Saint Lucia Crown Recipes

COFFEE CAKE CROWN

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer, stir together warm water, yeast, and a pinch of granulated sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 3/4 cup milk in a small saucepan until just steaming. Remove pan from heat. Add saffron; cover, and let steep 5 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together saffron-milk mixture, butter, eggs, remaining sugar, and salt. Add to yeast mixture. Using the dough-hook attachment, beat until combined, about 1 minute. With mixer on low speed, add flour, 1 cup at a time, until dough pulls away from side of bowl but is still slightly sticky (you may not need the fifth cup of flour). Add raisins, cherries, and zest. Mix until elastic and smooth, 7 to 8 minutes.
• Place dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl, and loosely cover with oiled plastic wrap. Let dough rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight (let dough come to room temperature before proceeding).
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with rack in center. Punch down dough; divide into three equal pieces. Gently roll each into a rope, 18 to 20 inches long and about 1 1/2 inches thick. On a lightly floured work surface, lay ropes vertically in front of you. Working toward yourself, braid ropes; form into a circle, and pinch ends together to seal. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; loosely cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap; let rise 20 minutes.
• In a small bowl, whisk egg yolk and heavy cream. Brush dough with egg wash. Bake 15 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Continue baking until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool.
• When ready to serve, make icing: In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and remaining 2 tablespoons milk until smooth; drizzle over cake.

SAINT LUCIA'S SAFFRON CROWN

Steps:

• 1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk and add the butter,sugar, saffron, and salt, stirring until the butter has melted. Transfer tothe large bowl of a stand mixer and set aside to cool to lukewarm.2. In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water, stir to combine,and set aside.3. Add 3/4 cup flour to the milk mixture and mix on low speed until blended,about 1 minute. Beat in the egg yolk on medium speed until well blended, scrapingdown the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the yeastmixture until well blended. Gradually stir in enough of the remaining flour,a little at a time, to make a soft dough that pulls away from the sides ofthe bowl.4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead untilsmooth, satiny, and no longer sticky, 5 to 8 minutes. Knead in the raisins,golden raisins, mixed peel, and finely chopped almonds. Cut the dough into3 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball, then roll each one into a 24-inchlength. Lay the 3 lengths of dough, side by side, on a lightly oiled bakingsheet. Start braiding the lengths of dough loosely from the center to theends. Loop the braided dough into a ring, join the ends, and pinch together.Cover the braid and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.5. Preheat the oven to 375°F.6. Lightly beat the egg white and brush the ring with it. Sprinkle with thechopped blanched almonds and sugar. Bake until the top is golden brown andthe bread sounds hollow, about 25 minutes. Check the bread at 20 minutes and cover with foil if it starts to overbrown. Transfer to a rack to cool slightly. Decorate with small white candles and holders, holly leaves, and berries. Serve warm with softened butter.From Holiday Baking. Text copyright © 2005 by Sara Perry. Photographs copyright © 2005 by Leigh Beisch. All rights reserved. First published by Chronicle Books LLC, San Francisco, California.

SWEDISH ST. LUCIA BUNS

Steps:

• Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat just until bubbles form around the edge of the pan, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add sugar, butter, salt, and saffron, stirring until butter is melted. Let cool to lukewarm temperature, about 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle yeast over warm water in large bowl, stirring until dissolved. Stir in milk mixture and 3 1/2 cups flour until smooth, about 2 minutes. Stir in eggs. Add remaining flour gradually, mixing in the last by hand until dough leaves the sides of the bowl and is very soft.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover with a bowl and let rest for 10 minutes.
• Knead dough with additional flour as needed, about 5 minutes. Place dough in a lightly greased large bowl; flip dough to grease both sides. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 60 to 90 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet.
• Punch down dough. Take golf ball-sized bits of dough and roll out into snakes. Roll each end in opposite directions to create 'S' forms. Place buns on the prepared baking sheets.
• Combine egg yolk and water in a bowl with a whisk. Brush over buns.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 6 minutes. Remove from the oven, leaving oven on. Quickly place 1 raisin in the center of each 'S' curve.
• Return to the oven and continue to bake until golden and cooked through, about 6 minutes more. Let cool on a wire rack before serving.