Our traditional Christmas breakfast is a batch of bear claws made of
flaky, buttery Dansih pastry. If I share the recipe, can anyone suggest
anything as special for Christmas morning that doesn't take quite so
much butter? We tend to pack in a bit too much butter over the
holidays.

Bear Claws

Note: All that chilling makes the difference between elegant perfect
Danish and a gooey mess that has to be slipped into the wastebasket.
Don't skip the chilling!

1 1/2 cups butter
1/3 cup flour
3/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 egg
2 pkts yeast
1/2 cup warm water
4 cups flour
One small can almond filling
One cup of powdered sugar icing (powdered sugar and water)
Shaved almonds (optional)

Cream butter and 1/3 cup flour. Roll between waxed paper to 12" by 6".
Chill.

Mix milk, sugar, salt, and egg. Proof yeast in water and add it. Add 4
cups flour. Knead. Roll to a 14" square. Lay the chilled butter sheet
on half of it and fold the other half over. Seal. Roll out to 20" by
12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an hour.

Roll out to 20" by 12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an hour.

Roll out to 20" by 12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an hour.

Roll out to 20" by 12". Chill half an hour.

Cut 24 rectangles about twice as long as they are wide. Spread half of
each with:

Almond filling (about half a tablespoon).

Fold rectangles in half to cover the filling and make each one roughly
square. On each square, use a sharp knife to make three short clips in
the side away from the fold to make the four toes of the bear's paw.
(If bear claws are made on Christmas Eve for Christmas morning, they
can be covered and chilled overnight at this point. In the morning,
continue.)

Let rise in a warm place (but not warm enought to melt out the butter)
for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until double. Bake 8-10 minutes at 450 degrees.
Spread on the icing or put the icing in a plastic bag, cut the corner
off, and pipe it on in swirls. Sprinkle claws with shaved almonds if
desired.

"Kathy" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Our traditional Christmas breakfast is a batch of bear
> claws made of
> flaky, buttery Dansih pastry. If I share the recipe, can
> anyone suggest
> anything as special for Christmas morning that doesn't
> take quite so
> much butter? We tend to pack in a bit too much butter over
> the
> holidays.
>
> Bear Claws
>
> Note: All that chilling makes the difference between
> elegant perfect
> Danish and a gooey mess that has to be slipped into the
> wastebasket.
> Don't skip the chilling!
>
> 1 1/2 cups butter
> 1/3 cup flour
> 3/4 cup warm milk
> 1/4 cup sugar
> 1 tsp salt
> 1 egg
> 2 pkts yeast
> 1/2 cup warm water
> 4 cups flour
> One small can almond filling
> One cup of powdered sugar icing (powdered sugar and water)
> Shaved almonds (optional)
>
> Cream butter and 1/3 cup flour. Roll between waxed paper
> to 12" by 6".
> Chill.
>
> Mix milk, sugar, salt, and egg. Proof yeast in water and
> add it. Add 4
> cups flour. Knead. Roll to a 14" square. Lay the chilled
> butter sheet
> on half of it and fold the other half over. Seal. Roll out
> to 20" by
> 12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an hour.
>
> Roll out to 20" by 12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an
> hour.
>
> Roll out to 20" by 12". Fold in thirds. Chill half an
> hour.
>
> Roll out to 20" by 12". Chill half an hour.
>
> Cut 24 rectangles about twice as long as they are wide.
> Spread half of
> each with:
>
> Almond filling (about half a tablespoon).
>
> Fold rectangles in half to cover the filling and make each
> one roughly
> square. On each square, use a sharp knife to make three
> short clips in
> the side away from the fold to make the four toes of the
> bear's paw.
> (If bear claws are made on Christmas Eve for Christmas
> morning, they
> can be covered and chilled overnight at this point. In the
> morning,
> continue.)
>
> Let rise in a warm place (but not warm enought to melt out
> the butter)
> for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until double. Bake 8-10 minutes at
> 450 degrees.
> Spread on the icing or put the icing in a plastic bag, cut
> the corner
> off, and pipe it on in swirls. Sprinkle claws with shaved
> almonds if
> desired.
>

-= Exported from BigOven =-

Cinnamon Nut Rolls

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 12
Cuisine:
Main Ingredient:
Categories: Yeastbreads

-= Ingredients =-
1 teaspoon Yeast ; quickrise
1/4 cup Butter
1 cup Milk ; plus
1/8 cup Milk
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Sugar
4 cups Flour
4 tablespoons Gluten
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Butter ; for pan
1/4 cup Brown sugar ; packed - for
Pan
1/4 cup Butter ; for rolls
1/2 cup Brown sugar ; packed - for
Rolls
Walnuts
Cinnamon


-= Instructions =-
Warm milk and add eggs to make 1 1/2 cups. Put in mixer
bowl or pan. Melt butter and add to bowl. Add sugar,
salt, 4 cups flour and gluten. Add yeast last. Turn on
mixer with dough hook and mix well then let knead for 10
minutes. Let rise till over double. Or turn breadmaker
on in dough mode. Cream together 1/4 cup brown sugar and
1/4 cup butter and spread in bottom of a 8X12 pan. Roll
out 12 x 16. Spread with 1/4 cup butter and sprinkle with
brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle nuts or raisins over
surface as desired and press all down. Roll up tightly
and cut in 2 inch sections. Place slices cut side down
about an inch apart in pan and let rise till doubled in a
warm, draft free place, covered with a tea towel. Bake at
375 for 25 minutes. Recipe and MM by H PeagramPer Serving
(excluding unknown items): 345 Calories; 13g Fat (34.9%
calories from fat); 6g Protein; 50g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary
Fiber; 65mg Cholesterol; 320mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2
Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 2 1/2 Fat; 1
Other Carbohydrates.Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0


** This recipe can be pasted into BigOven without retyping.
**
** Easy recipe software. Try it free at:
http://www.bigoven.com **




--
Helen in beautiful Fergus, Ontario Canada ~~ RVTOBFREE
www.mompeagram.homestead.com/

On 18 Dec 2005 20:48:57 -0800, "Kathy" > wrote:

> Our traditional Christmas breakfast is a batch of bear claws made of
> flaky, buttery Dansih pastry. If I share the recipe, can anyone suggest
> anything as special for Christmas morning that doesn't take quite so
> much butter? We tend to pack in a bit too much butter over the
> holidays.

Your recipe is nearly identical to Mom's. But her directions were
pretty sparse. Would it be alright with you if I added your
directions to her recipe? I would give credit to you, of course.


Here's a coffee cake that Mom made every year. Her's was called Peach
Flip, and she made it with apricot jam. When I stuck it into
MasterCook, I changed it to almond filling and cut the recipe in half:


* Exported from MasterCook *

Almond Flip

Recipe By amsel
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
---Dough---
1 package yeast -- softened in...
1/4 cup warm water
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk -- scalded
1 teaspoon salt
1 whole egg
1 egg white
2 1/2 cups flour -- or more if needed
---Filling---
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped almonds
2 tablespoons butter
1 can Solo almond filling
---Frosting---
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk -- or as needed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons sliced almonds -- for garnish

Soften yeast in the water. In a bowl, combine the sugar, butter, milk
and salt. Cool and stir in the eggs and softened yeast. Gradually
blend in the flour. Knead on a floured surface for 3 to 5 minutes.
Place in a greased bowl and let rise for 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in
size.

Combine the sugar, cinnamon and nuts. Roll out the dough on a lightly
floured surface in a 20-by-10-inch rectangle. Spread dough with 2
tablespoons butter and 1/2 can almond filling. Sprinkle with the
cinnamon mixture. Roll up, starting with the long side. Seal edges and
ends. Place, seam side down, on a greased cookie sheet, curving ends
to make a U shape. With scissors, make a cut down the center, 1/3 of
the way through the roll, leaving 2 inches at both ends. Allow roll
to rise for 30 minutes. Spoon remaining almond filling down the center
of roll. Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes. Frost when slightly cooled,
sprinkle with sliced almond, and serve.

Source:
"Pat Zastera (Damsel's Mom)"
Yield:
"1 coffee cake"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

NOTES : Mom used to make this with apricot preserves. The original
name was Peach Flip.

Thanks for your mom's coffeecake. I haven't anything like that and that
might be just the thing.

The Danish part of my bearclaw recipe is so close to the one in the
Sunset Breads book that I suspect it was at some point a copy from
there. No need to credit me, since I have an anonymous hand-me-down
anyway.

The only part that's mine is the trick of stopping the process and
throwing the unrisen rolls in the fridge on Christmas Eve so they're
baked fresh and hot on Christmas morning. If you haven't tried that,
it's worth doing!

Kathy

On 19 Dec 2005 15:28:04 -0800, "Kathy" > wrote:

> Thanks for your mom's coffeecake. I haven't anything like that and that
> might be just the thing.
>
> The Danish part of my bearclaw recipe is so close to the one in the
> Sunset Breads book that I suspect it was at some point a copy from
> there. No need to credit me, since I have an anonymous hand-me-down
> anyway.
>
> The only part that's mine is the trick of stopping the process and
> throwing the unrisen rolls in the fridge on Christmas Eve so they're
> baked fresh and hot on Christmas morning. If you haven't tried that,
> it's worth doing!

Thanks for the tip! And the directions.

Carol