Christmas Fruit Bread

Ingredients Tick them off

• 7 to 8 Cups Flour
• 2 Tbsp Yeast
• 3/4 Cup White Sugar+ 1 Tbsp for Yeast
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla
• ½ Cup Unsalted Butter
• ½ Tsp Sea Salt
• 2 Large Eggs
• 2 Cups Mixed Dried Fruit
• 1 Cup Water
• 2 Cups MilkFresh or Evaporated

Method Tap a step to keep your place

1. In a measuring cup add 1 cup warm water and 2 tbsp of yeast, 1 tbsp sugar stir together and set aside to rise for 5 minutes.

2. In a large bowl add 7 cups of sifted flour, 3/4 cup of sugar or less, 1/2 tsp sea salt and 2 cups of dried mixed fruit and peels, mix together until all blended, then make a whole in the middle of mixture.

3. In a medium glass bowl add 1/2 cup melted butter, 2 cups warm milk, 2 beaten eggs, 1 tbsp vanilla, mix together until all combined, making sure you don’t cook the eggs then pour in the middle of the flour mixture.

4. Then add the risen yeast in the middle of the flour and start mixing with a wooden spoon, mix the liquid and flour all around until everything starts to come together, using the 1 cup flour to work the dough together.

5. After it starts to get hard to move with the wooden spoon around in the bowl discard spoon and work the dough with your hand leaving one hand on the bowl and one for the dough, pulling the dough towards you and pushing it down into the bowl adding extra flour as needed. Use kitchen aid if needed.

6. When dough becomes a round ball flip it over, make the sign of a cross on top dough, then cut the dough with a knife, cover with a lid or a sheet of parchment paper and a towel, put on the counter in the sun or warm place in your kitchen.

7. Let rise until the dough is half the size or around 30 minutes, then knead it down with your hand and rolling the bowl around to equally form the dough into a ball again. Cover put in a warm place again for another 30 minutes.

8. Prepare 3 small bread pans or two bread pans and one bunt pan with a hole in the middle to make a christmas wreath with the dough, grease your pans first.

9. Cut small pieces of dough off rolling it out wards and in under until you form a ball, place in the pan. continue doing this until you have pans full with three round dough balls each.

10. If you would like to make a wreath you will need three pieces of dough, then sprinkle flour over the counter, roll with your hands on the counter top the dough to make three long pieces of dough strings.

11. Place the three of them down and pinch the top then make a braid out of the dough by folding each piece over the other until you are at the end.

12. Cover the dough and let rise until its half the size or at less more then you started with, let rise for 30 to 40 minutes, when risen pre-heat oven to 350ºf bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown depending on your oven.

13. When baked place on a cooling rack, glaze with butter over top and place a piece of parchment paper over with a towel to soften bread and to cool it down.