Back in the early 1970's my parents lived in Santa Cruz, CA. They had a neighbor who would make a yeasted lemon bread for prosperity and good luck in the new year. My mom remembers it as being small round loaves that were sweet but not cake-y, with raisins and chopped nuts. At the time she did get the recipe, but in last 35 years, the scrap of paper on which the recipe was written has walked away. She has an itch to make this bread again this year, but after much googling and flipping through cookbooks, we haven't been able to find anything that seems quite right. We know that this bread was traditional to whatever area of the world that this neighbor's family originally came from, but again, we don't know for sure. So, does this New Year's bread ring any bells for any of you out there? If so, we'd love to see your recipe! (Or, if you just have a really good recipe for a yeasted lemon bread with fruit and nuts, that would work too).











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-27-2007 @ 9:50AM
Patrick said...
"Prosperious"?
Reply
12-27-2007 @ 10:51AM
calamari said...
Take a standard hot cross bun recipe and substitute 1.5 teaspoons of lemon zest for the cinnamon and nutmeg. Shape the buns as separate rolls and skip the icing. That should give exactly what you're looking for.
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12-27-2007 @ 12:26PM
jamie said...
I wonder if it is similar to this?
Vasilopita (Greek New Year Cake)
Ingredients:
2 packages dry yeast
3/4 cup warm milk
5 cups flour
4 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
grated lemon rind
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg (to brush top)
1 1/2 tsp crushed/powdered mastika (optional)
sesame seeds
Procedure:
Dissolve yeast in warm milk.
Add 2 cups of the flour, and beat batter until smooth.
Cover and set in a warm place for about an hour.
Beat eggs, salt, sugar and lemon rind (and mastika).
Stir mixture into batter; add remaining flour and knead, adding gradually the melted butter, until smooth and elastic.
Cover with a cloth and let it rise in a warm place until it has doubled its size - about 2 hours.
Knead dough and put in a buttered deep round baking dish, about 12 inches in diameter.
Cover and leave in a warm place until almost doubled.
Brush with lightly beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds, or garnish with blanched halved almonds.
Bake in a moderate oven for about 45 minutes.
When cold, make a small cut underneath with a knife and insert the gold or silver coin.(tested: it takes extra time to rise, so figure 3+ hours for first rising)
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12-27-2007 @ 12:39PM
jamie said...
Here is another-
Barm Brack (Adapted from "Irish Country Cooking" by Malachy McCormick, Clarkson Potter, 1988) Total time: one hour, 45 minutes plus one hour, 30 minutes rising time. 3/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 cup plus 1 teaspoon lukewarm milk
3/4 ounce fresh yeast, or 1 package ( 1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
4 cups unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon grated allspice
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups golden raisins
3/4 cups currants
1/2 cup chopped, mixed orange and lemon candy peel
Grated rind of one lemon
1 tablespoon honey dissolved in two tablespoons warm water. 1. In bowl, mix one teaspoon sugar and 1/2 cup milk. Sprinkle yeast over mixture and stir with spoon. Let sit 3 minutes. If yeast "blooms" with small bubbles, continue. If not, discard and start again with fresh yeast. In another bowl, mix flour, salt and spices with wooden spoon. With hands, rub in butter and blend in remaining sugar. Pour rest of milk and eggs onto yeast mixture and blend well. Add flour mixture. Mix with wooden spoon. Beat and knead well. Add magic tokens like ring, money, button or thimble. Dough should be pliable but fairly firm. Add raisins, currants, chopped mixed peel and grated lemon rind. Mix well with hands. Place dough in clean bowl, cover bowl with clean towel, and let stand in warm corner until dough doubles in size, about an hour.
2. Transfer dough to round 10-inch baking tin lined with wax paper. Cover and let stand for half-hour. After 15 to 20 minutes, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for hour until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes and brush with honey mixture. Serve warm.
Yield: 8 servings.
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12-28-2007 @ 12:35PM
Dartssnake said...
Italian...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panettone
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/236704
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