Mincemeat, Marzipan, & Apple Bread Wreath

Mincemeat, Marzipan, and Apple Bread Wreath

Prep Time: 20 minutes, Cook Time: 30 minutes, Rising Time: 2 hours, Serving: 10 people

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 50 g (½ stick) unsalted butter (or a vegan block butter/margarine)

• 150 ml (⅔ cup) full-fat milk (or non-dairy milk)

• 300 g (2 ½ cups) strong white bread flour

• 8 g (2 ½ tsp) fast-acting yeast

• ½ tsp salt

• 50 g (¼ cup) sugar

• 1 large egg (or a flax egg - 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 3 Tbsp water)

Filling:

• one 411g jar mincemeat

• 350 g (12 oz) marzipan diced

• 1 cup Toffee Apple Jam

• 2 Tbsp Stone Fruit Jam

• 100 g (1 cup) icing (powdered) sugar sifted

• a drop of milk

Instructions:

1. Heat the milk in a small pan with the butter until melted; remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly. You should be able to hold your finger in it with no discomfort.

2. Tip the flour into the bowl of a food mixer with the sugar, yeast, and salt, then mix. Lightly beat the egg in a cup. Pour the lukewarm buttery milk into the flour and add the beaten egg. Mix to combine, scraping down the sides as necessary, until a dough is formed. Then knead the dough for 5 minutes with a dough hook in the mixer, on a medium speed until smooth and elastic. Or, mix the ingredients in a bowl by hand, making a well in the center of the flour to pour the egg and buttery milk into, mix, and then bring the dough together with your hands before kneading it for 10 minutes on an un-floured work surface. It should be sticky at first but become smooth as you knead it.

3. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave it to rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until it has more or less doubled in size. Alternatively, place the bowl in the fridge and leave it to rise overnight.

4. Turn the risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Without knocking it back, roll out the dough into a large rectangle about 33x25cm/13x10in. in size.

5. Spread over the mincemeat evenly then scatter over the diced marzipan and Toffee Apple Jam.

6. Roll the dough up from one of the long edges into a log. Slice the log in half lengthways, exposing the filling. Twist the two halves together then shape them into a circle, pinching the ends together to seal. Transfer onto a baking sheet lined with baking parchment, loosely cover with oiled clingfilm and set aside to rise for about an hour until the dough is puffy and springs back slowly when you press it with a finger.

7. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F/180C/gas mark 4. Bake the bread for about 30-40 minutes until well risen, golden, and cooked through - the internal temperature should reach at least 202F/94C. Cover loosely with tin foil partway through baking if the top starts to color too much.

8. Leave the bread to cool on the tray before serving. While the loaf is cooling, heat the Stone Fruit Jam with a splash of water in a small pan over medium heat until runny, then brush the Stone Fruit Jam all over the warm bread to glaze. Set aside to cool completely.

9. Just before serving, in a bowl mix the icing sugar with enough milk to form a runny icing and drizzle it all over the wreath.