Vánočka (Houska) Recipe – Czech Christmas Bread (2024)

Czech Vánočka is a festive delicacy that captures the essence of Christmas in the heart of the Czech Republic. Everyone knows: When homemade Vánočka comes out of the oven, Christmas is on the doorstep!

DISCLAIMER:This is a new, November 2023, revamped recipe. The original recipe from January 2021 can be foundin PDF format here.

➜ What is Vánočka

Czech Vánočka, or Houska (Hoska) in the old way, is a sweet braided bread traditionally baked during the Christmas holidays. It is made from yeast dough, braided into a long bread loaf shape. Vánočka contains ingredients such as raisins, almonds, and sometimes even citrus zest, resulting in a delicious treat that is both symbolic and tasty.

This traditional Czech sweet bread is supposed to look like Baby Jesus wrapped in a swaddling blanket, which is why Vánočka is a symbol of new life and fertility.

⤍ Vánočka tastes best sliced with butter and a little jam on Christmas morning. Add white coffee or cocoa, and you have the typical holiday breakfast!

➜ History

If you are an American with Czech roots, you may know Vánočka as Houska or Hoska.

It's because, historically, Vánočka was called Houska. It was only later that this name started to mean a different kind of pastry. These days, the name Houska in the Czech Republic means much smaller, savory braided white bread, widely available in the Czech stores.

Look at what the Czechs call Houska currently.

Many Bohemians and Moravians migrated to the USA at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, when the Vánočka was still called Houska. This name was carried over to the USA by Bohemian emigrants and is still used by their descendants.

That's the reason why modern Czechs call the Christmas bread Vánočka, while the name Houska might be more common in the USA.

FUN FACT: Other names for Vánočka used in certain Czech regions are Calta, Vandrovnice, or Štědrovnice.

The term Štědrovnice comes from North Bohemia (ji*zera and Krkonoše Mountains), where I live with my family!

More Czech stuff to explore: What do Czechs eat at Christmas

➜ Ingredients you need to bake Vánočka

✅You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

• All-purpose flour
• Milk; warm
• Active dry yeast; or fresh yeast (see details below in the recipe card)
• Granulated sugar; Vánočka is only slightly sweet, so it doesn't call for a lot of sugar
• Unsalted butter; softened at room temperature or quickly melted in a microwave
• Salt
• Egg yolks
• Raisins; golden raisins are a little bit juicier, but feel free to use regular dark raisins as well. If you like, soak the raisins in brandy overnight. They will soak in and get a great flavor.
• Nuts; ideally blanched almonds. I use a mix of natural, unprocessed nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, and cashew nuts.
• Nutmeg; my fav ingredient! Honestly, this spice is my little secret. Czech grandmas used to add grated nutmeg to yeasted sweet pastries, and I can confirm that it really enhances the flavor of Vánočka bread. I grate the nutmeg on a hand grater with small holes. I grate it just before I use it to keep it as aromatic as possible.
• Lemon zest; freshly grated. Use an organic lemon or wash it thoroughly under warm running water. Grate only the top yellow layer; the white tends to be bitter.
• Spiced rum; for more aroma. Czechs love their "tuzemák" or "Božkov". If you are in the USA, use Kirkland spiced rum (Costco) or the Austrian brand Stroh 54. Both most closely resemble Czech rum.

Next, you will need:

• An egg for eggwash
• Sliced or slivered almonds to sprinkle on top of Vánočka
• Powdered sugar for final dusting

Some proven Czech recipes call for pork lard instead of butter. I tried both variants, and each tasted just as good!

MY TIP: Our Czech neighbors to the west, in Germany, have a similar recipe. It's called Hefezopf and, like Czech Vánočka, it is a sweet braided Christmas bread.

➜ Video recipe

For those of you who prefer to see things in action, I have made a video recipe for baking Christmas bread. Check out my YouTube channel!

➜ Instructions

NOTE: In the instructions, I outline the process of preparing Vánočka dough using a stand mixer equipped with a kneading hook. Home bakers who have prior experience with yeast dough can prepare the dough by hand.

STEP 1: Put the flour, sugar, and active dry yeast into the mixing bowl. Add warm milk, egg yolks, and grated nutmeg. Knead for about one minute on medium speed until the ingredients are combined.

Turn off the mixer and add the soft or melted (not hot!) butter and salt. Turn the mixer to medium speed and let it work for about 9 minutes. Be patient, the fat will incorporate into the dough beautifully during this time.

Finally, add the raisins and nuts and knead on low speed for another minute, no longer.

Note: If you soaked the raisins in rum or brandy beforehand, drain them and let them drip off before adding to the dough.

STEP 2: Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Shape into a ball. Transfer to a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel. Let it rise in a warm place until it doubles in volume.

Note: The time it takes for the dough to rise depends on the environmental conditions and can take anywhere from one to three hours. In winter, it will take longer to rise.

To help the dough rise, place it in an oven that is turned off with a pot of hot water on the bottom. Check out my article, How to quickly rise dough in the oven.

STEP 3: Put the raised dough on a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. Divide it as follows: first in half, then divide one of the halves into about 3/5 and 2/5.

STEP 4: Prepare a baking sheet. Grease it lightly, and place parchment paper on top. The grease will make the paper stick to the bottom of the sheet and keep it from slipping off.

STEP 5: Let's start braiding the Christmas bread. Divide the dough as follows: the first half into 4 equal pieces. 3/5 of the other half in 3 equal pieces. Divide 2/5 of the dough into 2 equal pieces.

Form each piece into a small ball. Pull the dough away from the sides and press to seal over the center of the ball. Then roll the ball between your hands into a smooth, round shape and place it seam-side down.

These parts of the dough will form strands that will be braided together to form the individual layers of the Vánočka bread.

The base: The base consists of four strands. To make them, roll the four pieces of dough into even lengths. Then braid the strands together.

Braiding the base from four strands is difficult to describe; a video is much more illustrative. Check out this YouTube video to see how to braid a four-strand Christmas bread base.

The middle layer: The middle layer of Vánočka is made up of three strands. Roll the three pieces of dough out into three equal-length strands.

Using the edge of your hand, gently flatten the center of the four-strand base. Place the middle layer of the three strands on it and press down slightly.

The top layer: The top layer consists of two twisted strands. Using the two last pieces of dough, roll them out into strands of equal length. Twist them together and place them on top of the Vánočka, tucking the ends under the bread.

STEP 6: Let it rise in a warm place for another hour.

MY TIP: To help the Vánočka hold its shape better, stick three wooden skewers into the dough: at each end and in the middle (photo 1 below).

STEP 7: Brush the raised Vánočka on all sides with egg wash. Half an egg beaten by hand is enough for one Vánočka bread. Sprinkle the top with sliced or slivered almonds (photo 2).

STEP 8: Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C (conventional oven). Put the Christmas bread in the preheated oven. If you have previously inserted skewers into the bread for a better shape, do not remove them. Bake for 10 minutes.

Without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 325°F/165°C and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Important note: About halfway through baking, the surface of the Vánočka will begin to turn golden brown. To prevent burning, loosely lay a sheet of aluminum foil on top.

STEP 9: After about 35 minutes of baking, test for doneness. Stick a wooden skewer in the middle of the Christmas bread and pull it out. If it comes out dry, the loaf is done, and you can remove it from the oven. If there's still raw dough on it, bake the bread for another five minutes. Repeat the test until the skewer comes out clean.

Allow the finished loaf of bread to cool on the sheet for at least thirty minutes.

➜ How to serve Czech Vánočka (Hoska) bread

After cooling, generously dust the Vánočka with powdered sugar and cut it into slices approximately 3/4 inch (2 cm) thick. Enjoy these delectable bread slices with a cup of coffee or tea.

While Vánočka tastes best the same day it is made, rest assured that it will remain moist and soft the next day. Personally, I prefer to bake it the day before Christmas and enjoy it with butter and/or jam for a holiday breakfast.

➜ The best tips to make Vánočka right

You have to knead the dough well. If you just mash the ingredients together, the gluten that makes the Vánočka airy and fluffy won't develop, and the result will be a dense and flat Christmas bread.

• Use your stand kitchen mixer with an appropriate hook and let it knead for at least 9 minutes.
• Vánočka dough contains fat (in the Czech Republic, we use unsalted butter or pork lard). As a rule of thumb, the more fat the dough contains, the worse and longer it rises because it is "heavier".
• Vánočka rises twice. The first time as a dough, and the second time as an already braided loaf. This recipe does not require the yeast to be activated (a yeast mixture) in the warm liquid beforehand.
• As the dough rises, you have to be careful that its surface does not dry out. I let the bowl of dough rise in a closed, turned-off oven with a small pot of hot water on the bottom. You can also prevent the dough from drying out by covering the bowl with plastic wrap. Alternatively, lightly dust the surface of the dough with flour and cover it with a tea towel.
• I like to stick three wooden skewers into the Vánočka to help it hold its shape: one in the middle and one at each end. The skewers are inserted into the Vánočka after it has been braided and allowed to rise for the second time. The skewers are removed only after the Vánočka is baked.

Here's a little secret: If your first try at making Vánočka bread doesn't look perfect after baking, no worries! Just sprinkle some powdered sugar on top to make it prettier. And guess what? There's no "bad" Vánočka. When you taste a slice, it still tastes amazing, no matter how it looks!

➜ Why is Vánočka braided

Cross-braiding the Vánočka has a meaning! In the past, Czechs believed that braiding Vánočka protected people from anger and rage. Vánočka is braided so that the family will have a peaceful and happy next year.

• From the baker's point of view, braided Vánočka has a better texture and is quite soft and flaky.
• The classic Vánočka is traditionally braided in three layers: the bottom with four strands, the middle with three strands, and the top with two strands. I understand that braiding with four strands can be tricky for some, so go ahead and use 3+3+2 strands instead. Just braid the bottom layer like the middle one, and you'll get a very similar result!
• If you're thinking about braiding the Vánočka with a different number of strands, I suggest watching this funny video that shows the whole process really well: How to braid Czech Christmas bread

Want more of the smell and aroma of Czech Christmas? Try Czech spiced wine, called "svařák"!

➜ Pronunciation

For those who're curious about how to pronounce Vánočka correctly:

Vánočka is pronounced as: /ˈvaːnot͡ʃka/

I also recorded a short audio clip:

Vánočka is one of several Czechoslovak bread recipes. Czechs and Slovaks lived in one country (Czechoslovakia), which split in 1993 to form the separate Czech and Slovak Republics.

We still have many recipes in common with the Slovaks, such as the sweet Christmas bread - called "Vianočka" in Slovakia.

Czech Easter has its own bread, called mazanec.

➜ Superstitions around Vánočka

Something funny at the end: Czechs have a lot of old superstitions that are supposed to help them make Vánočka.

Here are three nice examples:

• The cook must wear a white apron and a white bonnet or scarf while making Vánočka.
• No one can talk in the room while the baker is preparing the dough for Vánočka.
• Children can't play and jump around the place where the dough is rising, but the baker should jump as high as he can so that the dough rises well and the resulting Vánočka tastes good!

Czech Christmas cookie recipes:

• Linzer cookies (linecké cukroví)
• Vanilla crescents (vanilkové rohlíčky)
• Beehives (včelí úly)