy Easter sweet bread is simple-tear off a piece and eat it as is, preferably with a good espresso. At an Easter brunch, it's often served with butter, jam, or even a drizzle of honey for extra indulgence. 

If you've got leftovers going a little stale, don't let them go to waste! There are different ways to bring them back to life-slice and toast for a crunchy treat, or turn it into incredible bread pudding or French toast. Either way, it's a great way to make the most of every last bite.

More Sourdough Easter Recipes

Looking for more festive bread ideas? Try baking a batch of sourdough hot cross buns (or sourdough chocolate hot cross buns), or try our Sourdough Easter Bread from Ukraine (Sourdough Paska). Explore other delicious Easter treats made with wild yeast below: