Ingredients
Christmas Bread
1/2 yeast cake
1/4 cup sugar
lukewarm milk
1 cup butter
4 eggs
2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons candied citron, chopped
1/4 cup seedless raisins
2 tablespoons almonds, shredded
2 tablespoons candied orange peel, chopped
Directions
Crumble yeast with 1 teaspoon sugar and dissolve in 1/4 cup lukewarm milk, and let rise until light and bubbly.
Christmas Bread
Cream butter with remaining sugar.
Break eggs in a measuring cup and fill with lukewarm milk to make one cup; beat slightly.
Sift flour and salt together and mix with fruit, then stir into creamed butter and sugar mixture alternately with eggs and milk; add risen yeast and beat to a smooth batter.
Flavor with vanilla.
Butter a tube pan and sprinkle bottom with almonds; pour in bater, cover and let rise overnight.
Bake in a moderate oven (375 degrees F.) for about 1 hour.
For Easter Bread Eggs
Make a bread dough using recipe for "Christmas bread" or "Fruited Christmas bread," and form into shapes of lambs, or other animals; roses or baskets.
Place hard-boiled eggs in centers or in positions desired, using strips of dough to form picture desired.
Bake in a moderate oven (350 degrees F.) for about 25 minutes.
When cool, frost and decorate with colored candy or sugars.The children will find eggs easier to eat when served in this festive manner on Easter Sunday morning.
Notes
This recipe was taken from "The Complete Italian Cook Book: La Cucina" by Rose L. Sorce. It was published by Grosset & Dunlap in 1953. For the entire copyright-free cookbook see www.archive.org.... Photo: Mary Melfi. |
