Raspberry Jam Danish Wreath Food

RASPBERRY DANISH WREATHS

Steps:

• Make the filling: Beat the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy, about3 minutes. Add 1 egg and beat until incorporated; set aside. Butter 2 baking sheets. Lay out a large piece of parchment paper and dust with flour. Cut the dough in half. Place 1 piece on the parchment and roll into a 16-by-6-inch rectangle. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs, then spread half of the cream cheese filling over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides. Sprinkle 1/2 cup raspberries lengthwise down the middle. Use the parchment to lift the dough and roll it around the filling into a 16-inch log. Transfer the log to one of the prepared baking sheets, seam-side down, and form into a wreath, pinching the ends together to seal. Repeat to form a second wreath. Cover the wreaths loosely with buttered plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour, 30 minutes. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees F. Uncover the wreaths. Use kitchen shears to cut long vents crosswise into the tops of the wreaths at 1-inch intervals, using your fingers to gently separate the dough at each cut. Beat the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl; brush the tops of the wreaths with the egg wash. Transfer to the oven and bake until golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes, switching the position of the baking sheets halfway through. Let cool to room temperature on the baking sheets. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.
• Warm 1/2 cup water and the milk in a saucepan over low heat until a thermometer registers 100 degrees F to 110 degrees F. Remove from the heat and sprinkle the yeast on top, then sprinkle with a pinch of the sugar; set aside, undisturbed, until foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk the melted butter, egg yolk and vanilla into the yeast mixture until combined. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, the remaining sugar, the salt and nutmeg. Make a well in the center, then add the yeast mixture and stir with a wooden spoon to make a thick and slightly sticky dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until soft and elastic, about 6 minutes. Shape into a ball.
• Brush a large bowl with butter. Add the dough, turning to coat lightly with the butter. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until the dough is doubled in size, about 1 hour, 15 minutes.
• Turn the dough out of the bowl and knead briefly to release excess air; re-form into a ball and return to the bowl. Lightly butter a large piece of plastic wrap and lay it directly on the surface of the dough. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

RASPBERRY JAM DANISH WREATH

Steps:

• To make the dough, combine the flour, sugar, yeast and salt together in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and pour the milk over it, letting it warm up to just above body temperature.
• Pour the liquid over the flour mixture, add the egg and mix on low speed until the dough comes together. Increase the speed by 1 level and knead until the dough springs back when touched, about 4 minutes. (If mixing by hand, stir the dough with a wooden spoon until it becomes too difficult and then turn it out onto the counter to knead by hand for 6 minutes or until elastic, adding as little extra flour as possible as you go.)
• Place the dough in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise on the counter until doubled in size, about 90 minutes. Meanwhile, make the filling: beat the butter by hand to soften it, and stir in the raspberry jam, vanilla and cinnamon.
• Generously grease a 12-inch ovenproof skillet, or a 10-inch (25-cm) or 12-inch (30-cm) round baking pan. Turn the risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll it into a rectangle about 20 × 10 inches.
• Spread the raspberry filling evenly over the dough and sprinkle the frozen raspberries on top. Starting at a long side, roll up the dough. Cut the roll in half widthwise, and then cut each piece in half lengthwise so you have 4 pieces, with the jam now exposed.
• Hold the first piece by the 2 short ends and twist them in opposite directions. Lay the twisted dough in the pan, with 1 end in the centre. Wrap the dough around the centre end in a spiral, working your way from the centre out toward the sides of the pan. Repeat with the 3 remaining pieces of dough, gradually enlarging the spiral so that it fills the pan-any spaces will fill in as the dough rises. Cover the pan with a tea towel and let the dough rise again at room temperature until almost doubled, 45 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Uncover the pan and bake until the wreath is an even golden brown, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before glazing. Whisk the icing sugar and milk together and drizzle over the wreath. Serve the wreath either directly from the pan or transfer it to a cutting board and slice it into wedges to serve.

LINZER DOILY WREATHS

Steps:

• Whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Beat the butter, granulated sugar and orange zest together in on medium-high speed in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix on low until just combined. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low until fully combined. Divide the dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to a day ahead.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
• Lightly flour a clean work surface and roll out one half of the dough until it is roughly 1/4-inch thick. Place a clean woven cloth doily over top of the dough (or multiple doilies, if they are smaller) and gently press down with the rolling pin to adhere the doily to the dough. Roll out the dough with the doily until it is closer to 1/8-inch thick. Carefully peel off the doily, leaving behind an impression. If the dough sticks to the counter, use a bench scraper or large offset spatula to gently release it, keeping the impression of the doily intact.
• Cut out circles from the dough with a 2 1/2-inch fluted round cutter. Cut out the center of the circles with a 1-inch fluted round cutter to create wreath shapes. Use an offset spatula to transfer the wreaths to the prepared sheet pans, spacing them 2 inches apart. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake until golden brown around the very edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Gather the scraps and roll them out again and repeat imprinting the dough with the doily, refrigerating the dough if it gets too soft.
• Roll out the second half of the dough but do not imprint with the doily (this will be the bottom half of the cookie); punch out wreaths with the fluted cutters and continue to freeze and bake, rolling out the scraps again.
• Cool the cookies on the tray for 10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
• Transfer the raspberry jam to a small piping bag and snip off the end. Pipe a ring of jam around each of the flat cookies, and then sandwich them with the textured cookies on top. Whisk together the confectioners' sugar, 3 tablespoons of water and 1 drop green gel food coloring. Adjust the color as desired. Use a pastry brush to spread the glaze over the tops of the cookies, then immediately place a red candy bow on each cookie. Let dry, about 30 minutes.

RASPBERRY CHEESE DANISH

Steps:

• In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar until smooth. Unroll crescent dough and separate into four rectangles; seal perforations. Cut each rectangle in half, making eight squares., Transfer squares to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spread 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture diagonally across each square. Top with 1 tablespoon jam. Bring two opposite corners of dough over filling; pinch together firmly to seal., Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Combine milk and remaining confectioners' sugar; drizzle over pastries. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers.

RASPBERRY JAM

Steps:

• Place 5 clean 8-ounce jars right side up on a rack in a boiling-water canner. Fill the canner and jars with hot water, about 1 inch above the tops of jars. Boil jars over high heat for 10 minutes. Remove and drain hot sterilized jars one at a time, reserving hot water for processing filled jars. Place jars on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.
• In a large saucepan filled with water, bring to a boil over high heat and reduce to a simmer, add clean lids and lid rings. Simmer for 10 minutes; do not boil, as this may cause problems in sealing jars. Drain lids and rings; set aside.
• Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook, stirring and skimming foam from surface, until mixture reaches 221 degrees on a candy thermometer, 5 to 10 minutes. To test, remove mixture from heat. Pour a small amount of jam on a cold plate and transfer to freezer, for 2 to 3 minutes. If mixture gels, it is ready to fill. If not, return to heat and retest.
• Fit a jar with a wide-mouth funnel. Ladle jam mixture into jar up to the fill line. Repeat process with remaining jars. Put lids and rings on jars and tighten; do not over-tighten. At this point, jam may be kept refrigerated, up to 1 month.
• To store jars at room temperature for up to one year, reheat water in the canner until it reaches at least 180 degrees, within 10 minutes of filling the jars. Place filled jars into the canner one at a time, using a jar lifter that is securely positioned below the neck of the jar. Keep jars upright at all times.
• Add more boiling water, if needed, so that water covers jars by at least 1 inch. Increase heat to high and cover. Once water begins boiling, heat jars for 5 minutes. Turn off heat and gently transfer jars to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet and invert, spacing each jar at least 1 inch apart. Avoid placing jars on a cold surface or near a cold draft.
• Let jars sit undisturbed until fully cooled, 12 to 24 hours. Do not tighten ring bands on the lids or push down on the center of the flat metal lid until jar has cooled completely.
• Once jars have cooled completely, test to make sure each jar is completely sealed. Press down on the middle of the lid with a finger. If lid springs up when finger is released, the jar is unsealed. Store sealed jars in a cool place for up to one year. If any of the jars are unsealed, store in the refrigerator and use within several days. Always refrigerate jam after opening.