Greek Breads and Pies · The Mainland · Baked · Christmas
Greek Christmas Bread (Christopsomo)
Χριστόψωμο hree-STOH-psoh-moh · Christopsomo
In short
Christopsomo, literally Christ's bread, is a large, round, lightly spiced Christmas loaf, traditionally marked on top with a cross made from strips of dough and often a walnut pressed into the centre. It is a genuinely distinct bread from vasilopita, the New Year cake, baked and blessed specifically for Christmas itself.
Christmas Bread
- Prep
- 1h
- Cook
- 45m
- Total
- 1h 45m
- Serves
- 12
- Level
- Intermediate
Ingredients
Ingredients
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Method
- 01Mix the flour, yeast, sugar, salt, cinnamon, clove and orange zest together in a large bowl.
- 02Add the eggs, olive oil and warm milk. Mix and knead for 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
Milk - 03Cover and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until genuinely doubled in size.
- 04Knock back the dough. Reserve a small piece, about the size of a golf ball, and shape the rest into a large, flattened round on a lined baking tray.
- 05Roll the reserved dough into two long, thin strips and lay them across the top of the loaf in a cross pattern.Handle the decorative cross gently.Yiayia
- 06Press the whole walnut into the centre where the strips meet.
Walnuts - 07Cover loosely and prove again for 30 to 40 minutes.
- 08Heat the oven to 170C fan 150C. Brush the loaf generously with the beaten egg and scatter with sesame seeds.
Sesame Seeds - 09Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until deeply golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- 10Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
Nutrition, per 1 slice
- Calories
- 268
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 42 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Sat fat
- 1 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
These figures are calculated estimates based on the ingredients listed, not laboratory analysis. Actual values vary with brands, cuts and portion size.
Christopsomo, Christ's bread, is genuinely distinct from vasilopita, the coin-hiding cake reserved for New Year, though the two are sometimes confused by people less familiar with the specifics of the Greek festive calendar. Christopsomo is baked for Christmas itself, a large, round, lightly spiced loaf that takes pride of place at the head of the family table on Christmas Eve.
The bread carries real symbolism in its decoration: a cross of dough strips laid across the top, sometimes with smaller dough shapes representing the family's work or livelihood, walnuts, and often a single whole walnut pressed into the very centre of the cross, all put there deliberately rather than as mere decoration.
This is a properly enriched, warmly spiced dough, closer in spirit to tsoureki than a plain loaf, and it rewards the same patience any good enriched bread demands, a long first rise and a careful, unhurried shaping of the decorative cross.
Key preparation steps
- Make an enriched, warmly spiced dough.
- Prove until genuinely doubled.
- Shape into a large round and decorate with a dough cross.
- Bake until deeply golden.
The dough
Flour, yeast, sugar, eggs, olive oil or butter, and warm spices, cinnamon, clove, and often a little orange zest, come together into a properly enriched dough, needing a genuine ten minute knead to develop before its first rise. Some households add a spoonful of honey in place of some of the sugar, a nod to Christmas as a season of sweetness and plenty.
The decorative cross
Reserve a small piece of the risen dough before shaping the main loaf, and roll it into two or more long, thin strips to lay across the top of the round loaf in a cross pattern. A single whole walnut pressed into the centre where the strips meet is traditional, and some households add small dough shapes representing tools of the family's trade or livelihood, a genuinely old custom carried through generation to generation.
Baking
Shape the main portion of dough into a large, flattened round, lay the decorative cross on top, and let it prove again briefly before baking in a moderate oven until deeply golden and cooked through, checking with a skewer given the loaf's size and density. Cool before slicing, and serve at the Christmas Eve or Christmas Day table as the meal's centrepiece bread.
What matters in this dish
Do not rush the first rise
A properly enriched dough like this needs a genuine hour and a half to two hours to double fully, giving a much better texture than a rushed rise.
Handle the decorative cross gently
The thin dough strips can tear easily. Lay them on gently rather than stretching them into place.
Check doneness with a skewer
This is a large, dense loaf, and it is worth confirming the centre is properly cooked through rather than judging by colour alone.
Questions people ask about Christopsomo
What is the difference between Christopsomo and vasilopita?
Christopsomo is baked specifically for Christmas, a spiced bread decorated with a dough cross and no hidden coin. Vasilopita is the cake baked for New Year, cut in a specific ritual order with a coin hidden inside for luck.
What does the cross on top of Christopsomo represent?
It marks the bread as specifically for Christ's feast day, and the walnut often pressed at its centre, along with any small dough shapes representing a family's trade, are old customs carried through generations.
Can you make Christopsomo ahead?
Yes, it keeps well for several days at room temperature, well wrapped, and also freezes well, sliced, for up to two months.
