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Christmas Cake
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You might wonder, how do we serve this bread? Do we toast slices of Julebrød and spread butter on it? Yes, that is good; you can also make up a bunch of delicious sandwiches with your favorite sandwich meats, or spreads.
Mom always made syltaflesk and fårerull and that is the ultimate sandwich - open-face, of course.
I enjoy Christmas cake with butter and thin slices of Norwegian Goat Cheese or brunost as we Norwegians usually call it.
Christmas Bread
This recipe for Yule Bread/Julekake makes 3 round loaves.
Ingredients:
6-7 1/2 cups unbleached flour
(Reserve 1-1/3 cups flour, of which
1/2 cup is to be added to yeast
1/2 cup is to be added to 2 eggs
1/3 cup is to be added to dry ingredients and some to be used for kneading.)
3/4 cup sugar (Reserve 1 tablespoon sugar to be added to yeast and milk.)
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons cardamom
2 envelopes dry yeast
2-5/8 cups milk
1/2 cup butter,
margarine or shortening
3 eggs (Reserve 1 egg and whip in a separate bowl to be used to spread over loaves before baking)
Add raisins to formed dough:
1 cup seedless white raisins
1 cup regular seedless raisins
Preheat oven 375°F. (190°C.)
Mix 1/3-cup flour with all dry ingredients
Heat milk and butter and 1 tablespoon sugar
to 120°-130°F. (48.9°-54.5°C.)
Add yeast to milk
Add 1/2-cup flour to milk
Add remainder of ingredients
Beat 2 minutes medium speed.
Add 1/2-cup flour and eggs and mix
Add flour to mixture
This is a baking tip: Regarding yeast baking, the amount of flour to use is approximate.
It is better to use less flour than the recipe calls for and then add flour as needed in order to be able to remove the dough from the bowl easily without it being too hard or too firm. It is easier to adjust loose yeast dough by adding flour than vice versa.
Add raisins before the dough is formed
Knead and form a dough using reserved flour as needed
Transfer into a large, greased bowl
Let dough rise to double in size in a warm place covered with plastic wrap for approximately 30 to 40 minutes
Form three round loaves
place into round, greased baking pans
Brush loaves with whipped egg
Let dough rise again
Place on the lowest rack in the oven
Bake at 375°F. (190°C.) for approximately 35 minutes
Let rest before removing from baking pans
Remove from baking pans and cool completely before placing them into plastic bags.
This Christmas cake/Julebrød can be frozen.
Hope you will enjoy our wonderful Norwegian Christmas-cake tradition.
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Foods of Norway after Christmas Cake Norwegian Julekake
