A soft, lightly sweet sandwich bread shaped into the sweetest little bunny. Perfect for Easter baskets, neighbor gifts, hostess gifts, or making your Easter table feel a little extra special.
This recipe makes either 1 large or 2 smaller bunnies.
Add all ingredients to the bread machine in the order listed above. Don’t mix!
Run machine on a no-bake cycle. Here are the settings I use on my Zojirushi:
This will produce a soft, pliable dough ready to shape in under 2 hours.
Mix:
Let rest for 30–60 minutes.
Add:
Mix until combined.
Add:
Knead until smooth and elastic.
Let rise for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until slightly puffy.
Once dough has completed its rise, it’s ready to shape.
You can make 1 or 2 bunnies with this recipe
(I doubled the recipe and made 4).
Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Let rise for up to 30 minutes, until slightly puffy.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 25–30 minutes, depending on size.
Brush with butter while warm for a soft, golden finish.
Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before slicing.
I tested a few versions before landing on this one. A classic sandwich bread dough held the bunny shape best—so the ears stayed in place and didn’t crack or fall off.
I originally wanted a softer, dinner-roll-style dough, but it didn’t hold structure well enough for shaping.
Adding the lemon juice made a big difference—the bread was noticeably softer and more structured.
I also tested baking in a loaf pan, but loved the look of the free-form bunny on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Not as ideal for sandwiches, but so much cuter.
A small splash of lemon juice helps strengthen the dough and improves texture, especially when baking with fresh-milled flour.
It won’t make your bread taste like lemon—just soft, fluffy, and beautifully structured.
You can absolutely leave it out.
Just note:
You may need to knead a little longer to build structure.
