Directions: |
Directions:In a large bowl, soak raisins, fruit and currants in apple juice or wine for 1 hr.; drain and set aside. In a large bowl, combine 1 1/2 c. flour, yeast, sugar and salt. In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter to 120-130 degrees. Add to dry ingredient; beat just until moistened. Add the eggs, rinds and extract; beat until smooth. Stir in the almonds, fruit mixture, and enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic - about 6-8 mins. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm pace until doubled in bulk - about an hour. Punch dough down; divide in half. Cover and let rest for 10 mins. On a lightly floured surface, roll each half into a 12x8" oval. Fold each long side over to within an inch of the opposite side; press edges lightly to seal. Place on greased baking sheets. cover and let rise until almost doubled - about 30 mins. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 mins. or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar or combine glaze ingredients and drizzle over loaves. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: Now here's the story. When Dwight and Derek were boys, we had a neighbor in Palo Alto who would always bring us a stollen for Christmas and we would always give then a steamed persimmon pudding in return. When this stopped, we still wanted to have stollen so I started making them and loved doing it; once I lost a ring in the dough while kneading (but found it before the baking!) This is a basic recipe I found this year that I liked. It sounds very precise but it is really amenable to your likes. I don't like citron so I substituted other candied fruits, particularly the red and green cherries that are available at Christmas. I added the wine to the recipe because what I used was some after dinner wine that we had and it worked fine; actually it was darker than the apple juice and I like the effect of that on the bread. And you can add or subtract the additions as your family prefers. Merry Merry Christmas!!!!
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