This is a family traditional Christmas-time recipe that just the smell of this bread baking stirs so many wonderful memories to fill my heart. Great memories of sitting in the picture window of 34 Graystone Lane, Levittown, Pennsylvania as my Nana sliced and buttered raisin bread to eat with our hot tea. Also the memories of my mother’s kitchen with her mother-in-law supervising the kneading and baking of the bread. These two women were extreme influences of who I am today because of the love they showed me. (If it weren’t for that great love they’d killed me long ago!)
This raisin bread recipe was always used at some point during the Christmas season. My cousins in the north know this bread as "kern bread" shortened from "currant bread" that it was originally made with. We didn’t leave milk and cookies for Santa when I was growing up; we plated raisin bread with eggnog! Christmas breakfast almost always included sliced kern bread around the tree while opening gifts.
The aroma this bread distributes while baking in the house is absolutely heavenly. This bread recipe is an ALL-DAY work of love, maybe which is why it tastes so wonderful!
The ingredients:
5lb bag all purpose flour
½ lb light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar + 1 tsp for yeast mixture
1 Tbsp salt
1 heaping tsp cinnamon
1 heaping tsp allspice
1 heaping tsp ground cloves
½ cup of molasses
½ cup of milk
2 Tbs instant coffee
3 packs dry yeast (rapid rise)
1½ lbs raisins
3 eggs
4 cups water, divided (1½ for yeast, 2½ for dough)
1 cup of Crisco shortening
The Directions:
1. Soak raisins in a large bowl with hot tap water for 30 minutes then drain.
2. In a small bowl put yeast a teaspoon of sugar and 1½ cup of water (check yeast instructions for water temp - usually 110-120) Let this sit for about five minutes. It should begin foaming if the yeast is active.
3. In large mixing bowl pour half of the flour, and mix in other dry ingredients making a hole in the middle of the flour.
4. Add 2½ cups water, eggs, milk, shortening and yeast mixture.
5. Add flour and raisins a little at a time. (an extra set of hands will reduce the mess) Mix by hand- squeezing, turning, folding, swirling - until it won’t stick to fingers. At this point I move it to a lightly floured surface and continue to work the dough folding, and pushing away, then quarter turn and repeat until the dough is springy to touch. Form into a ball and place in a grease bowl
6. Cover bowl and keep warm until doubles in size (about 2½ to 3 hours). This seems a long rise for bread, but due to all the fruit, and other ingredients the yeast needs more time to work. I use my oven on PROOF setting, but sometimes use my laundry room when washing with hot water and drying towels. The small room stays warm.
7. When the dough has doubled, punch it down in the bowl to flatten out the air. Pour out onto a lightly floured surface. It's important to NOT knead at this point, but to press the dough down. It's okay to fold it once or twice, and press down, not the kneading motion as earlier. Now, cut into separate loaf sizes, then roll into loaves and place into greased and floured pans.
8. Cover with plastic wrap (spray the bread side with non-stick spray) and let rise to double in size again. (about an hour)
9. Bake at 325 for 40-50 minutes. Remove from pans and spread tops with Crisco or Margarine. Make sure you have an oven thermometer to set or hang inside the oven. (Every make and model heats differently and changes over time. I have over cooked one batch due to the control setting and actual heat not matching by about 40 degrees!)
10. Allow to cool completely on wire racks before slicing.
Enjoy!
