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Christmas: Cherry Pecan Christmas Tree Coffeecake

Source of Recipe

Marjorie Johnson


List of Ingredients

1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)
2 packages active dry yeast
1/3 cup non fat dry milk
1/3 cup softened butter
1/3 cup honey
2 eggs
l teaspoon salt
3 1/2-4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped candied red and green cherries
1/2 cup chopped pecans



Recipe

Dissolve yeast in the water in a large bowl. Add dry milk, butter, honey, eggs, salt and 2 cups of the flour, and with an electric mixer beat for 4 minutes on medium speed. Add cherries and pecans and rest of flour to make a soft dough and knead by hand or bread hooks till smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in a greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down.
Make into Christmas trees. Take dough the size of a walnut and roll into a ball, place one ball at the top of a greased cookie sheet continue making balls of the dough and put 2 in the next row, following by a 3 ball row, then 4, then 5 and then put one ball beneath the 5th row in the middle for the trunk of the tree. Cover, let rise till double about 1 hour. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until light golden brown. Repeat process with the rest of the dough and make more trees. Two Christmas trees will fit on a cookie sheet. Dough can also be made into Christmas tree shapes in a greased Christmas tree cake pan or greased small invidiual jello molds.

YIELD: Makes 2 or more Christmas tree coffeecakes.

Decorate coffeecakes with powdered sugar icing and decorate with pieces of cherries and pecans.

---Powdered Sugar Icing---
l cup powdered sugar
l-2 tablespoons cream
l/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Place sugar in a bowl and add 1 tablespoon cream and extracts stir until smooth and add more cream to make the desired consistency. Dribble over the coffeecake and decorate with pieces of cherries and pecans.