Mom's Christmas Fruit Bread

This can be made ahead and heated up Christmas morning.

Double Recipe:


2 pkg Dry granular Yeast or 1 cake compressed yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

2/3 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup milk scalded

4 eggs, beaten

2 tspn grated lemon rind

8 cups sifted flour ( all purpose)

1 tsp mace or ground cardamon

1/2 cup butter melted

Method:  Soften yeast in lukewarm water with 1/2 tspn of sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes.
Add remaining sugar and salt to hot milk, stir and cool to lukewarm. Combine softened yeast with cooled milk mixture and stir well.

Add eggs, lemon rind and 1/2 the flour sifted with spice, and beat until smooth.

Beat in the cooled butter, then add remaining flour and stir thoroughly.

Turn out on lightly floured board.

Cover the dough and let rest 10 minutes before kneading.

Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes) using not more than 1/4 cup added flour for kneading.

DO NOT ADD EXCESS FLOUR ON BOARD

NOTE: Sweet roll dough must be soft and too much flour kneaded in will make the finished loaves "bready" instead of delicate, light and flaky!

Round up into a smooth ball, place in a clean greased bowl, turn once to bring greased side to top. Cover with waxed paper and clean dish towel and let it rise in a warm place (about 86 F degrees) until doubled in bulk about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Dough is then ready to be shaped.

Mom would form long rolls and braid the bread.
Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Recipe courtesy of Kathy who says that this is the recipe that Dad wrote out ages ago! Kathy and Mom would add dried fruit, and yellow raisins in then top with red/green glace cherries and pecan halves.

Drizzle with icing and send one to Kathy.  This is now a part of the recipe.