Cranberry & Cheese Filled Yeasted Coffee Braid

From the blog For Love of the Table

1/4 c. (56 g.) lukewarm water

2 1/4 t. active dry or instant yeast

1/2 c. (121 g.) sour cream

4 T. (56 g.) unsalted butter, sliced 1/4-inch thick and softened

1 large egg

3 c. (360 g.) unbleached all-purpose flour, divided

3 T. (37 g.) sugar

1 t. salt

8-oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/3 c. (67 g.) sugar

Zest of one orange, optional

1/2 t. almond extract or 1 t. vanilla

1 egg yolk

2/3 c. (200 g.) fruit filling (see below)

1 large egg white beaten until frothy with 1 T. cold water

Turbinado or coarse white sparkling sugar, for sprinkling

Place the water in a mixing bowl and scatter in the yeast. Whisk or stir to dissolve. Add the remaining ingredients in the order listed, adding only 340 grams of the flour and making sure the salt doesn’t touch the yeast-water mixture directly. Mix and knead (by hand or mixer fitted with a dough hook) until you have a smooth, velvety dough. The dough will be very dry at first; resist the urge to add more liquid. It'll come together and smooth out as you knead. Once the dry ingredients are absorbed (and this only takes a minute or two) the dough may begin to stick. Use small increments of the extra 20 grams of flour…and the help of your bench scraper…to keep the dough from sticking. It is unlikely that you will need all of the reserved flour.

Place the dough in a lightly buttered bowl or other container, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight (and up to three or four days). It may or may not look risen when you pull it out to use it. That's OK.

When you are ready to bake, make the filling: Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, zest (if using), extract and egg yolk. Set aside. If the fruit filling is very stiff, give it a stir to smooth it out..

Divide the chilled dough into two pieces. Working with one piece at a time (and keeping the other chilled), flatten/pat/roll it into a 10" x 15" rectangle. Transfer the rectangle to a piece of parchment paper.

Spread half of the sweetened cream cheese down the center third of the rectangle. Leave 1/4- to 1/2-inch of dough bare at each end. Spread a thin film of the fruit filling over the cream cheese…being careful to not let it drip over the edge of the cream cheese. You will be tempted to add more fruit filling…but don’t. A third of a cup is plenty.

Using a pizza cutter (or a sharp knife), cut 12 to 13 slightly slanting lines down each side—angling the cuts from the edge of the filling to the outside edge of the dough. The cuts should be a generous one inch apart and should start about 1/4- to 1/2-inch away from the edge of the cream cheese. Fold the strips of dough over the filling, criss-crossing the strips by alternating a strip from the left with a strip from the right. Lightly press/pinch at the two ends to seal. Transfer the braid to a sheet pan and cover loosely with greased/sprayed plastic wrap.

Repeat the process with the remaining piece of dough. Transfer the braids to the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight. Pull the braids out of the fridge and let them warm up a bit (20 minutes or so) while the oven preheats. Or, let the braids rise at room temperature for 60 minutes (if you want to bake them the same day you form them). Whether you choose a traditional rise at room temperature or an overnight cold rise, the loaves will not “double in bulk.” They might look a bit puffy, but that is all. This is how it should be.

To finish and bake: Brush the egg white/water mixture over the loaves. Sprinkle generously with the coarse sugar.

Bake the coffeecakes in a preheated 375°F oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until they're puffed and golden brown. The fruit filling and/or cheese might be bubbling or oozing a bit. This is fine. Remove the loaves from the oven, and place them on a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm.

Store any leftovers, well-wrapped, in the freezer. To serve, thaw, and then reheat in a 350°F oven, tented with foil, for about 10 minutes.

(Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour’s Jam-Filled Sour Cream Coffee Bread)

Notes:

Although you can put both of the loaves on one sheet pan, I find that they bake best on two sheets. When one is done, just slide the second one into the oven…or bake on separate racks, rotating half way through the baking time.
If you like, drizzle the finished braids with a thick glaze made from 1 c. powdered sugar mixed with 1 1/2 T. (or so) of milk. When drizzled with icing, the loaves also look pretty with a few sliced, toasted almonds sprinkled over (especially if you have used almond extract in the cheese filling).
I prefer to make this recipe with a final, overnight, cold rise (rather than a traditional room temperature rise). The finished loaf isn’t quite as puffy…and looks very much like a traditional Danish when done this way. It also fits beautifully into a busy schedule. Just make the dough in the morning of the day before you want to serve. Put the dough in the fridge. Then, form the loaf/loaves right before you go to bed. In the morning, all you have to do is bake and eat/serve. (But the loaf is delicious either way.)

Fruit Fillings

Cranberry-orange (my favorite for the holidays): Place 12 oz. of cranberries in a saucepan with 1 c. sugar and the juice of one orange (about 1/3 c. juice). Bring to a boil. Simmer briskly until most of the cranberries have popped and the mixture is thickened—about 6 minutes. Makes a scant 2 cups thick compote. Chill before using.

Dried Apricot: Place 1 cup of dried apricots in a saucepan with 3/4 cup of water and 1/2 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook until the fruit is puffy and any remaining liquid is syrupy (about 15 minutes). Transfer to the food processor and process to form a coarse purée. Taste and add more sugar or lemon juice to obtain the desired sweetness. Add 1/4 t. almond or vanilla extract, if desired. Chill before using. Makes about 1 cup fruit purée.

Quick Berry Jam: Place 3 cups of berries (fresh or frozen) in a saucepan with 1 c. sugar and 1 T. lemon juice. Crush the berries if desired. Bring to a boil. Skim off and discard any foam that comes to the surface. Simmer briskly until thickened—about 8 to 10 minutes (a candy thermometer will read 218° to 220°). Makes about 1 1/3 cups jam. Chill before using. You may also use commercial jam. If the jam seems drippy or thin, dissolve 3/4 t. cornstarch in a small amount (1 t. or less) of water and stir it into 2/3 cup of the jam before spreading over the cheese.

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