Cookbook

1 teaspoon yeast
⅓ cup sugar
1 cup warm water
¼ cup melted butter
2 beaten eggs
¼ teaspoon sea salt
5 cups flour

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let sit for several minutes to proof yeast. Stir in melted butter, eggs, and salt. Gradually knead in flour, adding extra if necessary. The dough will be wet but firm. Leave in bowl, covered, and let rise until doubled. Punch down and let rise again.

Divide the dough into six equal pieces. Roll out each piece into a snake, about 2 centimeters in diameter. Take two snakes and twist them into a rope by forming a cross in the centre and winding the two pieces around each other. Place this rope in the bottom of a round buttered baking tin, touching at the ends to form a circle. 

With your four remaining snakes, form two more ropes in the same manner as the first. This time, lay the two ropes side by side and twist them together into a larger rope. Be sure to wind this rope in the opposite direction to how you did the smaller ropes. This is important for the braid to form properly. 

Take this braid and wind it in a circle in the centre of the rope in the pan. You should end up with a slight dome-shape to your loaf. Let the loaf rise for about 1/2 an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 ℉. Bake for 50 minutes. Remove hot loaf from pan to cool on rack. You can brush a little butter over the hot loaf for a softer crust.