We Want The Food Grandma Made For Us | IowaLife
Our Christmas Bread Tradition
The tradition lives on even 11 years after this article was published. Our family recipe was brought over from Norway in 1897 by Robert’s great grandmother. The recipe has survived over the years even as distance has separated the family. Read the IowaLife article to learn why this recipe is so important to our family!
Keep scrolling for our Family Recipe!
Our Family Recipe
Norwegian Julekake (Christmas Bread)
INGREDIENTS
For the Bread
2 cups scalded milk
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 1/3 TB ground cardamom seed (fresh ground is best)
1 TB salt
3 packets active dry yeast plus ¼ cup warm water
8 cups all-purpose flour
(flour amount is an approximation – may need a bit more or a bit less)
2 eggs beaten
1 ½ cups raisins
1 cup citron
Mix For the Glaze
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup boiling water
Pour scalded milk over the butter, sugar, salt and ground cardamom, mix. Cool to lukewarm
Proof the yeast – Dissolve 1 tsp sugar in 1/2 cup water (water should be warm to the touch, 100-110 degrees) add 3 packets of yeast to the sugar solution and let yeast bloom
When milk mixture is cool, add well beaten eggs plus the prepped yeast
Add 4 cups flour – mix well – beat until smooth
Add remaining flour, citron and raisins – mix into the dough– gently mix until dough pulls away from sides of bowl
Pour onto a lightly floured board, knead for 5 Minutes. You may need to add a bit of flour if the texture is too loose. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size – about 1 hour. (I raise the temperature in my house while making the bread – In the past the bread didn't rise since the house was too cold)
Knead lightly to remove gas, let rise 45 minutes more.
Divide loaves into 3 equal parts, place them into well greased round pans.
Traditionally we take a 2 inch round glass and punch it down in the middle of the loaf, then take a knife and cut deeply all the way around the glass. Remove glass
Preheat oven to 350 Degrees
Let rise for another 1 ½ hours – until doubled in size
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, then at 300 for 45 minutes
Remove from pans and apply glaze while still warm
