Birebrot (Pear Bread)

Recipe from Four Seasons by Manuela Darling-Gansser (Hardie Grant Books, 2012)

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• 300 g (10 ½ oz) unbleached plain (all-purpose) flour
• 4 teaspoons caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry yeast
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 50 g (1 ¾ oz) unsalted butter
• 150 ml (5 fl oz) warm milk

Filling

• 250 g (9 fl oz) dried pears, soaked overnight in 100 ml (3 ½ fl oz) merlot
• 60 g(2 ¼ oz) each dried figs, pitted prunes and pitted dates
• 50 g (1 ¾ oz) brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon each ground gloves, ground cardamom and ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Grated zest of 1 organic lemon
• 100 ml (3 ½ fl oz) Nocino liqueur or kirsch
• 50 ml (1 ½ fl oz) rosewater

Eggwater

• 1 organic egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon milk or cream

This is a very traditional bread with a sweet fruit filling. We eat it for breakfast, as a snack during the day or after dinner with some cheese and fresh pears. Spread it with a little butter or, as the Swiss like to eat it, with cheese.

Place all the dough ingredients in a food processors and process using a dough hook for 5-10 minutes, until the dough is shiny and slightly elastic (when you press a finer into the dough, the impression should spring back slowly). You may need to add a little more milk if the dough seems too dry or more flour if too wet. Transfer the dough to a bowl, cover with a cloth and leave in a warm place for about 1 hour., or until it has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 200 °C (400°F/gas mark 6).

Place all the filling ingredients in a food processor and mix until you get a thick mass, ideally with some small chunks of fruit and nuts remaining.

Knock the air out of the dough and knead it for a few minutes. Roll the dough out to a thing rectangle  of about 30 X 40 cm (12x 16). Put the filling in the centre of the dough and shape it into a thick sausage running along the lengths of the dough. Wrap the dough around the filling making sure there are no gaps, and trim away any excess dough. Place the loaf on an oven tray lined with greaseproof (parchment) paper. Combine the egg wash ingredients and brush over the load. Pierce holes all over the loaf with a fork.

With the left-over dough you can make small decorations to go on top of the birebrot. Bake the bread in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden-brown.

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