Catholic Recipe: Hogmanay Bread
The Scots call New Year's Eve "Hogmanay." In some parts of Scotland, children traditionally go from door to door, singing this plea for holiday bread:
Hogmanay, Trollolay, Hogmanay, Trollolay, Give us of your white bread, And none of your gray!
Hogmanay bread, or "black bun," is part of the traditional New Year's celebration in Scotland. Try this fruit and nut bread once, and you'll know why it's recalled so fondly by the Scots. -Kathy Cutler
DIRECTIONS
1. Soak orange peel, lemon peel, almonds, raisins, currants, and spices in rum or brandy for 2 hours. (You may prefer soaking the fruit overnight.)
2. Combine 2 cups flour, yeast, salt, butter, and hot water. Mix well.
3. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth - about 10 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning to coat top.
4. Cover; let rise in warm place until double - about 1 hour.
5. Punch down dough. Reserve 1/3 dough. Cover and set aside.
6. Knead in the fruit. Make a 6-inch ball.
7. Using the 1/3 dough reserved, make a 12-inch circle. Place fruit ball in center of this circle and fold dough over it.
8. Grease an 8-inch cake pan. Flatten and pierce dough completely through all over with skewer or something similar. (This allows the steam to escape during baking.) Place in pan.
9. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven 11/2 hours. It is necessary to remove from pan the last 20 minutes and continue baking to brown the sides. Cool on wire rack.
Note: This bread has a lot of fruit. You may prefer reducing the amount of fruit by one-third.
Recipe Source: Festive Bread Book, The by Kathy Cutler, Barron's Educational Series, Inc., 1982
