Christmas Cake and Let’s Make and Freeze Holiday Baking Ahead of Time – Step 4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With an organized kitchen, it’s much easier to find time to bake. We don’t have to do all our holiday baking in one session. There a several things that we can do in advance.

Make and Freeze Cookie Dough Ahead of Time

If your baking includes many different types of cookies, it’s easy to make the cookie dough in advance, and then freeze it.  Shaped cookies like Holiday Pinwheels, Honey Cookies, Sugar Cookies or Ice Box Cookies are good ones for mixing and freezing the dough ahead. These are cookies that use butter or shortening as the base. Do not use this method with meringue-type cookies. They are not good candidates for freezing. A good source for a variety of cookie recipes is my Cookie Magic book. Check it out on Amazon. The eBook version is on free download for Nov.10 and 11. Enjoy!

One good freezing method is to wrap the cookie dough into a long roll with parchment paper, then put it into a zippered freezer bag. Be sure to label the dough so that you know what type of cookies they are. On the label, write the baking temperature as well as the baking time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, any time you have an extra 20 minutes you can grab the dough, cut it into cookie-sized bites, place them on your cookie sheet and bake them. This method allows you to use your limited time better. You can make the cookie dough a week or more in advance of baking. You can make it one day when you have 30 minutes, freeze, and then make the cookies another day. After you’ve cooked dinner is a great time to bake cookies because the oven is already hot and ready. After the cookies are cooked, cool them and freeze them again for use on the big day.

 

Make and Freeze Yeast-Based Dough in Advance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the more time-consuming baking items for holiday baking can be making rolls and yeast breads. Fortunately, you can actually freeze them ahead of time. The trick is to only let the bread rise once, then shape it into a proximity of the shape you will bake it in, wrap with butcher paper, freeze solid, then put it in an air tight freezer bag. Label it, with the cooking temperature, cooking time, and type of bread.

To prepare the frozen bread dough, the day before you want to bake it put it in the prepared baking pan you want to use, cover the dough with plastic wrap, and then put it in the fridge. Alternatively, you can let it thaw on the counter in the prepared baking pan. It will take about three to five hours. The second rise happens as it thaws. Once raised, bake as usual.

 

You can also freeze cooked bread. The trick is to cook it a little less than you normally would for serving, until it’s done but very light in color. Take it out of the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack. Then, wrap the bread with parchment paper, then plastic wrap and toss into a zipper freezer bag. Freeze. When you are ready to enjoy it, take it out in the morning that you plan to use it. You can reheat it in the oven for three to five minutes just before serving.

Make and Freeze Cakes in Advance

When you make and freeze a cake in advance, you don’t have to frost it. Just bake the layers of your cake and cool completely. Wrap with parchment paper, freeze until solid, and then put into freezer bags. It’s important to have a large freezer to make this work. Simply unwrap and thaw on the day you plan to ice the cakes. You can actually frost cakes that aren’t completely thawed with good results.

If you have the room, you can even fully frost and prepare a cake, then freeze it, thawing the day you want to serve it: allow about 5 hours to fully defrost. You can get good cake boxes at a baking supply store and sometimes arts and craft stores. You can also use items you already have. The trick is to fully protect the cake from freezer burn by using parchment paper that is greased to prevent it from sticking to the cake. Once the cake is fully frozen, you can put the wrapped cake into a metal pan and back in the freezer. The pan will protect the cake. Take note that fat-free cakes and desserts do not freeze as well and neither does cream or whipped cream fillings. As with anything you freeze, label it well.

These tricks will help you find more time to get baking done because you soon realize you do not have to do it all in one day. You can do a little bit, each day, over a few weeks if desired and have delicious and wonderful results.

Aunt Helen’s Christmas Cake

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aunt Helen was my mother-in-law’s  oldest sister. Originally she had lived in Pennsylvania (which explains many of my Pennsylvania Dutch recipes), but in their later years, she and Uncle Abe moved to Fort Myers, Florida. We loved to visit! She was a fabulous cook!

Many of my Christmas recipes came from her via my mother-in-law. One recipe that I treasure is her Christmas cake recipe. This recipe comes from Aunt Helen’s time in Florida. Rumor has it that it was originally described as a date nut loaf, but Aunt Helen made the recipe her own and now it holds pride of place as our family Christmas cake that we wouldn’t be without. We love it because there are more nuts and fruit than batter in the cake, so it tastes almost like a special holiday candy.

Today I am going to start my Christmas Cake. I will not have to freeze it before Christmas, because a fruitcake needs time to ripen…time for the flavors of the fruit and nuts to mature in the batter. Fruitcakes are typically wrapped in a brandy-moistened cheesecloth and then wrapped in foil and stored in the fridge for about 4 to 6 weeks before serving. Any leftover cake can then be frozen to be served later. Old-fashioned Christmas cake can last in the freezer very well for at least 6 months if properly wrapped.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups whole blanched almonds

1 ½ cups walnut or pecan halves

1 cup whole fresh dates

1 cup candied cherries

2/3 cup candied orange peel

½ cup seedless raisins

¾ cup flour

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1 tablespoon brandy

Preparation:

Grease a 9 ½ x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan. Line with buttered parchment paper so that the paper extends about 1-inch above the pan edges. This aids in removing the cake from the pan after baking.

Preheat oven 300°F.

Method:

1. Combine nuts, fruit, peel, and raisins in a large bowl. Set aside.
2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a smaller bowl. Sprinkle flour mixture over the fruit and nuts. Mix well.
3. Beat eggs until light and fluffy; stir in brandy and pour over fruit mixture. Mix well with a wooden spoon until there are no more streaks of flour.
4. Turn cake mixture into prepared pan and press in firmly.
5. Bake in slow preheated oven for 1 hour and 45 minutes or until done. A cake tester should come out almost clean.
6. Cool cake on cooling rack for 10 minutes. Loosen around edges with a knife. Turn cake out of pan and finish cooling to room temperature on cooling rack.
7. Brush cake with brandy. Wrap in brandy-moistened cheesecloth and then in foil. Keep refrigerated. Slice thinly to serve.

 

 

Tags: Christmas cake, fruitcake, how to freeze dough, light fruitcake, make dough ahead, tips for stress-free holiday baking

Category: Baking Tips, Cakes & Tortes