Eggnog and Fruit Bread

This sweet braided yeast bread delivers big holiday flavors.

Eggnog and Fruit Bread with dried apricots and cranberries.

No matter your skill level as a home baker, you can make Eggnog and Fruit Bread for a holiday breakfast, brunch or to give as a gift. It comes together in less than half an hour and bakes for 25 minutes. You can work on Christmas cards or wrapping presents while the bread raises and waits for the oven. And the eggnog-flavored glaze goes beyond the typical sugary finish.

Eggnog has been a part of my family’s Christmas food traditions as far back as I can remember, thanks to Dad. He loved this holiday drink—with or without the brandy—and stopped by Bailey Farm Dairy at least once a week for a half gallon. I loved to see that glass bottle in our refrigerator! Although the dairy that once sat on the corner of Meramec Street and Gravois Avenue in south St. Louis is gone (Grbic Bosnian restaurant occupies that space now), I still enjoy eggnog during the holidays, and I think of Dad with every cup.

Thank goodness we only see this rich, decadent drink for about a month between Thanksgiving and New Year’s because it’s far too fattening to enjoy year round. However, I have no use for the low-fat variety, which is like drinking nutmeg-flavored skim milk. Don’t bake with it or drink it; enjoy the real stuff and just go for longer walks in December.

Anyway, eggnog bread has been in Mom’s recipe box for decades, and I honestly don’t know why I never baked until recently. Maybe I thought it would be too complicated; who wants to add another task to a packed holiday list?

But this bread really is simple to make. The eggnog—milk, sugar, eggs, spices—delivers lots of flavors with one ingredient and speeds up the prep time. It’s mixed in almost no time, and it only raises twice—once in greased bowl for 60 minutes and another as a braided loaf on a greased sheet pan for 30 minutes.

It also reminds me a bit of German stollen because dried fruit is nestled in a sweat yeast bread that topped with sugar, and that appeals to my culinary roots. So, let’s get baking!

For this recipe, you’ll need:

• 3 cups flour, divided

• ¼ cup sugar

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 package (¼ ounce) active dry yeast

• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1¼ cups eggnog

• ¼ butter

• ¼ cup dried cranberries

• ¼ cup dried apricots, chopped

To whip up the glaze, you’ll need:

• ½ cup confectioner’s (powdered) sugar

• 2 tablespoons eggnog

• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

• dash of nutmeg

Get a large mixing bowl out and to that, add 1½ cups of flour, salt, sugar, yeast and nutmeg. Mix with a spoon and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat the eggnog and butter over medium heat to 120—130 degrees F; the butter doesn’t have to melt all the way. Add this to the flour mixture and beat on low until moistened using an electric mixer. Turn the mixer up to medium and beat for 3 minutes.

Using a mixing spoon, stir in the dried fruit and remaining flour to make a soft dough ball. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (about 6 minutes).

The dough for Eggnog and Fruit Bread will be soft but elastic after you knead it for about 6 minutes. Form dough into a round shape and place in a greased bowl to rise 1 hour.

Place dough in a greased bowl (I just sprayed the bowl I mixed it in with non-stick spray) and turn it over once to coat the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until it doubles (about an hour).

(Now would be good time to finish decorating the tree or tackling those holiday cards.)

After an hour, punch the dough down and cut it into thirds. Roll each piece into a 16-inch rope. Remove the dough ropes onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and braid the ropes, sealing the top and bottom ends. Cover and let loaf rise for about 30 minutes (it should nearly double in size).

The braid for Eggnog Fruit Bread is formed on a greased piece of parchment paper placed on a baking sheet. It will raise again for 30 minutes here. I brushed the top of the braid with egg whites before baking.

(Finish the holiday task you were working on an hour ago.)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and bake the braid for 25 to 30 minutes until golden. Remove from the sheet pan to a wire rack to cool.

After bread has completely cooled (I waited 30 minutes), stir together the confectioner’s sugar, eggnog and vanilla. You should have a glaze that will easily drizzle. If you feel it needs more liquid, add a few drops of eggnog. Decorate the braided loaf with glaze and sprinkle with nutmeg.

Baked Eggnog and Fruit Bread is ready to transfer to the wire rack for cooling. It will be finished with an eggnog-flavored glaze.

This bread turned out surprisingly well. The eggnog and nutmeg really come through, but I think next time, I will double the amount of dried fruit. If you wanted to add nuts, I think almonds or pecans would work here; just finely chop them. I also cut back on the powdered sugar that was in the original Taste of Home recipe Mom saved all those years.

Eggnog and Fruit Bread would make a beautiful addition to your Christmas breakfast or brunch table. It’s a thoughtful gift, too (I mean, who doesn’t likely freshly made bread?); place it on a new cutting board, include a decorative knife, wrap in cellophane and tie a holiday bow around the top. It’s also great to simply share a slice and a cup of tea with a loved one at the end of a busy day while you admire your Christmas tree.

I hope you’ll try this holiday braid; let me know how yours turned out by leaving a comment below or posting a photo on the Facebook page @threewomeninthekitchen.

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Essential Holiday Cookie Baking Tips

Home baker Jan Borje says the keys to successful holiday baking are organization and kitchen helpers.

Merry gingerbread cutouts are Jan Borje's favorite holiday cookie. (Photo courtesy Jan Borje)

It's no secret that we love to bake cookies. I have a pan of peanut butter cookies baking as I write this. From candles that smell like sugar cookies to an untold number of cookie cookbooks, I don’t think Americans could celebrate the holidays without a cookie in hand.

In fact, 93 percent of us bake holiday cookies, and 61 percent make three or more batches, according to a study (2015) by the folks at Fleishmann Yeast and Karo.

I’ve strong memories of Mom and Grandma “Bubba” baking for weeks leading up to Christmas. The china was barely washed and dried from Thanksgiving when they’d start pulling down the flour, sugar and spices. A lot of the ingredients were simply grouped neatly and kept on the counters so that they could begin the process the next day.

For home baker Jan Borje, right, and family, teamwork plays a large part in a successful bake-and-take cookie event.

Whether you make one or dozens of batches, you’ll need a plan, and St. Louis home baker Jan Borje has perfected the cookie-baking process. Each year, Jan gathers with her sister Peg Petralia, and sister-in-law, Trish Weber, on the second Saturday of December to bake over 2,000 Christmas cookies over the course of 12 hours. From morning to night, they bake sugar cookie cutouts, almond spritz, chocolate thumbprints, Polvorones (Mexican wedding cookies) and more—plus fudge.

“The night before, we each prepare dough for two different cookie recipes,” Jan said. “We start early in the morning. We have helpers to decorate the cookies, usually older children and a couple of cousins.”

Jan said the cutout cookies are the most popular and also take the longest to make, so they begin the morning with those.

“My sister-in-law makes all the icing for decorating and then proceeds to decorate,” she said.

But everybody has a role to play in this busy kitchen.

“We all have stations,” Jan said. “My sister and I roll the dough and prepare the cookies

for the oven.”

Dozens of beautiful Christmas cookies are ready to be packed up. (Photo courtesy Jan Borje)

It’s not hard to imagine trays of cookies moving in and out of the oven in factory-like precision before they’re moved to the decorating table. She said it’s helpful to have a large area in which to finish the cookies. They use stacking racks to cool multiple sheet trays at a time, and they use a minimum of 12 cookie sheets in the process.

“We have a spreadsheet with tips on which cookies were most popular, which cookie cutters work best, etc.,” she added.

At the end of the evening, the tired but happy crew evenly divides the approximately 50 pounds of cookies between the three bakers.

“We use the cookies for gifts at school, our parishes, close friends and a special needs school,” Jan said.

What's her favorite cookie?

“The gingerbread cookies. There’s so much detail to put a smile on anyone’s face,” Jan said.

Speaking of cutout cookies, I recently learned there is a National Cookie Cutter Collectors Club and the group’s National Cookie Cutter Historical Museum is in Joplin, Missouri! Patrick Tuttle, director of Visit JoplinMo, said the cookie cutters are one of seven different collections within the Joplin Museum Complex. The exhibit cases contain commemorative cutters, including a special iris-shaped cutter for Joplin’s 150th anniversary that’s coming in 2023 (it’s the city flower). Hundreds of other cutters are from Europe, tinsmiths, and private collections. Archives of advertising materials and newsletters are also hosted at the museum. Visit the Joplin Museum Complex ($5 admission) Tuesday–Saturday. The iris cookie cutter is $10 and is available at the visitors’ center.

A great collection of cookie cutters from all over the world can be found in Joplin, Missouri. (Photo courtesy VisitJoplinMo.com)

Looking for a recipe for cutout cookies (or other holiday baked treats)? The Home Baking Association has a great booklet filled with recipes, tips and cookie trivia. Did you know that the modern-day sugar cookie was originally known as the Nazareth Sugar Cookie, and was made by German Protestants who settled in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, during the mid-1700s? Download the booklet here.

If you’re using walnuts in your holiday baking, there’s a good chance they came from Hammons Black Walnuts in Stockton, Missouri. Since 1946, Hammons has processed black walnuts from Missouri and several states. You can find their nuts at Sam’s Club, Costco and Walmart, or order from Hammons site.

The recipe for Black Walnut Wedding Cookies comes from the folks at Hammons. I found walnuts to be a nice change from the pecans we usually incorporated into our family’s wedding cookie recipe.

Whatever you’ll bake for the holidays, have fun—whether you’re baking with friends and family or you’re going solo in the kitchen—and remember, the key ingredient always is love.

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6 Food Gifts for Holiday Giving

These creative and inexpensive ideas will be easy on your wallet and bring smiles to the recipients.

The holiday countdown has started. There are gifts to purchase, homes to decorate, foods to prepare. And there always are a few questions like “what do I get for (fill in the blank)?” Here’s a list of food gifts you can make yourself that will be appreciated and keep you within budget. You’re busy, so let’s jump in!

The Cup of Cheer

Here’s an easy gift to make that will make the recipient think of you each time he or she brews a cup of tea or coffee. And you can do this for under $5!

Go to The Dollar Tree to pick up this cute plaid mug and matching kitchen towel. In the glassware aisle, look for the jar with black plastic lid. The adorable plaid top hat ornament fits in the top of the lid perfectly; just hot glue it down. Snowflake stickers decorate the outside. I filled the jars with bags of vanilla chai and peppermint teas (these were purchased at the grocery store). Coffee drinkers can be given the packs of instant coffee or tuck a few K-cups in the jar if the recipient has a compatible coffee machine.

The Cozy Box

Hot chocolate, wassail drink mix, marshmallows and a pair of fuzzy holiday socks fill this cute gift box from The Dollar Tree. I added a holiday mug and an ornament. The entire gift box with goodies was less than $10.

To add a homemade touch, add a bag of these snickerdoodles that you easily could make. They would go so well with the warm drinks!

Baker’s Delight

Do you have a friend who likes to bake? Someone who needs a little confidence around an oven also would appreciate this idea! Again, The Dollar Tree was the source for all of these goodies.

Just pick up one of the larger mixing bowls (usually in the kitchen section but I found this one in the party section) and then add three Betty Crocker cookie mixes, cookie cutters, a holiday oven mitt, measuring cups and spoons and a spatula. I also popped a cute holiday gnome travel mug and kitchen towel in the bowl. A decorative bow also from The Dollar Tree can be used to crown a cellophane-wrapped gift, or simply place it on the side as I did. In total, this gift was around $12.

Jar of Joy

This fall, I shared my recipe for Slow Cooker Apple Butter, which would make a marvelous little gift for the holidays. Attending a friend’s Hanukkah celebration? Take a jar of this along—apple butter makes a great topping for latkes. A bit of apple butter on challah also is delightful.

A jar of homemade anything makes a nice host/hostess gift. Have a friend’s ugly holiday sweater party to attend? Bring a jar of apple butter! And the great part about this recipe is the slow cooker does all the work for you; put a batch in your cooker the morning you’re going to trim the Christmas tree and by evening, it’ll be finished (plus your home will smell like the holidays).

Herbs for the Holidays

If you grew herbs this summer, remember a gift of dried herbs would be appreciated by anyone who likes to cook. The Dollar Tree often carries small plastic containers (about 10 in a bag) that would be perfect for holding dried herbs. My friend, Kathy, purchased adorable tiny glass jars and made the cutest labels to paste on the tops. For my birthday, she included jars of dried lavender, basil and thyme in a basket with other culinary goodies; so thoughtful!

Cookie Boards

My mom made trays of cookies every year for gifts, but thanks to the current charcuterie craze, cookie boards are now “a thing.” The folks at William-Sonoma offer these tips for creating a beautiful cookie board.

Be sure your board (or tray) is large enough. Beautiful Christmas cookies can take up room quickly on a serving piece.

Instead of spraying different cookies all over, group them according to varieties, including some nostalgic recipes such as these cute, buttery spritz cookies pictured above.

Keeping cookies together makes a more dramatic presentation. And it’s fine to make a few or purchase a couple.

Another idea would be to mix in a candy (either homemade or purchased) with the cookies.

This year, try mixing some gifts you make in with purchased items for truly personal holiday.