Tsoureki any day of the week, even if your Yiayia didn't make it!

Tsoureki

Always wondered about King's Hawaiian Original Hawaiian Sweet Bread, as it silently called to me from countless grocery bread racks over the years. Recently, I had a chance to try it, and my worst fears were confirmed: I can easily toast some of that bread and think I am eating "Greek Toast" made with tsoureki bread any day of the week! 

Tsoureki, of course, is the braided sweet bread made with eggs, milk and butter, usually by your Yiayia twice a year. It is traditionally served on Easter with a red hard-boiled egg or 2 or 3 planted on top, or on New Year's Day as a "Vassilopita" with a lucky coin in it. I always look forward to toasting leftover tsoureki for breakfast and eating it with feta cheese. It could easily become addictive.

The rest of the year there is usually no tsoureki and thus no "Greek Toast" -- unless there is a Greek bakery in town, you bake it yourself, or your are able to score a Jewish challah bread. But there is always King's Hawaiian Original Sweet Bread -- which comes in dinner rolls and sandwich rolls, as well as a large round bread and sliced bread. If you are on a budget (or prefer not to pig out), the small package of 4 dinner rolls will do just fine; I cut that square loaf into six neat slices. When toasting it, I savored the unmistakable scent of tsoureki. And even though it wasn't quite up to Yiayia standards, it was close enough...Voila, "Greek Toast!"

"Greek Toast"

Tried it immediately with feta cheese, of course -- and, yes, real Greeks do eat olives for breakfast...Also tried it with orange marmalade and, for good measure, I slathered a slice with "Bees Knees" peanut butter w/honey. If I had some tzatziki handy, I would have tried that, too. Indeed, King's Hawaiian Sweet Bread Sandwich Rolls would probably make for fabulous gyro sandwiches rather than the usual (now kinda boring) pita bread. But for now, let's just keep it simple: King's Hawaiian Original Sweet Bread = (for better or worse) tsoureki any day of the week.

NOTE: DO NOT try this at home during Easter or New Year's!