Christmas
Cakes & Breads
Recipes
A delicious selection of Christmas cakes and
Christmas breads. There are many cake recipes to
choose from, including a wonderful Dark Christmas
Cake Recipe and a Christmas Log Cake. Among the
Christmas Breads recipes find Greek, Italian, and
Swedish.
Almond
Butter Christmas Cake Recipe
3 cup Cake Flour;
sifted
3 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 cup Butter; or shortening
1 1/2 cup Sugar
3 Eggs; unbeaten
1/2 cup Almonds; finely chopped
1/2 cup Raisins; finely cut
1 cup Milk
1 tsp Vanilla
Sift flour once, measure, add baking powder and
salt, and sift together three times. Cream butter
thoroughly. Add sugar gradually, and cream
together until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at
a time, beating thoroughly after each. Add nuts
and raisins and beat well. Add flour, alternately
with milk, a small amount at a time, beating
after each addition until smooth. Add vanilla.
Bake in two greased 9-inch layer pans 375F for 25
minutes, or until done.
Spread frosting (try a lemon butter frosting)
between layers and on top and sides of cake.
Decorate top of cake with wreath of holly, using
pieces of maraschino cherries or red cinnamon
candies for berries and slices of angelica or
citron for leaves and stems. Or decorate with
poinsettias made of candied cherries. Slice
cherries in rings, cut rings in half, and arrange
to form petals of poinsettias.
Black
Walnut Christmas Cake Recipe
1/2 cup Butter
4 Eggs; separated
2 cup Flour; sifted
3/4 tsp Salt
1 cup Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
2 tsp Baking powder
1/2 cup Milk
1 cup Black walnuts; fine chopped
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat in egg yolks all at once. Add vanilla. Sift
dry ingredients together. Set aside 1 cup of the
dry ingredients. Add the remaining flour mixture
and the milk in small portions, alternately,
mixing well with each addition, starting and
ending with an addition of the dry ingredients.
Mix together, the reserved flour and the nuts,
and stir into the batter, mixing just until
blended. Beat the egg whites until stiff, but not
dry. Fold them into the batter. Bake in a
9"x5" greased and floured loaf pan, or
3 quart mold at 350F about 50-60 minutes, or
until done. Frost with your favorite icing.
Christmas
Log Cake Recipe
CAKE:
1 cup Cake flour, sifted
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking powder
4 Eggs
1 cup Sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tb Lemon juice
MERINGUE MUSHROOMS:
2 Egg whites
1/4 cup Cream of tartar
1/4 cup Sugar
Cocoa, powdered
BUTTER CREAM
1 cup Butter, sweet; softened
3 Egg yoke
ICING
1 tb Espresso, powdered
1 tb Milk
3 cup Sugar, confectioners; sifted
Food coloring, green
Grease a jellyroll-baking sheet. Line with
parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper. Sift
dry ingredients together. Beat eggs at high speed
about 5 to 10 minutes. Add sugar by
tablespoonfuls. Continue beating until the butter
is very thick. Then add lemon juice and water.
Fold in dry ingredients in four stages, 1/4 cup
at a time. Spread evenly on the baking sheet.
Bake at 375 F. for 15 minutes or until the sponge
springs back when tested.
Sift powdered sugar onto the sponge. Turn cake
out onto a clean tea towel. Remove parchment
paper. Trim edges of the sponge if they are
crispy. Roll up gently, leaving towel inside,
while still warm. Let cool. Beat egg whites, and
when foamy add the cream of tartar. When soft
peaks form, gradually beat in the sugar. Beat
until meringue is stiff and glossy. Pipe meringue
through a pastry bag, making and equal number of
stems and caps to resemble small mushrooms. Bake
mushroom pieces at 250 F. about 45 minutes.
When cool, glue them together with butter cream
icing and dust lightly with cocoa in a fine
strainer. Beat egg yolks and butter together
until smooth. Add coffee and milk. Gradually add
powdered sugar. Beat until smooth. Mix about 1/3
cup to 1/2 cup of the frosting with green food
coloring for the ivy decoration.
TO ASSEMBLE: Unroll cooled sponge, remove towel,
spread, and cake with butter cream icing. Roll
up. Cut off at a diagonal, a 2" slice. This
is the tree stump. Frost the outside, then add
the stump and frost. Make ivy patterns. Add the
mushrooms. Dust the whole cake very lightly with
powdered sugar, to simulate snow. Keep in
refrigerator. Cut with serrated knife.
Candy
Bar Angel Cake
1 Angel food cake (prepared) -- cut into 1 "
cubes
3 oz Fat-free vanilla pudding (instant)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
12 oz Cool Whip Lite. -- Thawed
3 2/3 oz Butterfingers. candy bar -- Crushed
Place angel food cake cubes in a 9 x 13"
baking pan. Mix vanilla pudding according to
package directions, adding the vanilla extract.
Spoon vanilla pudding mixture over the cake
cubes. Then, spread whipped topping over top
pudding. Sprinkle with crushed candy bar.
Christmas
Tree Cake Recipe
1 pkg Cake Mix (any flavor)
5 cup Confectioners' Sugar
3/4 cup Crisco Shortening
1/2 cup Water
1/3 cup Non-dairy Creamer
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tb Green Food Coloring
Peppermint Candies
Pretzel Rods
Large Gumdrops
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour a 13x9
pan. Prepare, bake and cool cake following
package directions. For decorator frosting:
Combine confectioners sugar, shortening, water,
non-dairy creamer, vanilla and salt in large
bowl. Beat at medium speed with electricup mixer
for 3 minutes. Beat at high speed for 5 min. Add
more confectioners sugar to thicken or more water
to thin as needed. Reserve 1 cup frosting. Tint
remaining frosting w/ green food coloring.
Cut cooled cake diagonally and invert one piece
so that the cake takes on a tree shape with a
wide base. Spread green frosting over cake.
Decorate tree with reserved white frosting and
peppermint candies. Make trunk from pretzel rods.
Roll out large gumdrop and cut with star cookie
cutter. Top tree with gumdrop star. Decorate with
colored mint candies, as ornament decorations,
and use reserved white icing to make a tree
garland.
Dark
Christmas Fruit Cake Recipe
1 lb Blanched almonds
3 lb seedless raisins
2 lb Currants
1 lb Candied cherries, Cut in half
1 lb Dried figs, chopped
1 lb Dates cut up
1 1/2 lb Chopped mixed candied peels
1 lb Candied pineapple, cut up
1 cup All-purpose flour
3 cup Soft butter
3 cup Brown sugar, packed
12 lg Egg yokes
5 1/2 cup Sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp Salt
2 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Mace
2 tsp Allspice
2 tsp Nutmeg
1 tsp Cloves
3 tsp Baking soda
3/4 cup Prune juice
1/4 cup Brandy
12 lg Egg whites
This recipe makes a very large amount (about 28
cups) of fruit cake batter and can be baked in a
number of different sizes of pan. If you want to
make several small cakes for gifts you can divide
the batter among 9 8x4x3-inch loaf pans using a
generous 3 cups of batter for each. Or if you
wish to use larger loaf pans you can put the
batter in 6 9x5x3-inch pans using a generous 4
1/2 cups batter in each. Bundt pans make
attractive cakes and this amount of batter is
enough for 3 12-cup Bundt pans using a generous 9
cups of batter in each. If you use 10-inch tube
pans you can make 2 cakes using 12 cups of batter
for each and an 8x4x2 1/2-inch loaf pan with the
remaining batter.
Combine nuts and fruit in a very large bowl or
roasting pan. Add 1 cup of flour and toss by hand
to coat fruit with flour. Cream butter well (you
can use your electric mixer for this part of the
recipe). Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in
egg yolks. Transfer mixture to a large bowl.
Sift 5 1/2 cups flour with salt, spices and soda
and add to creamed mixture alternately with prune
juice and brandy. Mix with a wooden spoon. Add
this mixture to the fruit and nuts and blend
well. The easiest way to blend this large amount
of mixture is with your hands. Beat egg whites
until stiff and fold into mixture.
Measure into prepared pans and press well into
the corners. Heat oven to 275F. Bake cakes in
8x4x3-inch pans for about 3 hours, in 9x5x3-inch
pans or Bundt pans for about 3 hours and 15
minutes and in 10-inch tube pans about 3 1/2
hours or until a toothpick stuck in the center
comes out clean. Let stand in pans a few minutes
then turn out on racks and cool. Strip off paper
and wrap cakes in cheesecloth dampened with
brandy and then in foil and store in a cool
place. MAKES 15 LBS OF FRUITCAKE.
White
Christmas Cake Recipe
1/2 cup Water
4 oz White confectionery coating
1 cup Butter or margarine, -softened
2 cup Sugar
4 Eggs, separated
1 tb Vanilla extract
2 1/2 cup All-purpose flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1 cup Buttermilk
1 cup Flaked coconut
1 cup Chopped pecans
FROSTING
8 oz Cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup Butter or margarine, -softened
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1 lb Confectioners' sugar
1 tb Milk
In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Remove
from the heat; stir in confectionery coating
until melted. Cool for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in
a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg
yolks; mix well. Beat in coating and vanilla.
Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed
mixture alternately with buttermilk. Mix well.
Stir in the coconut and pecans. Beat egg whites
until stiff peak form; fold into the batter. Pour
into three greased and floured 8- in. Square
baking pans.
Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes or until cake
tests done. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove to
wire rack to cool completely. Combine frosting
ingredients in a mixing bowl; beat well. Frost
tops of two layers; stack on serving plat with
plain layer on top. Frost top and side of cake.
Christmas
Orange Bread Recipe
1/2 cup Prunes (baby food jar)
3 Eggs
1/2 cup Orange juice
4 tsp Baking powder
3/4 tsp Salt
1/4 cup Raisins
1/2 cup Chopped nuts
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Mashed banana
2 1/2 cup Unbleached flour
1 1/2 cup Mixed candied fruit
Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, raisins,
nuts, and candied fruit together. Combine and
beat slightly the banana and orange juice; Set
aside. Beat eggs into prunes one at a time.
Alternately, add prune/egg mixture and
banana/orange mixture to dry ingredients mixed
with fruits and nuts. Pack into 9X5X3-loaf pan
lightly sprayed with Pam and lined with wax
paper. Bake at 350F for 1 hr. or until done. Cool
20 min. before removing wax paper and turning out
on a rack. Cool before icing.
Icing- Mix powdered sugar into an egg white until
smooth thin icing is made. Dot icing with cut up
candied glaze cherries as desired. After frosting
is firm, wrap in aluminum foil and refrigerate.
Improves with freezing.
Christmas
Stollen Recipe
1 cup Milk
1/2 cup + 2tb granulated sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1 pkg Active dry yeast
1/4 cup Warm water
5 cup Sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Finely chopped candied -citron
1/2 cup Finely chopped candied -cherries
1 cup Slivered almonds
Grated rind of 1 lemon
1 cup seedless raisins
2 Eggs, beaten
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
2/3 cup Sifted confectioners sugar
2 tb Hot water
Pour milk into a saucepan. Heat to scalding. Turn
off heat; stir in 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar
and the salt. Let mixture cool to lukewarm. In a
large bowl, dissolve yeast in the 1/2-cup warm
water; let mixture rest for 5 minutes. Pour
lukewarm milk mixture into yeast solution. Stir
in 1 cup of the flour. Beat dough with electricup
mixer or eggbeater until smooth. Cover bowl with
cloth towel; let dough rise in a warm place 1
hour and 30 minutes or until double in bulk.
Punch down dough in bowl; fold in citron,
cherries, almonds, lemon rind and raisins. Add
eggs, 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) of the softened
butter and the nutmeg. Stir in 3 more cups flour;
mix dough until smooth. Turn dough out onto a
lightly floured surface. Knead, working in enough
of remaining flour to make dough smooth and
elastic. Divide dough into halves; roll each
portion into an oval, about 1/2" thick.
In a small saucepan, melt remaining butter; brush
it over ovals. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon
with remaining 2 Tbsp granulated sugar; sprinkle
mixture over ovals. Fold ovals in half,
lengthwise. Place them on buttered baking sheet.
Twist ends of each oval toward each other to form
a crescent. Loosely cover ovals with wax paper
and a cloth towel. Let Stollen rise in a warm
place about 1 hour or until double in bulk.
Preheat oven to 350F. Bake Stollen 45 minutes or
until golden.
In a small bowl, combine confectioners' sugar
with enough of the hot water to make thick icing.
Dribble icing over hot Stollen; let Stollen cool
before slicing. Makes 1 Stollen.
Easy
Christmas Stollen Recipe
1/2 cup Raisins
1/2 cup Mixed candied fruits; chopped
2 tb Brandy
3 cup Flour
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Almonds, ground
2 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp Baking soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Cardamon, ground
1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground
1/2 cup Butter
1 cup Farmer cheese (or cottage -cheese)
2 Egg; slightly beaten
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup Walnuts; chopped
2 tb Butter; melted
1 1/2 cup Sugar, confectioners
2 tb Milk
Candied cherries
Whole almonds
Combine the raisins, mixed candied fruit and
brandy; let stand at room temperature for an
hour. Combine the next eight ingredients. Cut in
the butter with a pastry blender or food
processor until the mixture resembles coarse
meal. Process the farmer cheese in a food
processor or blender until smooth. Add the
cottage cheese, eggs, vanilla, raisin mixture,
and walnuts to the dry ingredients, stirring
until moistened.
Shape the dough into a ball. Turn the dough out
on a floured surface, and knead until smooth (one
to two minutes), adding more flour if necessary.
Roll dough to form an oval about 12" x
8-1/2". Brush the dough with a tablespoon of
the melted butter. Fold the long side of the
dough over to within about an inch and a half of
the opposite side. Place on baking sheet lined
with parchment. Bake at 350 F. for 40 to 45
minutes or until the loaf is lightly browned.
Brush with the remaining melted butter.
Transfer the stollen to wire rack to cool.
Combine the confectioners' sugar and milk,
stirring until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled
bread. Garnish with candied cherries and almonds.
Christmas
Kuchen Recipe
1 pkg Active dry yeast
1/4 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Warm water (105F-to-115F)
3/4 cup Butter; at room temperature
1 Lemon; Grated peel only
1 Orange; Grated peel only
1/2 tsp Dried mace
1 1/2 tb Ground anise seed or coriander
1 tsp Salt
2 Eggs; at room temperature
2 1/2 cup Bread flour (or more)
3/4 cup Warm milk (105F-to-115F)
If you want to give a friend a special holiday
gift, put a bright ribbon around this bread. When
tightly wrapped, it freezes well for 1 to 2
months.
Preheat oven to 350F. Dissolve yeast and 1
teaspoon sugar in warm water. Beat 1/2-cup butter
in food processor until light. Gradually add
remainder of sugar as you beat butter. Add lemon
and orange peels, mace, coriander (or anise) and
salt. Add yeast mixture. Add eggs, 1 at a time,
beating well after each addition, and then milk.
Add enough flour, 1/2-cup at a time, to make soft
dough. Knead dough until elasticup and smooth.
Place dough in oiled plasticup bag or oiled bowl
and turn to coat. Seal or cover with plasticup
wrap and let rise at room temperature until
doubled, about 1 hour.
Turn out dough on floured surface, punch down and
cut into 2 pieces. Shape each into rectangular
loaf and place on greased baking sheet. Melt
remaining 1/4-cup butter and use to lightly brush
tops of loaves.
TO PRESENT AS A GIFT: Make paper ribbon strips
the width of your gift ribbons and tie the bread
loosely with the paper strips; secure with paper
clips, leaving enough room for the breads to
rise. The paper will leave marks for the position
of the gift ribbons. Cover the loaves with
plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until
doubled, 30-to-40 minutes. Bake loaves about
30-to-45 minutes. Remove and place on a rack to
cool. Remove the paper strips. Replace strips
with bright ribbons. Makes 2 Loaves
Greek
Christmas Bread Recipe
1 pkg (or 1 tablespoon) Active Dry -Yeast
1/4 cup Warm Water (110 to 115 -degrees)
1/3 cup Sugar
1 tsp Ground Cardamom
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Egg
1/4 cup Milk
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
1 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 cup all-purpose Flour
1/4 cup Golden Raisins
1/4 cup Walnuts, chopped
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Combine the
sugar, cardamom, salt, egg, milk and oil in a
large bowl. Mix well. Add the yeast mixture,
flours, raisins and nuts. Mix well. Add enough
extra flour to make soft dough. Turn the dough
out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth
and elastic, about 5 minutes. Shape into a round
loaf. Put the dough into a lightly oiled
8-inch-round cake pan. Cover with a damp towel
and let rise in a warm place until doubled in
bulk, about 1 hour. Bake in a 350F oven 35 to 40
minutes, or until brown.
Italian
Christmas Bread Recipe
1 cup Warm water (105 to 115 -degrees)
2 pkg Active dry yeast
1/2 cup Sugar
2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or -margarine, softened
3 Eggs, beaten
1 Egg, separated
5 1/2 To 6 - cups sifted -all-purpose flour
1 cup Raisins
1 cup (8 oz) mixed candied peel
1/2 cup (4 oz) red candied cherries, -halved
1 tb Butter or margarine, melted
2 tb Water
2 tb Sugar
Sprinkle yeast over water in a large bowl,
stirring until dissolved. Add 1/2 cup sugar,
salt, 1/2 cup butter, 3 eggs, the egg yolk and 3
cups flour; beat with wooden spoon or electricup
mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually,
add remaining flour; mix in last part with hand
until dough leaves side of bowl. Turn dough onto
lightly floured board. Knead until smooth, 5
minutes. (Dough is soft.) Place in lightly
greased large bowl; turn to bring greased side
up. Cover with towel; let rise in a warm place,
free from drafts, until double in bulk, about 1
hour.
Grease well and line inside of 8" spring
form pan with 4" strip of buttered brown
paper. Punch down dough; turn out onto lightly
floured pastry cloth or board. Knead in raisins
and candied fruits until well-distributed, about
5 minutes. Place dough in prepared pan. Brush top
with 1 Tbsp melted butter. Cover with towel; let
rise in warm place, free from drafts, until more
than double in bulk, about 2 hours. Preheat oven
to 350 degrees. With a sharp knife, cut deep
cross on top of bread. Brush with egg white
combined with 2 Tbsp water. Bake 30 minutes.
Remove bread form oven. Brush again with egg
white mixture and sprinkle with sugar. Continue
baking 30 minutes longer or until golden brown.
Remove from pan; cool on rack. Makes 1 loaf.
Swedish
Julbrod (Christmas Bread) Recipe
1 Bread Machine
1 cup Milk
4 tb Butter
1 Egg
1/4 cup Sugar
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cardamom
3 cup Bread flour
2 1/2 tsp Yeast
2/3 cup Raisins
2/3 cup Citron; sliced
1 tb Almonds; chopped
Use Raisin Bread Cycle. At beep add the raisins,
citron, and chopped almonds.
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