What a surprise this Fruity Santa Bread will be when it is brought to the table with the other sweets! Chock-full of fruits and nuts, the bread will be sure to please all the good and naughty kids around.
Lots of bread baking in the air and #twelveloaves is a great group where we bake a bread with the addition of the monthly theme flavor or ingredient. And keeping with the season, we were asked to prepare a Holiday bread. An online search brought on a list of the same old thing until this chosen one grabbed by attention big time. Could I actually make the Fruity Santa Bread to look like Santa?
Turns out the answer is yes! Do not get intimidated by the Santa shape. I have included the steps from the Golden Santa Bread original post at Taste of Home. I could not get over this find and just had to try it.
I changed it to a Fruity Santa Bread recipe a lot by using whole wheat flour and filling it with dried cherries, raisins and nuts. I feared it may interfere with the shaping but it did not. The red hat, cheeks and nose are just so clever: just add a few drops of red food coloring to the egg yolk wash!
Credit tasteofhome.com/recipes/golden-santa-bread
#TwelveLoaves is a monthly bread baking party created by Lora from Savoring Italy and runs smoothly with the help of Heather of All Roads Lead to the Kitchen, and the rest of our fabulous bakers.
This month we are baking Holiday Breads that are perfect to celebrate the holiday season. For more bread recipes, visit the #TwelveLoaves Pinterest board, or check out last month’s inspiring selection of #TwelveLoaves Thanksgiving Biscuits and Rolls!
- Buttermilk Honey Santa Bread from Kudos Kitchen
- Cranberry Cinnamon Swirl Bread from Baking in Pyjamas
- Christmas Morning Crown from All That’s Left are the Crumbs
- Cranberry Orange Muffins from Hostess at Heart
- Fruity Santa Bread from Cheap Ethnic Eatz
- Pandolce Genovese from Savoring Italy
- Pecan Kringle from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- The Precise Kitchen Elf’s Panettone from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
If you’d like to bake along with us this month, share your Holiday Breads using hashtag #TwelveLoaves!
This is definitely a sweet bread that one should serve with coffee or desserts. And it is a very dense bread that barely rose at all. Perhaps it was my switching completely to whole wheat flour or adding too many fruits? If you want a lighter one you should follow the original recipe with regular flour and not filling. But I like my Fruity Santa Bread as is and he lost parts of his beard as soon as he cooled enough to eat hi hi!
Fruity Santa Bread
Ingredients
- 3 to 3-1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 packages 1/4 ounce each active dry yeast
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup butter cubed
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup dried cherries
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup nuts
- 1 egg
- 2 to 3 drops red food coloring
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Heat milk, water and butter to 120°-130°. Mix in with dry ingredients until moistened. Beat in eggs until smooth. Add cherries, raisins and nuts; mix well. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a ball dough. Kneed on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top, and cover and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°. Divide into two portions, one slightly larger than the other.
- Shape the larger portion into an elongated triangle with rounded corners for Santa's head and hat.
- Divide rest of dough in half. Make a elongated half circle with one half of dough for the beard. Using scissors cut into strips to within 1 in. of top. Place on Santa's face; twist strips.
- Use the remaining dough for the mustache, nose, pompom and brim. For the mustache flatten and cut the ends into small strips with scissors. Place above beard. Place a small ball above mustache for nose. Fold tip of hat over and add pompom. Roll out a narrow piece of dough to create a hat brim; position under hat. Keep 2 dried cherries and use as the eyes.
- Separate yolk from egg white. In a bowl beat egg yolk and add red food coloring; brush over hat, nose and cheeks. Brush egg white over remaining dough.
- Cover loosely with foil and bake 15 minutes. Uncover; bake 20 minutes longer or until golden brown. Cool.
So very cute and so much work going into this bread! I love the details in the beard and my children will want to make this as soon as I show them!
Yay finally commenting worked. thank you Lora!
So we have two Santa breads! This looks wonderful, I love fruit filled breads.
I know what are the odds!
Way to go, Evelyne! How creative and cute! This would definitely be a hit during the season and be delicious! All the fruits in it are great, and all I need is a little kid around to see and enjoy it!
Adults can be kids, I giggle every time I take a bit lol
This is so cute! I love it! You are so skillful!
Thanks Katerina 🙂
It takes such skill to be able to make this look just like a santa head.. and I love it. I’m not sure if I will eat a fruit bread or a cake, but I would definitely show this creation off. Beautiful Evelyne.
Kia / KTS
http://www.houseofkts.com
It is really not hard Kia and I added the fruits, you can do it sans!
Looks like we had the same idea this month. I really love that you’ve added nuts and dried fruit, and I love the twisty beard.
I know love that we did the same idea with different results!
SO cute!! I was going to say that if my kids were little, I’d definitely make this….but I’m thinking they’d love it even as young adults! What a fun baking project!
Fun for kids of all ages Liz!
You are so creative! What a cool bread!
Thanks Melanie 🙂
BAH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! THAT BREAD IS TOO FUNNY! Seriously, funny and a tiny tiny bit creepy 😉 Think Santa would like it more than cookies? lol
Hey meanie 😉 OK he may look angry a bit. I blame it on the cheeks, turned out more like warrior paint lol.
Wow! How cool is this?! Really fun shape — and it looks like Santa! Which of course was the whole point. 🙂 Really good stuff — thanks.
Yes I am so glad there is a resemblance lol, thank you John for stopping by!
Wow, your bread is adorable! This would be a great recipe to make with my daughter who enjoys baking too.
Totally a great one to do with kids, Thanks Felice!
Wow, that is amazing! Never thought to even try something like this 🙂
Thanks Tandy 🙂
Wow, this look so much fun…and I love the idea of lots of fruits in it…very cute your Santa!
Thanks for this awesome post Evelyne.
Have a wonderful week 🙂
Thank you Juliana, glad you like it 🙂 Have a wonderful week too!
What a fun thing to make!!! I does look like santa. Best it taste pretty great as well.
I impressed myself with the resemblance too, so any one can do ti lol
Wooohooooo Evelyne…..you go girl. Great job!
Thanks Wendy it was a fun one!
I love this! Your Santa bread is absolutely festive and looks amazing. I think I’m definitely going to make this!
So cool if you did Karyn, thanks!
Amazing as always! I can’t wait to show it to my boys…they are going to ask for it! Thanks for the step by step tutorial. Makes it look doable though quite fancy.
Oh your boys would love it, and maybe you’ll have a bit more success with the dough rising.
That is really so cute!! 😀
He he thanks Lorraine!
That is very clever!! I bet kids would love this!
Thanks Karen, great for kids and they can help make it!
So fun and adorable!
Thanks Angie!
This is so cool and fun way to celebrate the season.. loved the idea so much.
Thanks Amira, I know it i such a great idea!
Now this little guy is just adorable and so creative! Perfect for this month’s theme!
Is he not adorable 😀 Thanks Julie!
This looks like a fun idea!
Thanks Raymond fun to make too