Sweet Wreath

Name: Sweet Wreath
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: Manitoba flour 1 ¼ cup; Brewer's yeast 1 tsp; Sugar 1 tsp; Water 0.3 cup; Manitoba flour 3.3 cups; Sugar ½ cup; Whole milk 0.7 cup; Egg yolks (about 3) 4.6 tbsp; Orange peel 1; Fine salt 0.8 tsp; Butter soft ½ cup; Orange jam ¾ cup; Raisins 1 cup; Rum 3.4 oz; Honey to taste; Almond slices ¼ cup

Difficulty: Difficult
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 30 min
Serving: 8 persone
Cost: Average

PRESENTATION

Recipe by
Silvia Sciattella

Christmas is undoubtedly the favorite holiday for both adults and children. Most of the time, we focus on what to prepare for lunch or for Christmas Eve dinner, but today we want to propose an idea for a breakfast with the whole family! The lights on the tree are twinkling, the gifts are ready to be unwrapped, and the scent of this sweet wreath has already filled all the rooms and woken even the sleepiest ones! Soft, scenic, and delicious, it's also perfect to prepare as a centerpiece and enjoy after lunch. Inside you'll find lots of raisins and a generous layer of jam, but you can customize this wreath with the ingredients you love the most!

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients for the starter dough: Manitoba flour 1 ¼ cup (150 g); Brewer's yeast 1 tsp (4 g); Sugar 1 tsp (5 g); Water 0.3 cup (80 g)

for the dough: Manitoba flour 3.3 cups (400 g); Sugar ½ cup (90 g); Whole milk 0.7 cup (150 g); Egg yolks 4.6 tbsp (65 g) - (about 3); Orange peel 1; Fine salt 0.8 tsp (5 g); Butter ½ cup (120 g) - soft

for the filling: Orange jam ¾ cup (200 g); Raisins 1 cup (200 g); Rum 3.4 oz (100 g)

for decorating: Honey to taste; Almond slices ¼ cup (20 g)

Preparation

How to prepare Sweet Wreath

First, make the yeast starter: dissolve the dry yeast in the water 1, add the sugar 2, and the flour gradually 3.

Mix well, first with a spoon then with your hands until you form a smooth dough 4. Transfer it to a work surface and knead for a few minutes 5, and when it is smooth and uniform, form a ball and place it in a bowl 6.

Cover with plastic wrap 7 and let it rise for 30 minutes in the turned-off oven with the light on. As soon as the yeast starter has doubled, start preparing the dough. Put the egg yolks in a large bowl, add the sugar 8, the grated orange zest 9, and mix.

Then, add a bit of flour 10 and a bit of milk, alternating them 12 and kneading until you get a soft and uniform dough.

Add the softened butter cut into pieces 13. Then add the salt 14 and knead with your hands until you get a homogeneous dough. Now add the yeast starter prepared earlier 15,

and knead with your hands 16. When you have obtained a smooth dough, transfer everything to a floured work surface 17. Knead again to form a soft loaf, then transfer it back to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap 18, and let it rise for about 3 hours in the turned-off oven with the light on.

When the dough has doubled in volume 19, put the raisins in a bowl and add the rum 20. Let them soften and in the meantime transfer the dough to a slightly floured surface 21.

Roll out the dough with a rolling pin 22, achieving a thin thickness of about 1/8 inch, forming a rectangle 23. Brush the entire surface with the jam 24

and add the well-drained raisins 25. Then roll tightly starting from the longer side 26. At the end, you will have a log 27.

With a large smooth-bladed floured knife, make a cut starting from about 1-1/2 inches from the beginning and continue along the entire length 28. At this point, braid the two halves 29, sealing the two ends well. Very gently transfer to a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and join the two ends to create a ring 30. Let the wreath rise again for about 20 minutes in the warmth, in the turned-off oven with the light on.

Bake in a static oven at 356°F for about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven 31 and let it cool slightly, then brush it with honey 32 and decorate with sliced almonds 33.