Julekaga! the recipe
Dec. 11th, 2014 07:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cissaljWe are still working on the leftovers for dinner! Although tonight I do need to make julekaga for us and for Game Night tomorrow.
And here's the recipe I use, slightly tweaked from previous versions:
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This is the recipe for the Norwegian Xmas bread I always make. The traditional version uses fruitcake mix, but a very yummy alternative is the diced fruit mix Trader Joe's has sometimes had, with apple, apricot, and cherries.
I'm not Norwegian by heritage, but Swedish (in part). I grew up in a heavily Norwegian part of the country, though, and hey- it's all Scandinavia, right? :)
This recipe is designed for hand mixing, but I usually make it in a Kitchenaid, except I knead in the fruits by hand.
Julekaga
Makes 3 loaves
6.25 cups + 2 tblsp flour
6 tblsp sugar
1.5 tsp salt
1.5 teaspoons+ cardamon*
3 tblsp oil (optional)
1 heaping tablespoon yeast
1 cup warm water (for yeast)
1 cup milk (warmed speeds up rising)
3 eggs, 2 plus 1 white beaten, yolk reserved
6 tblsp currants***
3/4 cup raisins***
3/4 cup candied fruit, chopped (aka fruitcake mix or alternative)***
1 egg yolk, reserved (for glaze)**
1 tblsp cold water (for glaze)
3 candied cherries (decoration)
Mix flour, sugar, salt, and cardamon. Dissolve yeast in water. Add yeast mixture, oil, milk, beaten eggs, and fruits to dry ingredients**. Knead 3-5 minutes, put in greased bowl, turn over to grease top, cover, and let rise until doubled. Punch down; let rise again (this second rising can be omitted, as I usually do.) Shape into round loaf, place on greased cookie sheet, cover, and let rise till doubled. Preheat oven to 350F (don't know centigrade equivalent; it's a medium oven). Mix yolk and water to make wash; brush over loaf. make indentation in center of loaf, put in cherry, brush lightly with wash. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes; remove from oven, brush again with wash, turn cookie sheet around, and bake 10 more minutes. Give it one more coat of wash immediately after removing from oven, if you like.
Let cool, preferably on rack, slice, and serve. It makes great toast with butter and cinnamon sugar, and great French toast.
Where I grew up it was always sold with a powdered-sugar and water icing, but that makes it impossible to toast so I don't do it. The wash gives it a lovely sheen.
* Cardamon loses its flavor quickly at room temperature. I store mine in the freezer. some extra doesn't hurt- it loses potency in the baking.
** If making in a bread machine or mixer, DO NOT dd the fruits; knead the dough, then knead the fruits in by hand.
*** More fruit is always better.
And here's the recipe I use, slightly tweaked from previous versions:
-------------------------
This is the recipe for the Norwegian Xmas bread I always make. The traditional version uses fruitcake mix, but a very yummy alternative is the diced fruit mix Trader Joe's has sometimes had, with apple, apricot, and cherries.
I'm not Norwegian by heritage, but Swedish (in part). I grew up in a heavily Norwegian part of the country, though, and hey- it's all Scandinavia, right? :)
This recipe is designed for hand mixing, but I usually make it in a Kitchenaid, except I knead in the fruits by hand.
Julekaga
Makes 3 loaves
6.25 cups + 2 tblsp flour
6 tblsp sugar
1.5 tsp salt
1.5 teaspoons+ cardamon*
3 tblsp oil (optional)
1 heaping tablespoon yeast
1 cup warm water (for yeast)
1 cup milk (warmed speeds up rising)
3 eggs, 2 plus 1 white beaten, yolk reserved
6 tblsp currants***
3/4 cup raisins***
3/4 cup candied fruit, chopped (aka fruitcake mix or alternative)***
1 egg yolk, reserved (for glaze)**
1 tblsp cold water (for glaze)
3 candied cherries (decoration)
Mix flour, sugar, salt, and cardamon. Dissolve yeast in water. Add yeast mixture, oil, milk, beaten eggs, and fruits to dry ingredients**. Knead 3-5 minutes, put in greased bowl, turn over to grease top, cover, and let rise until doubled. Punch down; let rise again (this second rising can be omitted, as I usually do.) Shape into round loaf, place on greased cookie sheet, cover, and let rise till doubled. Preheat oven to 350F (don't know centigrade equivalent; it's a medium oven). Mix yolk and water to make wash; brush over loaf. make indentation in center of loaf, put in cherry, brush lightly with wash. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes; remove from oven, brush again with wash, turn cookie sheet around, and bake 10 more minutes. Give it one more coat of wash immediately after removing from oven, if you like.
Let cool, preferably on rack, slice, and serve. It makes great toast with butter and cinnamon sugar, and great French toast.
Where I grew up it was always sold with a powdered-sugar and water icing, but that makes it impossible to toast so I don't do it. The wash gives it a lovely sheen.
* Cardamon loses its flavor quickly at room temperature. I store mine in the freezer. some extra doesn't hurt- it loses potency in the baking.
** If making in a bread machine or mixer, DO NOT dd the fruits; knead the dough, then knead the fruits in by hand.
*** More fruit is always better.
