Instructions: Put all of the dough ingredients into the pan of your bread machine and program for Dough or Manual. Check the dough after a few minutes of kneading, adding flour or water to achieve a smooth, soft consistency.

When the dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the pan and roll it into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle. Cut it lengthwise into three equal strips. Braid the strips into a loaf, tucking the ends under. Let the loaf rise, covered, on a parchment-lined baking sheet for about 1 hour, or until its doubled in size. Bake the bread in a preheated 375F oven for about 30 minutes, or until its golden brown. Remove it from the oven and brush it with the glaze, which youve made by whisking together the egg, milk and sugar. Place the bread back in the oven for 1 minute, then remove it and cool it on a rack.

Note: For a sweeter bread, sprinkle the loaf with coarse sugar after youve glazed it.

Yield: 1 loaf

NOTES : Nisu is the name of a Finnish yeasted coffee cake.

This recipe hails from Lanesville, a small community now part of Gloucester, Massachusetts. The community was settled by my grandmother, Isabel Lane, and her family; early inhabitants also included many Finns

This bread is very tender and has a sugary glaze, but the Finns of Lanesville would put sugar cubes in their mouths, take a bite of the bread and swallow a bit of coffee. Use your bread machine to make the dough, then shape and bake the loaf yourself.

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