Vanochka - Christmas Plait
This recipe and photos was supplied by a Laucke customer - Laura Gilbertson.
Ingredients
| Weight/ Volume |
Ingredients | Volumetric Measure |
|---|---|---|
| 6 g | Wallaby dry yeast | 2 tsp |
| 600 g | Laucke Crusty White Flour | 3¾ cups |
| 130 g | Butter | ½ cup |
| 25 g | Sugar | 2 tbsp |
| 14 g | Vanilla Sugar | 1 tbsp |
| 2 g | Grated Lemon Rind | 1 tspn |
| Pinch | Salt | pinch |
| 1 | Egg | 1 |
| 350 ml | Milk including egg | |
| 30 g | Candied lemon peel or orange and lemon | ⅓ cup |
| 30 g | Slithered Almonds | ¼ cup |
| 40 g | Sultanas | ¼ cup |
Method
The Dough
Place all ingredients into your bread maker in order as per the Ingredients List.
Then crack an egg into a measuring jug and top up with milk until you have 350 ml in total. Add this mixture to the other ingredients in the bread maker.
Set bread maker on dough mode.
If you have a fruit alarm, place 40 g of sultanas in when the alarm sounds, if not place sultanas in during the last mixing stage, otherwise the sultanas will fall to bits.When dough is ready, remove from bread maker bowl, place in oiled container with a lid and let rise until almost double.
To make the Christmas Plait
Preheat the oven to 180ºC fan forced or 200ºC standard oven.
Divide dough into 8 equal pieces. Use 4 pieces to make the bottom plait.
For the 4 strand plait place the extended single strands on a slightly floured surface joining all four tips at the far end.Then without too much tension, take the far right strand, and bring it across the next one, then take the far left strand and cross it over two strands. Repeat this process until you get to the end and then press the ends together.
Use 3 strands to make the second plait and place this onto the large 4 plait.
Divide the last piece of dough into 2, twist together to make a rope shape and place this on top of the triple plait. You can use tooth picks or skewers to hold Vanochka in place.
Allow to proof / rise until risen by about 1/3rd.
Brush with beaten egg, and place whole blanched almonds on as you like, or just sprinkle slithered almonds on.
Bake until nicely browned top and bottom, or about 20 – 25 minutes.
