Russian Monday: "Sushki" - Sweet Tea Bread, Baked Crunchy Round Snacks

I use to love these little tea breads when I was a child and I still love them today. I buy them often in Russian grocery store near us, but always had a desire to bake them myself. Sushki are slightly sweet crunchy round pastries/cookies which are served with tea or eaten as a snack. They look like mini bagels but they are very dry and crispy. They are fun to make, actually our whole family was making them - that is why our sushki look all different-)) It's ok, we had some good time. I like them with poppy seeds, but you can make them plain or top them with sesame seeds as well.
For more Russian recipes, visit the Russian Cuisine page.

Hope you had a very nice Easter weekend!


Illustration by Yelena Strokin



Makes: about 30 sushki

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups (300g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (110g) water
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp. sugar for the dough
• 1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
• 2 Tbsp. sugar for water (to cook)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, egg, water and salt into a firm dough. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and allow to rest for about 25 minutes. Cut the dough into small pieces (about 15 grams each), and roll them out into 5-6 inch strings. Make rings by putting the ends together.

In a large, heavy pot, bring 5 cups of water and the sugar to a boil. In batches, add the rings to the water and boil, turning, for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Place the boiled sushki rings on a baking sheet and sprinkle with poppy seeds or leave them plain. Bake sushki until they are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.