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Happy baking!

Christina & Meghan

So in the next couple of weeks, we are making our fist 3-D cake (right now, it is a top-secret project) and we have been hard at work planning the project, especially since it needs to be well supported.

If you’ve ever watched any of the major cake decorating shows on television, such as “Ace of Cakes” or “Cake Boss” you would have seen Chef Duff and Chef Buddy creating 3-D cakes that used support structures made of PVC pipes, plywood, etc.  Our up-coming project requires such a structure, so we headed out to get the supplies necessary to pull it off.  Did we go to Michael’s or AC Moore or even our local decorating shop, Sweet N Fancy?  Nope.

We went to Home Depot.

That’s right.  We shopped for our supplies at our friendly local home improvement retailer.  For this particular project, we couldn’t use a regular cake board because it just wouldn’t hold up under the weight of the cake (we are guessing it will exceed 30 pounds when it is all done).  Instead, we needed some MDF (AKA medium-density fibreboard), a length of water-safe PVC pipe, a plumbing flange, and some wood screws.  Oh yeah, and a jig saw – our first power tool in the kitchen, if you don’t count our gorgeous and over-worked Kitchen Aid stand mixers.  Watch out, Duff, because here we come! 

So how did we make these supplies into a cake structure?  Fairly easily (once Christina figured out how to work the jig saw, that is)!  Here are the steps we followed:

1. Scribe (or trace) the shape needed on the MDF (use a graphite pencil, which is food-safe).
2. Use the jig saw to cut it out (MDF makes a huge mess of very fine powder when you saw it, so be sure to work outside and wear safety goggles and a mask to cover your mouth).
3. Center the flange and mark where the screws will go with a graphite pencil.
4. Drill holes (using a drill gun) where you marked in Step 3.
5. Screw the flange in with the wood screws using a Phillips head screwdriver.
6. Insert the PVC pipe into the flange, making sure you have a tight fit.  If you don’t, use some white plumbers tape and wrap the end of the pipe until you can insert it into the flange and it doesn’t wiggle.

Voila, you’re done! 

Here is our finished structure, with the base covered in fondant and awaiting the cake.

Our very first support structure for a tall, 3D cake (to be revealed soon)!

Stay tuned for a pic of the revealed secret project in the next couple of weeks!

In the meantime, happy structure building and baking!

Christina and Meghan

The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Nestle Florentine Cookies.

I will admit that I had never made either panna cotta (nor had I eaten it, although I’d had its cousins, creme brulee and crema catalana) or Florentine cookies.  Still, the recipes seemed easy enough, so I endeavored to make both at once and during the same weekend I baked eight 8″ chocolate cake rounds for an up-coming project as well as three dozen cupcakes for my middle child’s birthday, made liege waffles (see previous post) for Sunday breakfast AND Kobe burgers with homemade mac ‘n’ cheese for dinner.  Phew!

Needless to say, my kitchen was a busy place to be, but well worth it in the end for my family because they got some seriously good eats out of it!

Here are some pics of my Florentine cookies with my vanilla panna cotta, as well as the recipes I used for both.  As much as I love Giada DiLaurentiis (hers was the suggested recipe), I went with a panna cotta recipe that used real vanilla beans rather than honey, but I did use the Nestle recipe for the Florentines.

I hope you enjoy the pics and the recipes too!

Happy baking!

Christina

My Florentine cookies all on their own.

My panna cotta all on its own - the mason jar is a cute serving dish for it!

The final presentation - a beautiful pairing of pannacotta with mixed berries and Florentine cookies!

Easy Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta

(Recipe from Chef E. Michael Reidt and Food & Wine.com)

Ingredients:

1 quart (4 cups) heavy cream

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped

1 tablespoon unflavored powdered gelatin*

3 tablespoons of water

Mixed berries, for serving (I prefer fresh strawberries and blueberries)

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds. Bring the mixture just to a simmer over moderate heat. Remove from the heat, cover and let steep for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the water and let stand until evenly moistened, about 5 minutes.
3. Uncover the cream mixture and bring just to a simmer over moderately high heat. Remove from heat, add the gelatin and stir until dissolved. Remove the vanilla bean and save for another use. Pour the panna cotta mixture into eight 4-ounce ramekins and let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the panna cotta is set but still jiggly, at least 3 hours. Serve in the ramekins, with berries.

*I used Knox brand, sold in a white box in the baking section of most supermarkets.

*               *                *                *               *               *               *               *               *               *               *               *

Nestle Florentine cookies

(Recipe from the cookbook “Nestle Classic Recipes”, and their website)

Ingredients:
2/3 cup (160 ml) (150 gm) (5.3 oz) unsalted butter
2 cups (480 ml) (160 gm) (5 2/3 oz) quick oats
1 cup (240 ml) (230 gm) (8 oz) granulated sugar
2/3 cup (160 ml) (95 gm) (3⅓ oz) plain (all purpose) flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) dark corn syrup
1/4 cup (60 ml) whole milk
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1½ cups (360 ml) (250 gm) (9 oz) dark or milk chocolate

Directions:
Preheat oven to moderately hot 375°F (190°C) (gas mark 5). Prepare your baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper.

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan, then remove from the heat.

2. To the melted butter add oats, sugar, flour, corn syrup, milk, vanilla, and salt. Mix well. Drop a tablespoon full, three inches (75 mm) apart, onto your prepared baking sheet. Flatten slightly with the back of your tablespoon, or use a spatula.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, until cookies are golden brown. Cool completely on the baking sheets.

4. While the cookies are cooling melt your chocolate until smooth either in the microwave (1 1/2 minutes), or stovetop (in a double boiler, or a bowl that fits atop a saucepan filled with a bit of water, being sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl).

5. Peel the cookies from the silpat or parchment and place face down on a wire rack set over a sheet of wax/parchment paper (to keep counters clean).

6. Spread a tablespoon of chocolate on the bottom/flat side of your cookie, sandwiching another (flat end) cookie atop the chocolate.

This recipe will make about 2 1/2 – 3 dozen sandwiched Florentine cookies. You can also choose not to sandwich yours, in which case, drizzle the tops with chocolate (over your wax paper).

It is tradition in the Corlett household to have a nice sit-down breakfast on the weekends, particularly on Sunday mornings.  After the hubub of the week, when there is just enough time to scarf down a bowl of boxed cereal, this is a welcome and much-needed change.  Scrambled eggs, bacon, overnight French toast (I love Paula Deen’s “Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup“), and homemade waffles and pancakes are popular items on our regular menu.  We’ve even made frittatas and quiches, but since we have three young children with simple palates, these items don’t make a regular appearance, much to our chagrin.

However, one evening recently when Tim and I were cuddling on the couch watching television, we saw an episode of “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” on the Food Network that had us excited to try something new.  Well, not new per se, but a new variation on something old.  The episode was called “Wafels and Dinges Truck” (watch it here on Hulu) and featured a man named Thomas DeGeest, who owns and operates a Belgian waffle truck in NYC – check out his site here.

Thomas DeGeest's Wafels and Dinges truck

Bobby’s challenge was to recreate a liege waffle that rivaled that of Thomas, a native Belgian.  It was pretty clear from the start that Thomas would win this one since Bobby had never made a liege waffle in his life and people have been flocking to Thomas’s truck for years.  Still, it was an interesting one for Tim and I had never heard of liege waffles either (check out a brief history on these delicious creations here).

We decided we just had to make these for Sunday breakfast but hit a couple of major roadblocks.

Roadblock #1: In the episode both Thomas and Bobby used pearl sugar to make the waffles.  They both made it clear that without this particular sugar, these waffles simply could not be made properly.  But where to get pearl sugar, something else we had never heard of?

Pearl sugar, up-close and personal!

Never fear, the Internet is here!  I Googled sugar pearls and found a great site called “Sweden’s Best” where I purchased 3-lbs of pearl sugar for $12 plus shipping.  So for less than $20, I had my secret ingredient and was anxiously awaiting its arrival so I could make these beauties.  Thanks to Sweden’s Best’s fabulous customer service, I had my pearl sugar in hand by Friday (I had placed my order the Sunday before, so less than a week!) and was ready to cook.

Roadblock #2: I didn’t have a recipe.  Bobby lost the Throwdown, so as much as I love him, I wasn’t willing to use his recipe for this, especially after all of the trouble I had gone through to get the special ingredient (well, not so much trouble, but you get the idea…).  So back to Google I went and finally hit on a recipe that I was willing to try.

I found a post by a woman whose husband was a chef, and after they had traveled together to Belgium and tasted liege waffles, they set out to recreate them.  After much trial and error, they came up with the “perfect” recipe, so I decided to give it a try.  Here is their recipe and below are pictures of my adventure making these waffles, as well as the final, beautiful result.

I hope you give liege waffles a try because once you do, no other waffle will ever pass your lips again!

(P.S.  To all of my Cranford friends:  if you have ever had a waffle at Rockn’ Joe, those are as close to the liege waffle was you will get around here without a trip to Manhattan.  They used to be great when they served them fresh, but now you can only get them pre-made and wrapped to go – not nearly as good!)

Happy baking!

Christina

The batter as it sat, waiting to double in size.

The batter once it had risen and with pearl sugar added. It is now ready to go into the hot waffle iron!

The plated final product, topped with fresh berries, whipped cream, and a dusting of powdered sugar. Yum!!

An up-close look at the fluffy texture of the liege waffle. Now go and make your own!

It is with a heavy heart that we announce the end of the series “Ace of Cakes” starring Chef Duff Goldman and his crew of talented and quirky cake decorators.

His bakery – Charm City Cakes – is still up and running as strong as ever, as a matter of fact, with rumors flying of a West Coast location coming soon.  For ten seasons, Duff and company have wowed us time after time with incredible edible creations.  Now, ending on a high note with a spectacular “Back to the Future” 25th anniversary cake (below), the talented cakesters make their final bow and quietly exit stage left.

The finale aired on February 20th, and other than a few promos that revealed it, not one mention was made during the episode of the end of this wonderful series.

(photo courtesy of Eater.com)

We at ATOCC want to take this opportunity to wish Chef Duff and all of the talented folks over at Charm City Cakes the best of luck with all of their future endeavors and we hope to see you again on TV soon!  We’re going to order all ten seasons on DVD from Amazon so we can refer to them whenever we need during our own cake adventures.

Happy baking!

Christina and Meghan

It’s been quite a while since we posted.  Things have been busy for us, although not necessarily cake-related.  This winter in New Jersey has been a harsh, snowy, and cold one.  We’ve had lots of storms that have dumped incredible amounts of snow and ice on the Garden State.  The weather and being stuck in the house has bred germs and ailments that we found hard to fight, including migraines, strep, bronchitis, and the flu!  We are finally hale and hearty and ready to bake again – despite the fact that another cold front has hit and snow is in the forecast AGAIN!!! 

Last week I made this cake for my BFF’s son, Miles, who is turning 6.  He wanted Super Mario and so that is what he got.  The bottom tier was a 2-D version of a scene from the game, complete with toads, bullets, man-eating flowers, pipes, and the like.  The top was a hand-painted Mario with stars and coins as decorations.

Hand-painted top of Super Mario cake for Miles.

Side view of cake, a scene from the game.

Today is Sunday and we are headed to dinner at my MIL’s house for dinner.  Since I am the designated family baker, I am in charge of dessert.  Patricia (my MIL) is full-bread Italian and so today we can expect a big Italian spread.  In the spirit of that, I looked for a good recipe in my library to go with the meal.  I toyed with Tiramisu, for which I would have used Giada De Laurentiis‘s recipe since she is my go-to person for delicious-but-easy Italian recipes.  I also contemplated Napoleons, which I adore but have never made and so shied away from that.

Finally, I settled on Italian Cream Cake (AKA Italian Wedding Cake), and specifically a recipe I found in one of my favorite cake books, All Cakes Considered by Melissa Gray of NPR fame.  (If you don’t have this book in your library, GO GET IT!)  It is traditionally a cake made with walnuts and coconut with a texture much like carrot cake.  The secret ingredient, I think, is the buttermilk, although all of the flavors just come together so well for this delectable dessert.

The final product is very pretty and I am sure will be delicious too.  I only deviated slightly from the recipe, using 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract  and 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract instead of the 1 teaspoon of vanilla the recipe calls for.  Why?  It just sounded yummier to me.

Here is a pic and the recipe.  Buona fortuna in making it!

Italian cream cake for Sunday dinner!

And of course, happy baking!

Christina

“Alma’s Italian Cream Cake” from All Cakes Considered by Melissa Gray

(P.S.  She got this recipe from Iron Chef Cat Cora)

For the cake:

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, more for greasing cake pans
• 2 cups cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 5 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts

For the cream cheese frosting:

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups (1 pound) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 1 cup chopped toasted walnuts, divided

Place a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut a circle of parchment paper to fit each of two 9-inch round cake pans. Grease the pans with butter, fit the parchment into the pans, then grease the parchment.

To make the cake: Sift the cake flour, baking soda and salt into a medium-size bowl and set aside. In a large bowl and using a hand mixer, cream 12 tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a a time, beating well after each addition. Add one-third of the dry ingredients and mix well, then add half of the buttermilk , beating on medium speed and scraping the sides of the bowl down, using a rubber spatula. Repeat, alternating the remaining dry ingredients and the buttermilk. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, the coconut and 1 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts and mix well.

In a separate bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites, slowly adding the remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar, until the whites form stiff peaks but are not dry. By hand, fold one-third of the egg white mixture into the cake batter until it is incorporated. Fold in the next third of the egg whites; when incorporated, gently fold in the last third. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans.

Bake until the top is golden brown and a wooden toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, for 30-35 minutes. Set the cakes on racks and allow them to cool completely before removing them from the pans.

To make the frosting: In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese, 8 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon vanilla at medium speed until creamy. Add the confectioners’ sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating at low speed until blended. When all the ingredients are incorporated, beat the frosting at high speed until smooth. Stir in 1/2 cup toasted walnuts.

Place 1 cake layer on a serving plate, bottom side up. Ice the sides and top. Place the other cake round on top, rounded side up, and ice the top and sides. Place the frosted cake in the refrigerator to firm up the frosting. Remove the cake from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving, and press the remaining 1/2 cup toasted walnuts into the frosting on top.

Makes 10-16 servings.

It’s a cold winter Saturday in January and the kids and I felt like a yummy snack, so I whipped up a batch of super-easy Snickerdoodle cookies.  For those of you wondering, they are also called Snipdoodles, or simply Cinnamon Sugar Cookies.  They use basic ingredients of flour, sugar, eggs, butter, vanilla, and cinnamon so chances are you have everything on hand to make a batch tonight!

My late-night snack!

Here is the recipe I use, courtesy of the “Joy of Baking” website.  Enjoy!

Happy baking!

Christina

Snickerdoodles (Read more: http://www.joyofbaking.com/Snickerdoodles.html#ixzz1Bo81u2xi)

2 3/4 cups (360 grams) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Coating:

1/3 cup (66 grams) granulated white sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Just a quick post for those of you interested.  The Garden State Cake Show is coming up in February – the 4th, 5th & 6th to be exact.  Here is a link to the official site with details about classes, demos, challenges, contests, vendors, and more. 

We are planning to attend (and possibly enter a cake too) so we hope to see you there!

Happy baking!

Christina & Meghan

Happy New Year!  2011 has already been a busy and exciting year, filled with dog training (Christina got a Black lab puppy for Christmas, a new friend for Meghan’s pups, Tucker and Mason) and cakes too.  Christina made the cake below for a New Year’s celebration at the home of her neighborhood friends, Jonathan and Marli.  (Let the record show that because of the aforementioned puppy, she could not join her best friend Maria at her home for their traditional and annual sleepover – sorry, Rie!)

Happy New Year!

The first week back at work (recall we are both teachers) was a busy one.  By Friday, we were exhausted and looking forward to our next day off!  Then, a message came to us via our site that would rock Christina’s weekend.

(Note:  The rest of this post if from Christina’s perspective.)

Irene, a mom of four from Miami, Florida, sent us a message requesting a last-minute cake for her daughter, Mia’s, third birthday.  She wanted the cake to be an Ariel (Little Mermaid) cake like the one she saw on our blog made back in June 2010, which she found via a Google search in her hunt for someone to make what she wanted.  And she wanted the cake delivered to Sloan Kettering in Manhattan at 1pm on Monday.

Upon reading the message, I was torn because if the cake had to be delivered to Sloan Kettering, that meant that Mia was a cancer patient, and who wouldn’t want to make a cake for any child, let alone one suffering from that dreaded disease?  But the delivery time was just not possible; both of us work at that time and we can’t just call out from work to deliver a cake!

I sent Irene a heartfelt message apologizing and telling her that I just didn’t see it working out.  Not only was it last-minute (I had a packed weekend planned with vet visits, kids’ birthday parties, dinner plans, etc) but the delivery would be impossible too.  I also told her that the Ariel cake pictured on our site served over 50 people, so perhaps a smaller cake and picked up on Sunday evening might work better.  It was the best I could offer on such short notice.

Irene got back to me and said smaller was fine, but she was from Miami and did not know the area so pick up was not possible.  Could we find a way to deliver?  At this point, it was Friday evening and I had dinner plans with some girlfriends.  Over wine and sushi that night, I told Marli, Gina, and Steph about the situation, and Gina, saint that she is, offered to deliver the cake herself.  All three women agreed that this was a cake I simply had to do, if only because it was good karma, let alone that all four of us are moms and could not imagine what Irene (and Mia) must be going through.

Filled with hope and goodwill, I came home and sent a late-night message to Irene telling her I would make the cake for Mia and to call me in the morning.  After a mishap with a wrong number (I told you it was late at night!), I spoke with Irene early Saturday afternoon.  We agreed on the details of the cake, and off I set to make the most perfect cake ever.

By 9:30 that night, exhausted but pleased after 8 hours of work, I went to bed with a final message to Irene that I would deliver the cake to her in the morning.

Sunday morning dawned cold and sunny.  I set out with Mandara, my oldest child, into the upper east side.  Our destination was Ronald McDonald House on 73rd, between York and 1st.  The Ariel cake was nestled safely in its box on the floor of the front seat.  By 11am, we arrived at our destination, and were waiting in the lobby for Irene, Mia, and the rest of their family to meet us.

When the elevator doors opened, I experienced a feeling of panic and exhilaration.  What was I doing, meeting perfect strangers this way, putting myself out there like this?  But when I saw Mia, I knew I had done the right thing.  All of my hard work, all of my doubts and worries, all paid off when I saw her sweet face.  And especially when I saw how thrilled and touched Irene was.  Nothing could compensate me for that look;  I will never forget it.

Mia was hungry, as we had interrupted her breakfast, so we accompanied the family up to the dining room.  Mia’s sister, Cecilia, got her waffle ready while we settled Mia at a table and I unveiled the cake.  Mia loved it!  She had been fussing up to that point, but settled down and set about admiring it.  It seemed that she approved.

Mandara and I spent a lovely hour with the family, talking about their experience (Mia was diagnosed on February 19, 2010 with Stage 4 neuroblastoma, a rare form of cancer.  In Miami there was nothing they could do for her; only Sloan Kettering gave them hope for their baby.  Their pediatric oncologist removed a 2 lb tumor from her tummy which they never knew was there because Mia never complained), admiring the cake, playing hide and seek, and taking pictures.

Mia's special cake!

Mia admiring her cake with her mom, Irene, and her friend, Esther!

      By the time we left Irene and Mia in the lobby, I knew that I hadn’t seen the last of them nor was I ever going to be the same.  I came home determined to dedicate some of my time to Mia and children like her, not only making them cakes for special occasions but also offering whatever else I can give.  Mia and her family have forever touched my heart and I wish them all the best in their journey.

Happy baking!

Christina (and Meghan)

P.S.  I just received this e-mail from Irene:

“Good morning Christina,
Thank you so much for everything.  Today is the big day. What you did for Mia speaks volumes.  Your kindness and giving heart is truly beautiful.  You have shown your daughter a very valuable lesson in life.  You gave (your daughter) a chance to see very special little children yesterday.  Mia kept saying “No eat my cake”… lol.   She just wants to kept it.  That is so funny (because) I knew she would not want to eat it.  It really is beautiful.  I will forward you pics from Sloan.  Again, thank you so very very much!!

 
Always thankful,

Irene & Mia”

It’s been a while since we posted.  December has been a hectic month filled with shopping, holiday preparations, and personal baking.  We took a hiatus from baking for customers so that we could focus on our families during this season of love and giving.

We did, however, do one thing that is new and exciting for us: we joined an on-line community called the Daring Kitchen where we partake in monthly challenges as Daring Bakers.

The 2010 December Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Penny of Sweet Sadie’s Baking. She chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ to make Stollen. She adapted a friend’s family recipe and combined it with information from friends, techniques from Peter Reinhart’s book………and Martha Stewart’s demonstration.

Our finished stollen! Not bad for a first attempt.

Upon doing a little research, we discovered that a stollen is a German cake made during the holidays which contains dried fruit and is covered with powdered sugar.  Pronounced \ˈshtō-lən\, this tradition dates back to as early as 1474 and was originally meant to represent the baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes.  (Our friend and colleague, German teacher, Brian, will be proud of us when he reads this!)

The idea of making something that required yeast to rise was intimidating at first, coupled with the fact that this sounded an awful lot like fruit cake, and you know the reputation that has….

But we are Daring Bakers, after all, so we (wo)manned up and got ‘er did!  The final product was slightly drier than we wanted it to be, but overall, it tasted great and the whole family, including the grandparents, seems to love it!  Check out the process as it unfolded below, as well as the recipe to see if you can be a daring baker too!  And be sure to stay tuned each month for the latest challenge.

The dry ingredients in the mixer with the candied peel, glaced cherries, and rum-soaked craisins ready to go!

After it rose in the fridge for a couple of days and proofed for two hours at room, temperature, we rolled out the dough into a 16"x24" rectangle.

Then we rolled it up tightly the long way to form a long cylinder that would be formed into the requisite wreath.

Once we formed the wreath, we used kitchen shears to cut slits 2/3s into the sides, spaced about 2" apart.

A look inside of a slice - you can see the fruit, nuts, and general yumminess. It is delicious toasted with butter, and in Christina's house, with a glass of coquito (Puerto Rican eggnog) to wash it down!

Frohe Weihnachten (Merry Christmas in German) and happy baking!

Christina & Meghan

**Note:  The recipe and pictures below are courtesy of the Daring Kitchen challenge forum and host, Penny of Sweet Sadie’s Baking.**

Preparation time:

The following times are approximate. I suggest you gather and scale/weigh/measure (mise en place) all your ingredients before you begin mixing.
• Approximately 1 hour first stage – then rest overnight or up to 3 days
• 2 hours to warm up after refrigeration
• 15 minutes shaping
• 2 hours proofing
• 30-45 minutes baking

Equipment required:

• Mixer with dough hook or strong arms and hands
• Mixing bowl
• Bowl to soak raisins
• Small saucepan
• Sheet of plastic or plastic wrap to cover when proofing
• Bench or pastry scraper (very handy for cutting dough and also cleaning work surface)
• Rolling pin
• Dough whisk can be handy but not necessary
• Pastry Brush
• A scale is really important to have when making bread so I strongly recommend you to get one. You do not have to have one though. (would make a good Christmas gift!)
• Sheet Pan or round Pizza pan
• Parchment Paper

Stollen Wreath

Makes one large wreath or two traditional shaped Stollen loaves. Serves 10-12 people

Ingredients

¼ cup (60ml) lukewarm water (110º F / 43º C)
2 packages (4 1/2 teaspoons) (22 ml) (14 grams) (1/2 oz) active dry yeast
1 cup (240 ml) milk
10 tablespoons (150 ml) (140 grams) unsalted butter (can use salted butter)
5½ cups (1320 ml) (27 ozs) (770 grams) all-purpose (plain) flour (Measure flour first – then sift- plus extra for dusting)
½ cup (120 ml) (115 gms) sugar
¾ teaspoon (3 ¾ ml) (4 ½ grams) salt (if using salted butter there is no need to alter this salt measurement)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 grams) cinnamon
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Grated zest of 1 lemon and 1 orange
2 teaspoons (10 ml) (very good) vanilla extract
1 teaspoon (5 ml) lemon extract or orange extract
¾ cup (180 ml) (4 ¾ ozs) (135 grams) mixed peel (link below to make your own)
1 cup (240 ml) (6 ozs) (170 gms) firmly packed raisins
3 tablespoons (45ml) rum
12 red glacé cherries (roughly chopped) for the color and the taste. (optional)
1 cup (240 ml) (3 ½ ozs) (100 grams) flaked almonds
Melted unsalted butter for coating the wreath
Confectioners’ (icing) (powdered) sugar for dusting wreath

Note: If you don’t want to use alcohol, double the lemon or orange extract or you could use the juice from the zested orange.

Directions:

Soak the raisins
In a small bowl, soak the raisins in the rum (or in the orange juice from the zested orange) and set aside. See Note under raisins.

To make the dough

Pour ¼ cup (60 ml) warm water into a small bowl, sprinkle with yeast and let stand 5 minutes. Stir to dissolve yeast completely.

In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup (240 ml) milk and 10 tablespoons (150 ml) butter over medium – low heat until butter is melted. Let stand until lukewarm, about 5 minutes.

Lightly beat eggs in a small bowl and add lemon and vanilla extracts.

In a large mixing bowl (4 qt) (4 liters) (or in the bowl of an electric mixer with paddle attachment), stir together the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, orange and lemon zests.

Then stir in (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment) the yeast/water mixture, eggs and the lukewarm milk/butter mixture. This should take about 2 minutes. It should be a soft, but not sticky ball. When the dough comes together, cover the bowl with either plastic or a tea cloth and let rest for 10 minutes.

Add in the mixed peel, soaked fruit and almonds and mix with your hands or on low speed to incorporate. Here is where you can add the cherries if you would like. Be delicate with the cherries or all your dough will turn red!

Sprinkle flour on the counter, transfer the dough to the counter, and begin kneading (or mixing with the dough hook) to distribute the fruit evenly, adding additional flour if needed. The dough should be soft and satiny, tacky but not sticky. Knead for approximately 8 minutes (6 minutes by machine). The full six minutes of kneading is needed to distribute the dried fruit and other ingredients and to make the dough have a reasonable bread-dough consistency. You can tell when the dough is kneaded enough – a few raisins will start to fall off the dough onto the counter because at the beginning of the kneading process the dough is very sticky and the raisins will be held into the dough but when the dough is done it is tacky which isn’t enough to bind the outside raisins onto the dough ball.

Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling around to coat it with the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Put it in the fridge overnight. The dough becomes very firm in the fridge (since the butter goes firm) but it does rise slowly… the raw dough can be kept in the refrigerator up to a week and then baked on the day you want.

Shaping the Dough and Baking the Wreath

1. Let the dough rest for 2 hours after taking out of the fridge in order to warm slightly.
2. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
3. Preheat oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/gas mark 4 with the oven rack on the middle shelf.
4. Punch dough down, roll into a rectangle about 16 x 24 inches (40 x 61 cms) and ¼ inch (6 mm) thick.

Starting with a long side, roll up tightly, forming a long, thin cylinder.

Transfer the cylinder roll to the sheet pan. Join the ends together, trying to overlap the layers to make the seam stronger and pinch with your fingers to make it stick, forming a large circle. You can form it around a bowl to keep the shape.

This was before I pinched it together

Using kitchen scissors, make cuts along outside of circle, in 2-inch (5 cm) intervals, cutting 2/3 of the way through the dough.

Twist each segment outward, forming a wreath shape. Mist the dough with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap.

Proof for approximately 2 hours at room temperature, or until about 1½ times its original size.
Bake the stollen for 20 minutes, then rotate the pan 180 degrees for even baking and continue to bake for 20 to 30 minutes. The bread will bake to a dark mahogany color, should register 190°F/88°C in the center of the loaf, and should sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.

Transfer to a cooling rack and brush the top with melted butter while still hot.
Immediately tap a layer of powdered sugar over the top through a sieve or sifter.
Wait for 1 minute, then tap another layer over the first.
The bread should be coated generously with the powdered sugar.
Let cool at least an hour before serving. Coat the stollen in butter and icing sugar three times, since this many coatings helps keeps the stollen fresh – especially if you intend on sending it in the mail as Christmas presents!

When completely cool, store in a plastic bag. Or leave it out uncovered overnight to dry out slightly, German style.

The stollen tastes even better in a couple of days and it toasts superbly…. so delicious with butter and a cup of tea….mmmmm

Storage
The more rum and the more coatings of butter and sugar you use the longer it will store.
The following is for the recipe as written and uses the 45 mls of rum and two coatings of butter and icing sugar
1. Stollen freezes beautifully about 4 months
2. The baked stollen stores well for 2 weeks covered in foil and plastic wrap on the counter at room temperature and
3. One month in the refrigerator well covered with foil and plastic wrap.

Additional Information:

Here is a link to recipes to make your own candied citrus peel
http://www.harvestwizard.com/2006/12/candied_citron_recipe.html
http://video.about.com/candy/Make-Candied-Citrus-Peel.htm

http://userealbutter.com/2007/10/09/candied-orange-peels-recipe/

Kneading Bread
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWj8oHMPFm0

Martha Stewart’s wreath
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/stollen-wreath-bread-with-mrs-kostyra