Cozonac

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Cozonac (in Romanian, IPA: [ko.zo'nak]; kozunak, Bulgarian: козунак) is a traditional Bulgarian and Romanian sweet bread. It is usually prepared for Easter in Bulgaria and mostly for every major holiday (Christmas, Easter, New Year) in Romania.

Cozonac is a sweet bread, to which milk, sugar, eggs, butter and raisins are added. In Bulgaria lemon zest is also added to the dough mixture. The Italian Panettone is very similar to the basic cozonac, the most visible difference being their shapes.

In Romania, the recipes differ rather significantly between regions in what concerns the trimmings. The dough is essentially similar throughout the country: a plain sweet bread made with flour, eggs, milk, butter, sugar and salt. Depending on the region, one may add to it any of the following: raisins, Turkish delight (Rahat Lokum), grated orange or lemon rind, walnuts or hazelnuts, vanilla or rum flavour. Other styles dictate the use of a filling, usually a ground walnut mix. The dough is rolled flat with a pin, the filling is spread and the whole is rolled back into a shape vaguely resembling a pinwheel. In the baked product the filling forms a swirl adding to the character of the bread.

It was the sweet chosen to represent Romania in the Café Europe initiative of the Austrian presidency of the European Union, on Europe Day 2006.