Scandinavian Bread: Winter Bread

A traditional Finnish Christmas bread is marked with a cross on the top, sweet and full with spices. A good addition is leftover mash as many Finns are brewing kotikalja (a malty low-alcohol, home-made table beer closely resembling kvass) for Christmas. This is one version of these breads, which are lovely addition to breakfast breads throughout the winter.

1 bread 

2 dl (200 g) mash and 1,5 dl (150 g) water 

or 3 dl (300 g) boiling water and 0,5 dl (40 g) rye malt 

30 g fresh yeast 

1 tsp salt 

1 dl (140 g) Scandinavian dark syrup (or light molasses) 

3 tsp Seville orange peel powder (bitter orange peel powder) 

2 dl (230 g) sugared lingonberry mash 

2 dl (100 g) rye flour 

9 dl (500 g) dark wheat flour 

50 g butter 

For the glaze: 

syrup water (half and half) 

Stir the yeast, salt and syrup into the lukewarm mash and water mix. Add Seville orange peel powder and sugared lingonberry mash. Gradually mix in the flours and knead the dough for couple of minutes. Add soft butter and knead for further 8 minutes. 

Cover and leave to rise at room temperature for 30 minutes. 

Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it gently. Take a piece of dough aside. Form the rest of the dough into a round loaf and place it on the baking tray. Decorate the bread with the piece of dough you set aside using water as a glue. 

Cover and leave to rise for 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Brush with syrup water and bake for an hour and 15 minutes. Brush with syrup water after an hour again and the third time 10 minutes later. 

Cover and let cool on a wire rack.